El Bigote has a better Basingstoke origin story than most shopping-centre restaurants.
Owner Luis Moreno Mancillas brought the business to the town in 2021, originally operating from a food truck in Festival Square before moving into a permanent unit.
The menu centres on Mexican street-food favourites including tacos, burritos, quesadillas and nachos, with fillings such as birria beef, pork carnitas and chicken pibil.
What is on the menu
Menus change, so treat this as a guide to the style of food rather than a promise of what is available tonight.
- Tacos. The owner has described them as served in boxes on handmade corn tortillas, with a choice of protein and salsas. Fillings mentioned have included achiote chicken, slow-cooked pork belly, spicy beef brisket and battered fish.
- Nachos and wings. Loaded tortilla nachos and chipotle chicken wings are the two dishes the owner singled out.
- Burritos and quesadillas. Both are listed by Festival Place alongside the tacos.
- Vegetarian options. Mushroom has been offered as both a taco topping and a nacho protein. Ask about vegetarian and vegan requirements before you order rather than assuming.
- Drinks. Festival Place lists Mexican cocktails and soft drinks, and the restaurant has a bar.
Prices are not published on the Festival Place listing or in the owner’s interview, so we are not going to guess. Check the current menu before you go.
Opening hours
These are the hours given in the Festival Place directory. Check before travelling, particularly around bank holidays.
- Monday to Thursday: 12pm to 8pm
- Friday and Saturday: 12pm to 9pm
- Sunday: 12pm to 3pm
The restaurant also offers Click & Collect.
Where to find it
El Bigote is on the ground floor in Festival Square, inside Festival Place. It took over the former Festival Street Kitchen unit after starting out as a food truck on the same square.
If you are driving, the Festival Place car park is the obvious choice and is open 24 hours. Evening parking from 5pm to 2am is a flat £2.00 if you leave before 2am, though daytime charges are higher. The railway and bus stations are both close by.
If you are heading to a show afterwards, see our guide to parking and getting to The Anvil. Closing at 8pm from Monday to Thursday makes this better for an early meal before a performance than for a late one afterwards.
Why it is here
Because it is independent, distinctive and actually came up through Basingstoke rather than arriving after somebody at head office identified an available retail unit.
Festival Place has no shortage of places to eat.
El Bigote is one of the ones with a reason to choose it specifically.
For more options across town, see where to eat in Basingstoke.
Location
