y6y6y6's Profile
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
Sorry, I missed one. We also ate at Bale French Bakery.
If you love Mexican Seafood check this out
I really wasn't impressed with this place. Certainly not as good as the mariscos trucks in South county. Also not as good as TJ Oyster Bar or La Playita. It was good, but really not worth all the hype. Small portions for the price too.
If you think this is that great your world will be rocked by Mariscos Isaac, or even Mariscos German.
Carnitas tacos recipe in the current SDHG mag???
"How could that be unpopular??"
I suspect it goes like this -
DD: "San Diego Mexican food is a travesty of poorly made mediocre cliches."
CH: "Talk to me about quality homemade carnitas."
DD: "Shop at Costco."
Kidding of course....
Old Town San Diego
Did you want touristy faux Mexican that is not very good? Then just do the tourist thing and eat where you see a menu outside that looks tasty. They are all about the same. If I had to pick one it would be Old Town Market Cafe. But just because it's less touristy.
My suggestion would be to expand your question a bit. No one wants to advise you to eat mediocre food. I'd suggest going to El Comal. Or getting adventurous and heading to south county to a mariscos truck.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
Al pastor street tacos were the favorite. Spicy shrimp taco, and mahi mahi grilled taco also getting thumbs up. They had the trompo going, that might make a difference with the al pastor.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
So, followup.
Places we went -
El Comal, Mariscos Isaac, Talavera Azul, Ranas, El Patron, Coop's, Siam Nara, Rendezvous, La Playita, El Sol, Kiko's Place, Fish Boutique, K Sandwiches, Chupa Cabra, Marcy's Tacos, Rudy's Tacos, and Tacos El Paisa. We also got a bunch of stuff at the Mira Mesa food truck gathering. Not bad for one week.
Favorites of the Montana folks - Ranas, Coop's, Chupa Cobra. And Mariscos Isaac, the clear winner.
We didn't have time for all the places they wanted to go, such as Mariscos German and Tacos El Gordo. And other places they'd been to on previous trips, like Super Cocina. I wish we'd gotten to some of the other mariscos trucks, we just didn't have time.
My favorites, as someone who eats this stuff all the time - Ranas, Mariscos Issac, and El Paisa (which seemed better than usual).
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
I should add I don't mean this as a personal attack. I respect and appreciate the posts here by DiningDiva and others very much. Full stop. I'd be sad if the board wasn't here.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
I agree with what you are saying. I just look at it from a more positive mindset. I've done my fair share of whining about the failings of the San Diego Mexican food scene. I've had better flavor and selection in LA and SF, which are further from the border and have fewer people actually traveling to Mexico regularly. I understand the problem.
But I live here, and there is plenty to like here. And while I agree we don't get a very diverse selection of Mexican dishes, I'm guessing that many places in Mexico don't either.
If the question is, "What is the good Mexican food here?", and the answer is, "Nothing", I'm afraid I'm always going to put that answer aside and get on with eating good "Mexican food". Just my opinion, but whining about SD food is more uninspired and insipid than the actual food.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
Okay. "Mexican food" in San Diego sucks. I can sympathize with that opinion on some level. But I'm pretty sure it's better than "Mexican food" in Kalispell Montana, where my guests are from. In fact I'll lobby you Kalispell could easily beat San Diego in terms of "most uninspired, insipid Mexican food".
My point is that criticizing the offerings in San Diego as falling short of matching the entire diversity and depth of the entire country of Mexico...... Come on. We don't live in Mexico, and even if it sucks that various cuisines aren't better here, I'm guessing it's wildly better than most. Especially Montana.
Point Loma Seafood Re-Opens
The free for all ordering is a main reason PLS has been successful. There are plenty of places around the bay to get fried fish or a fish sandwich. Once you take away the tradition and theater you just have a regular old fish place where you stand in a huge line with tourists. Why would locals want to do that? You can get the same or better at other local places near by, without the line. Then once the locals stop coming, the tourists dry up as well eventually.
Puesto in LJ
This page has a picture of the menus. To order you need to know to grab one of those at the door and draw on it, then hold it up to show the cooks while they make it.. Any new customers for the rest of time will need to be shown that. So having an employee at the door will be a requirement forever.
http://www.eatpuesto.com/ordering-at-puesto/
All of this is 100% unnecessary, since you can just talk to the cooks directly. And you'll talk to them anyway.
It sort of feels like a "Candid Camera" episode. "Let's see how much work we can talk people into going through to order a basic taco."
Puesto in LJ
Everyone who enters is given a plastic "menu" and a grease pencil. The menu has little icons for various ingredients. You draw on the menu to indicate what you want. Then you approach the cooks and hold up the kindergarten-style drawing of what should be cooked.
That's as odd and uncomfortable as it sounds. Making it worse is that you are choosing various ingredients, but it's not clear whether what you are drawing will end up as one taco or multiple tacos. And some of the things that sound like they'd be good together really aren't once they're in one taco.
My wife said it was like Build-A-Bear, but you only get to draw what you want, and you have to eat whatever mess you've come up with.
Puesto in LJ
I'm glad to find I wasn't the only one who got this impression. I might be able to get past the idiotic ordering process and mangling of the "street food" concept if the food was really good. It wasn't.
For these prices I'd expect seriously good food and good service. Getting the opposite of both is pretty bad.
Tip off #1 - If your ordering process is so difficult (??!!) and incomprehensible that you literally have to dedicate an employee to stand at the door and explain how to order....... Stop doing it?
Tip off #2 - I'm paying trendy prices for a simple taco. And I'm watching you make said taco right in front of me. But...... you're just scooping premixed and precooked ingredients out of bins? You're making me watch you not cook?
This might work in a place where people have way too much money and zero exposure to real ethnic food. But in a town with seriously good mariscos trucks? Calling this street food is shameful.
Chupa Cabras Taqueria
Not seeing this mentioned anywhere, so I thought I'd make a post for it.
I was honestly impressed by how good and authentic the food was here. Being surrounded by touristy bars and tanning salons, I figured it would be an Americanized sort of Mexican. It wasn't.
The spicy shrimp taco was a spot on Baja style with plenty of cheese and caramelized onions. The adobada was rich with achiote paste. The carnitas came in big chunks. The agua frescas were obviously made in-house. The tacos are juicy and messy, just the way I like them.
And the menu had so many interesting items, I have no doubt I'll be back soon. Highly recommended.
Chupa Cabras Taqueria
978 Garnet Ave
San Diego, CA 92109
Pacific Beach
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
As to Maritza's, I've eaten there. It didn't seem to match what I've read in various places. At all. I feel like I am seriously missing something.
Are the carnitas the thing that makes it worthy? I tried the fish taco, which had a minuscule piece of fish, was missing enough tangy sauce, and came with lettuce rather than cabbage. I also tried the carne asada, which I usually avoid and should have avoided here. I don't mean to be harsh, but to me it was average at best.
My impression seems to be so at odds with others that I've always wanted to try it again. But with so many places to try, there needs to be a good reason.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
While I know what you mean, and agree, when it comes to Yelp reviews, I mainly link to them for the other quality info the page has. Especially photos, intangibles, and a map link. Hopefully Google Places will some day fill that need, but it's not there yet.
Best San Diego Mexican Food?
Can I get some feedback on this? Things I missed?
So my sister, nephew and parents are coming down for a visit from Montana and I shared a list of Mexican food places I highly suggest with them. I thought I'd toss it out here as well, for public consumption. Just my opinions, not trying to start a war.
When the question is, "We're coming to San Diego for a few days. What Mexican food should we get?", my answer is the list below.
Besides those listed below, there are other places very much worth going: Las Cuatro Milpas, Tacos El Gordo, Mariscos El Prieto, Mariscos Isaac, Tacos El Paisa, La Fachada, Tacos El Panson, Maria's Taco Shop, El Pescador, TJ Oyster Bar, Talavera Azul, Frida Mexican Cuisine, Mama Testa.
And there are places you can safely avoid: Old Town Mexican Cafe, El Zarape, El Indio, El Agave, Candelas.
The List -
El Comal - Nice sit-dwon place. Broad menu and good bar.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-comal-san-diego-2
Ranas Mexico City Cuisine - Sit-down place. Large menu. Great sauces.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ranas-mexico-city-cuisine-spring-valley
Tacos Alex - Eat here or I will dope smack you.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/tacos-alex-san-marcos
Mariscos German Beyer - The one on Imperial. Or is the one below better?
http://losloncheros.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/mariscos-german-beyer/
Aqui es Texcoco - Lamb and barbacoa.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/aqui-es-texcoco-chula-vista
Cocteleria La Playita - Ceviche, fried fish tacos, seafood cocktails.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/cocteleria-la-playita-san-diego
Cantina Mayahuel - Margaritas, moles, street tacos.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/cantina-mayahuel-san-diego
Rudy's Taco Shop - Outstanding street tacos
http://www.yelp.com/biz/rudys-taco-shop-solana-beach
Los Arcos or Hector's Mariscos - Sit-down Mexican seafood.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/los-arcos-restaurant-chula-vista
http://www.yelp.com/biz/hectors-mariscos-chula-vista-3
Super Cocina - Actually super.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/super-cocina-san-diego
Touristy trip to San Diego - looking for good cheap food
While the carne asada at Rudy's is certainly some of the best in San Diego, please also try the al pastor street tacos. It's one of my top five.
Gluten Free Street Tacos?
I'm hoping to find an authentic tacos shop serving gluten free tortillas. Places I usually like are in the El Gordo, La Fachada, El Prieto category. Anyone know of such a place?
Reason being, my sister is coming for a few days and wants to try lots of taco places. But her son needs gluten free meals.
BEST AUTHENTIC TACOS IN SAN DIEGO
And who will break the news to you that everyone already knows that?
Best plate of Fish and Chips
I've eaten at Leo Burdock's. No place I've tried them compares.
Restaurants I've Been To Five or More Times & Can't Stay Away From
El Patron in Mira Mesa.
s someone who regularly drives everywhere from Mariscos El Prieto down by the border to Tacos Alex way up in San Marcos, I'm really really happy to see a Mexican place of this quality closer to home in Mira Mesa. Not a "best in class" sort of place like Super Cocina or Tacos el Paisa, but way better than average for just about everything on their deep deep menu.
We went here years ago when it first came in and it was very meh. But at some point they completely changed everything and the menu/quality really took off.
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Super Cocina
3627 University Ave., San Diego, CA 92104
Best Take-Away?
Punjabi Tandoor
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Punjabi Tandoor
9235 Activity Rd, San Diego, CA
Que Pasa Mexican Grill - RP
Went there tonight. Was not impressed. Service was slow. The ceviche had only a faint hint of lime and was too heavy on poor quality tomatoes. The cameron en su suza, rather than advertised, had no tomato, no jalapeno, and no mushrooms. The chile verde pork was mushy even beyond what I would expect for pork braised a looooooooooong time. I'm not sure any orange liqueur was used in the margarita. Flour tortillas with the meal, with no option for corn.
Not awful. I would rate it as slightly better than El Torito. But really too expensive.
Fish Taco Recs
Mariscos El Prieto, the truck on the corner of main and 4th. Look for the truck in the car audio parking lot. Waaaaay down in South country in Chula Vista, but worth the drive if you want a great fish taco.
Tijuana Oyster Bar in Bonita is also great.
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Tijuana Oyster Bar
4246 Bonita Rd Ste B, Bonita, CA 91902
Boston hound in SD, looking for fish tacos and sit-down Mexican
The places people are mentioning are all good. But in case you are wondering why no one is mentioning anything near Fashion Valley, it's because there really is no Mexican food worth mentioning near there. And the good trucks are all a bit south of you. I would suggest El Comal for a good sitdown meal. And Tacos El Paisa on Imperial for tacos, although I'm not sure how easy it is to get there by public transport.
San Diego has tons of places you'd like, but all of them are eaither way North or way South of Fashion Valley. I have a map of my favorites here -
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=200632515700366654714.00049dae96227dbd1c5a8&z=10
Also, the robot here insists I mean the Tacos El Paisa on 47th. That one is rather bad actually.
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Tacos El Paisa
840 S 47th St, San Diego, CA 92113
El Comal
262 3rd Ave, Chula Vista, CA 91910
FYI: Mexican food in Escondido
I finally got to the new Tacos Alex in San Marcos. Seriously good. Most of the tables were taken when I was there, and the meat on the trompo looked too big to get your arms around, so it looks like they're doing well. Which makes me happy. Very much worth the drive if you're in San Diego proper and love real tacos.
Good Eats somewhat near the University of San Diego
"What we don't have, is enough good "dives", where a college student can find a good meal for not a lot of cash."
We have that.
One thing that is ubiquitous in San Diego is the CAB, or carne asada burrito. I do not go near these things, as they are a shameful abomination of real Mexican food. However..... they are super big and super cheap. Five dollars usually gets you one the size of your forearm. Aforementioned JV's is a good place to try one. San Diego also sells a sadly large amount of carne asada fries. Same deal - a huge pile of food for cheap.
I'm thinking JV's or Nico's is what you're looking for here.
