- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Acapulco Mexican Restaurant Y Cantina
Categories: Restaurants Mexican Nightlife Bars Restaurants Buffets Mexican, Bars, Buffets [Edit]
1020 W San Marcos BlvdSte 50
San Marcos, CA 92069
(760) 471-2150
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 11 am - 10:30 pm
Fri-Sat 11 am - 11 pm
Sun 10 am - 10:30 pm
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Music:
- DJ, Karaoke
- Best Nights:
- Mon
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Coat Check:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Loud
- Good For Dancing:
- Yes
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
60 reviews for Acapulco Mexican Restaurant Y Cantina
Review Highlights
-
"I love there fresh chips and salsa." In 6 reviews -
"Their ice cream sundae is the bestest." In 3 reviews -
"Margaritas are great and they have great happy hour deals." In 4 reviews
Loading...
60 reviews in English
-
Review from Sonia S.
San Marcos, CA
5/24/2012
This place has a great happy hour... and from 2-8 = awesome. $2.99 margs and food... and the margs are pretty large and you can get flavored ones! Idk how strong they are, but they taste delicious haha.... They used to have free food during happy hour, so it was kind of a letdown when they took that away, but that was kinda ridic! I dont mind paying 2.99 for food at all
only thing that sucks is that the service is pretty slow. even if the restaurant is relatively empty. but if you come with a big group of people and arent in a rush or anything, then its totally worth it.
also they have karaoke. that is all. -
Review from Jeana L.
San Diego, CA
5/19/2012
Please don't waste your time trying this place!
We sat at a table out on the patio at 4:15pm. There was about 4 other tables occupied and in various stages of finishing up. We counted 4 waitstaff pass us by without offering drinks or menus. Then Victoria came by and took our drink order, however, she had no clue as to the beers on tap or the wine options. She had to look at the menu and then pointed to me that they had Merlot (she pronounced the 'T'......."Merlotte") We ordered one beer and one glass of Merlot. When she served them, she sat them down at the opposite end of our 4 person table, so we had to reach over and slide them over to each other. (The table had access all the way around, so I can't for the life of me understand why she served us this way) By the way, her name tag said "Victoria", the receipt and the other waiters referred to her as Brenda. (huh?)
We were never offered regular menus to order dinner. I asked for ice water and never got that.
She did deliver 3 napkins however, after we had finished our chips, salsa and drinks 20 minutes later. I never did get a set of silverware. Really poor service. When she finally did get around to asking us if we wanted more drinks or appetizers, we were already miffed about the lack of attention. And we weren't the only ones! Several tables around us had to get up and get their own chips and salsa from the bar!! What kind of place is this???
Other tables complained as well, especially about getting up to get their own chips and salsa. I'm so glad we decided NOT to order food after our lousy drink service and lack of acknowledgement when sitting down. I wished my fellow frustrated patrons "Good Luck" and decided then and there to write to the corporate offices of Acapulco.
It took another 10 minutes to get "Victoria-Brenda's" attention to get our tab, (We had to flag down another waitress to get her for us) Then it took another 10 minutes for her to bring it, and another 10 for her to cash us out. One beer, one wine, some lousy chips and the endless waiting for attention wasted an hour and 10 minutes of our time. We promptly left and went across the parking lot to Old California Mining Company where the service and the food were WONDERFUL! -
Review from Scott P.
4/1/2012
This is just for Y Cantina part of the Acapulco's.
Apparently we found out that everyday from 2pm-8pm they have $2.99 Humungo Happy Hour. Ended up getting some mango margarita's for that price (on a Sunday!) There are quite a few things to choose from, but felt like a margarita. It was tasty and not too sweet, plus there is a free chip and salsa bar, so no complaints. It was sort of quiet on a Sunday, so that was nice too as the bar is also humungo!
If you like cheap margarita's and chips, that taste great, give this place a try -
Review from Prince B.
Beverly Hills, CA
5/25/2012
The food (chicken) was BURNED charcoal BLACK, too salty, poor customer service, we were given food with no silverware to use. We had to find in from another table. I will not recommend this place to anyone. It's just the name, that's all. No taste on there food, they even forgot to bring us part of the order which was ice cream.
-
Review from Olivia S.
Vista, CA
5/14/2012
I have been coming here for years and finally decided to make a review. I love this place. Great food, great service, and always very well priced out. Can actually afford to take my children here for a nice dinner out. Will be coming back soon!
-
Review from Genesis M.
San Marcos, CA
5/13/2012
Food is mediocre...so don't expect good Mexican food. If you want to party on a Monday they have a club type thing going on. Don't expect good or fast service, you will wait for a long time. This is the way it's been every single time I have gone. I give them props for their Margaritas and Chips and salsa-that is all
-
Review from P E.
San Diego, CA
3/18/2012 1 Check-in Here
I'll just have say that I received the worst customer service at this restaurant and it was from the manager himself. I feel bad for the owners that have such a nice restaurant like this and has such bad service from their manager, this guy goes overboard thinking he owns the place. I went to the bathroom and there was another customer complaining about the same guy saying the manager treated him like shit!
My sister comes here 4 times a week! After this incident she's pissed and not coming back!
I also feel bad for the staff that has to deal with such a piece of sh!t of a manager with such a big ego! -
Review from Samantha S.
San Diego, CA
3/29/2012
Only been here once for karaoke and happy hour. Pretty fun!
We grabbed the $3 fruit margaritas and some Apps... food portion wasn't the best but the food was okay... you also get free chips and salsa. The drinks were delicious though! The waitress was also VERY friendly even when extremely busy.
The karaoke was a lot of fun, with a DJ that makes sure new singers get tossed into the rotation quickly. In between singers he'd also toss on a bit of well loved music, giving us all a chance to dance and socialize in-between. I live a little too far to become a regular -- but I'll be here again for sure! -
Review from kate g.
San Diego, CA
4/2/2012
Looking for Venues with outdoor seating and decided to try Acapulco in San Marcos for lunch..
The Mexican Food was excellent, I'm mean yummy, fresh with fresh tortillas and a whole 'street taco station! But the best part was the Patio Dining with beautiful Palm Trees and the Water Fountain gently flowing. I'm going back at night to sit out on the patio under the string lights with the mariachi's playing ..good times and very attentive service. -
Review from Natasha A.
San Diego, CA
2/18/2012
Came here with a friend and had a blast. I believe it was a Saturday night so towards the end of our time together (after we had finished up our food and drinks) we were still sitting and talking when we noticed that the place had turned into a dance club....with no patrons! It was around 10pm i believe? We were the only ppl left in the restaurant and in the whole place, lol. The "dance music" they were playing was pretty sad too, definitely didn't tempt me into coming HERE after-hours.
Anyway this review is for the restaurant portion, not for whatever was going on in that large, dark empty room with loud music.
I've been on a healthy eating kick lately and their menu catered perfectly. I don't remember what it was called because I'd had too many margaritas by this point (very good margaritas might i add), but my friend got the giant nacho chip thing (big as a bicycle seat!) covered in salsa, sour cream, meat, beans, rice etc. It was all SO GOOD.
Service was good too and we had a blast (i'm sure those margaritas really helped too...try them!)
Definitely coming back! -
Review from m e.
Carlsbad, CA
4/14/2012
Acapluco needs some justice, and I am going to serve it up right here. The food is good, but not amazing, the atmosphere is pretty good, and the price is really reasonable, especially if you split and appetizer and fajita. I suggest the shrimp and spinach queso dip and the beef, shrimp, chicken fajitas, and the flan is really good too.
-
Review from Kim V.
San Marcos, CA
Updated - 4/16/2012
Service and food quality has been going downhill for some time. Every time I go, (weather it's busy or we are the only ones there) I end up waiting at least 10 minutes before anyone notices I'm there. Food comes out wrong and the quality is suffering. Wait at least another 10-20 minutes for the check... every time. I've spoken with the manager 3 times, nothing seems to be getting better. I will not be going back... I suggest Sublime instead which is in the same area and has MUCH better service, food, and atmosphere!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
1/9/2012
This place is WAY better than El Torito... I would recommend going Mondays for Margarita Monday,… Read more »
-
-
Review from Bonnie G.
11/3/2011
It's not one of the 'to's' joints in San Diego. You know, Robertos, Albertos, but for a sit down place, it's not bad.
I had the shrimp enchilads and my husband had the 'create your own' combo dinner. We both enjoyed our dishes. The service was fine.
This place is a million times better than the 'cocina' place across the driveway.
Not my number 1 choice for Mexican in north county, but it's close and decent. I bet we'll be back. -
Review from Joanne W.
Escondido, CA
2/21/2012
My sister and I made the mistake of going here for lunch. We hadn't been to an Acapulco restaurant for quite some time. Since we both are in love with Acapulco (the city in Mexico), we said, "let's go to lunch here!". Bad mistake. We sat outside on the patio, actually not a bad place, large, with a fountain and nice atmosphere, but that ended the good part of this place. The waiter wasn't bad, mediocre at best, but the food.... if you could call it food. It was more like frozen, reheated leftovers. Nasty, tasteless, overpriced, etc. etc. We hated it. We actually split an entree and had water, and the bill still came to over $20. Nope, we will definitely not return to Acapulco the restaurant, just to Acapulco the city.
-
Review from Gus L.
8/25/2011 3 Check-ins Here
What can ya say...It's Aculpulco...The Red lobster of the Mexican food world. Is the food bad? No...Is it great? No...Service is pretty much par for the course...but Hey! Their name tags do tell you what part of Latin America they hale from.
The family and I recently stopped in this past week for a quick weekday bite and a margarita (well a few beers for me)...
The service was good, the food was ok...But all as expected.
Enjoy! -
Review from Humberto G.
Vista, CA
While I am not a big fan of Acapulco's, I will admit the time I came a few weeks ago it was actually pretty good. When I was in college we used to come for the lunch buffet and overload on as much tortillas and salsa we can stuff our stomach's with before we had to go back to class.
Fast forward to 2011, and Acapulco's get's no love from me. I only went since my Mom wanted to go, and she wanted non-Berto's Mexican food. I conveniently had gotten a coupon in an email for a buy one plate, get another plate for $2.99. My Mom's friend went, and we both naturally went for the high priced item on the menu since we were getting another plate for $3, you know, to get that bang for the buck. She had the buffet, and we both had the Sea of Cortez. Everything on my plate was good. I was surprised that the halibut was so tasty, as was my first ever crab filled enchilada. A little different, but good nonetheless.
Service was good, as our waiter was very attentive and filled our drinks a couple of times. Not bad Acapulco's, not bad. -
Review from Katie B.
San Diego, CA
3/12/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Wow, some of you douche bags need to chill out with your lame and harsh reviews.
My friends and I just went here for a little birthday party, and we thought it was pretty good. The service was excellent. My friends and I all loved our waitress.
Sorry that some of you come in here thinking it's a "club". It's a freaking restaurant and bar... relax!! They offer salsa dancing lessons on Saturday nights, and they seem really fun. How many restaurants even offer something like that?? I think it's pretty cool.
I wasn't feeling well, so I didn't order any food, but my friends got the nachos, carnitas and shrimp enchiladas and they all said they were good. They also said the chips, salsa and margaritas were awesome.
I would come back here because I know the service is great, the food is good and it's a fun environment. -
Review from alex v.
Oceanside, CA
4/11/2011
Reviewing MargarIta Mondays, not the restaurant because ummm, well come on guys, Acapulcos in the center of a bunch of other restaurants and it has a club at night time, obviously the food is not gonna be all that great.
Anywho, Mondays can get really packed i mean really super packed. Good music, cheap drinks, fun atomosphere. I have gone there plenty of times and although you sometimes rarely see any fights you occasionaly do see some dumbass who cant handle the liqour and act hard. You must wear dress shoes or at least nice vans with a collard shirt. Get there early so you wont have to wait in line forever. They now, have been having, 2 dance floors. One hip hop and top40 and the other bachata, salsa and regeaton. The cover charge is 7 bucks. I recommend you to check it out. You will have fun.
Before I end my review I wanna comment on a previous review - Andy C.- come on man!! How are you gonna give them a bad review if they didnt let you get in with sandles? If thats the rule then thats the rule. Are you gonna get mad if Walmart doesnt let you in without a shirt? Oh and another thing, did your friends really leave you outside while they enjoyed themselves inside? Maybe they said it sucked so you wont feel bad! Sorry bro but dont review a place if you yourself where never in it or experienced it. -
Review from Karl S.
Poway, CA
Ay Caramba! I've been going to Acapulco for 30 years.
The food is decent, moderately authentic. Larger portions and fair prices. This location is very open. A little loud, put that's pet of the package. Two outdoor patios makes it hard to escape the smell of cigarette smoke.
Watch the mail for a coupon, they can be big money savers. -
Review from Gary R.
10/24/2010 1 Check-in Here
I'm of the opinion that this place gets a lot of uncessary hate. Is it Gringo food? Uh huh. Are the ingredients cheap? Probably. Does the food lack spice? Yep. But can you really blame Acapulco? Let's be honest; they must serve a North County demographic composed greatly of senior citizens and baby boomers that walk around with sticks up their butts all day long; therefore, for them to stay in business, they must offer a menu that is subdued and restrained so as not to offend the fragile sensibilities of their largest client base. Notwithstanding, if you really are looking for a quick and cheap solution to satisfy that occasional craving for Mexican cuisine, but don't want to subject your stomach and digestion system to the torture of local taco shop faire, Acapulco is certainly a reasonable, local alternative.
What a lot of people don't realize is that on Saturday nights (and perhaps on Fridays and Sudays, too?), Acapulco turns into a night club. I'm not into the club scene at all, but I enjoyed going and being part of the salsa dancing atmosphere the night I ended up there a couple of weeks ago. And they sport a decent Cadillac Margarita (a personal favorite), too.
(To the Yelp Powers That Be: The check-in function at this venue hardly ever works. Not sure what the problem is; therefore, if you can look into this, that would be great! Mmmmkaaay!?) -
Review from Kathalyn N.
San Diego, CA
8/24/2010
Uhhh, is this place for real? Seriously--Cholalicious. Ghetto...fabulous?
It's MONDAY, which means MARGARITA MONDAY! My roomie and I were down to get our drink on, and I say that in the most ghetto way possible.
We got to Acapulco at 10:30ish. There was a line to get in the door. When we got to the front, we had to pay a $10 cover. I have already broken 2 of my rules...standing in line in North County, and paying a cover.
We got in and headed straight for the bar. Turns out Margarita Monday ends at 10...no drink specials. Ooohhhhkayyyyyyy.
The bar was crazy busy. The whole place was crazy busy. I thought they were going to have to stop letting people in, that's how busy it was...on a MONDAY! Regardless, the drinks were okay, and the bartenders were on top of it.
The crowd--super ghetto. There were muffin tops everywhere. And a weird side note...there were a lot of girls who marked a striking resemblance to Ursula from The Little Mermaid. Y'know, the big octopus villain.
Will I be back? Heck yeah! It was hilarious...and the dancing was out of control. BUT, there were a few things I would do differently for next time:
1. Arrive a bit before 8 for drinks and food. $10 cover starts at 8:30, so relax and enjoy:
2. $2.50 house margaritas until 10. That...is...awesome.
Additional side note. There is a crazy asian on the dance floor every Monday. You WILL know him when you see him. Upon looking at his dancing skills, you will immediately ask yourself, "Is this guy on Drugs?!". Yeah, he's Beau...and he's on drugs...I think. -
Review from Michelle Q.
Valley Center, CA
3/1/2008
My sister-in-law was visiting and wanted some beans and rice (she's more Mexican than... Mexico) so she got my husband and I, her husband and my mom-in-law to go to this Acapulco in San Marcos' Restaurant Row on a Friday night. We ended up finding parking but it wasn't easy, and upon entrance we immediately requested somewhere on the quiet side.
The chips were warm and the salsa spicy, just how we like them. Three of us ordered a grande Acapulco Gold margarita, which comes in a martini glass the size of a small salad bowl. You get an additional shot of Grand Marnier to pour in (or shoot, but we poured ours in). There were five of us adults and two children, so by the time our food came out, we got another round of margaritas. Be careful, they don't list the price of the grande drinks in the cocktail menu... they're 12 bucks and change each so our bill for drinks alone was $75. Yikes! That sure snuck up on us. We could have have bottles of Jack lining our countertop for that much.
Husband ordered the seafood enchiladas (which didn't come with beans on the side, so I gave him mine) and I had the carnitas, which was a huge plate with tasty slow-cooked pork, guacamole, rice and tortillas. Only downside was that the tortillas came a little late so I couldn't put them altoghether until I kind of lost my appetite.
Our waitress was really kind though, I think she brought us extra
shots either to make us forget about the price of the drinks or just because she liked us. Probably the first.
Oh yeah, and the womens bathroom is much too small for that place's capacity. Overall an "okay" experience. -
Review from Andy C.
Carlsbad, CA
7/26/2008
LAME LAME LAME LAME and LAME!!!!!!!
First I must say, that this is just a review on their wanna-be night club-ish area.....NOT ON THE RESTAURANT!!!!!!!!
my friends and I came here after leaving penny lane to do more drinking. Since it was after hours, my friends and I came here for the little dancing area of the place and it was super lame.
First thing that pissed me off was the fact that I couldn't get in!!! I said to myself, "Do you know who I am!!! I'm an Elite Yelpper!! Wait till I get to my computer!!" but I couldn't get into the place because I was wearing sandals, but I took at all at their thing, and it said "No Tennis Shoes and No Sandals." I'm sorry....If I'm not allowed to wear tennis shoes or sandals, THEN WHAT THE HECK AM I SUPPOSE TO WEAR! Next time, I'll just wear some tube socks and see if I can get in, or if not, I will spray paint some shoes onto my feet.....OR I WILL WEAR My BOWLING SHOES INTO THE PLACE!!!!
Second thing that pissed me off was the fact that the dirty security guard guy was hitting on my friends in front of me. I mean, ok, yea they aren't my girlfriends or anything like that, but I mean seriously....after turning me away, you are going to tell the girls that I'm with that they can get in for free. all I got to say is Dirty Pig. (to get in, it is about $5 to get in)
And lastly, Once my friends came out of the place, they were telling me about the horrible service that they got when they were inside at the bar drinking. They had to wait forever and forever in a club with people who smelled horribly and after about 10 minutes of waiting at the bar, they finally got served. hahahaa, they got served. (done with randoms)Listed in: Yummy In My Tummy, North County Locals, The 1's
-
Review from Icky W.
San Diego, CA
1/17/2010
Margarita Mondays!!!
If you have a group of friends and love to go out and just chill, then this is a very economical spot. 7-9pm on Monday nights they have Karaoke and they have a really cheap happy hour menu. Margaritas are $2.50 the whole night and you can have them on the Rocks or blended. Their Karaoke selection sucks but it's a nice low key vibe up until 10pm.
After 10pm the restaurant turns into a night club and they start charging people $5 to get in. They have a strict dress code where you're not allowed to wear Tennis Shoes or Sandals. They have a midsize dance floor that holds about 25-40people so it really does have that club vibe. They play mainly Hip Hop and Reggaton and that gets the club bumbin'!!!
They also have a nice patio area outside with tables and chairs where you get to hang out and socialize. If you're not shy and like to chop it up with people then go right ahead. Everyone there is pretty much open to talking with anyone. A cool place for singles but fun enough for your group date as well.
Avg Age: 21-30
Avg bar tab pp:Less than $20
Girl to Guy ratio: 3-2
If you're on a budget and looking to socialize with your friends or with other people, then this is a chill spot to come hang out at. -
Review from Kimmi N.
San Marcos, CA
9/23/2011
Today I got the fried ice cream...it's only $4.99 and could easily satisfy two. Delicious!
-
Review from Jim T.
San Marcos, CA
3/31/2008
Gross food, lame happy hour and in desperate need of new speakers in the cantina. The music sounds like crap coming out of these obviously blown speakers, the food is crap and the service is crap.
STAY AWAY. -
Review from Eric T.
San Francisco, CA
1/15/2011
Nothing special just okay Mexican food.
However Margarita Mondays are off the chain. 2.75 house margaritas...but you get what you pay for. Little to no alcohol. Show up early to margarita Mondays and enjoy bad singers attempt karaoke.
Also you want to show up early, because at 10 they turn the restaurant into a club. If you are already inside before 10 you avoid the cover fee. The club is actually half decent. Fellas bring some fun girls with you to dance with on the dance floor. They also have a separate room for merengue.
Food is average, club is surprisingly decent but still average. Bunch of creepy guys just stand around the dance floor...lame. Also the manager of the club is inconsistent. Threatened to kick me out after I was in all night because I didn't have a collared shirt...there were a bunch of other people with out collars...this ain't downtown. Ended up having to put on my jacket to get a bracelet, but just took it off afterward.
Place is only fun with a good group. -
Review from Christine C.
San Diego, CA
12/5/2006
I have a certain group of friends who are like moths to the flame when it comes to Acapulco's happy hours. Don't ask me why, but I can say the San Marcos location is a bit more upscale and elaborate than the Escondido venue and the Tuesday night karaoke scene is poppin'!
And by poppin' I mean every blue hair with in the 50 mile radius turns out for to sing ditties from the likes of Neil Diamond.
The scene is pretty hilarious and if you like $1.50 chicken tacos and free beans ,potatoes and chips AND you have a sense of humor you will enjoy Acapulco's karaoke as much as every other senior citizen that goes there. -
Review from Nikki M.
8/2/2006
I know i'm not supposed to like chain mexican food, but the bar has karaoke, the prices are good, the margarita's are large and this is a pretty large place so it's easy to get a table. If you're down for something dull like a bean and cheese burrito or fajitas this is a great place to go. Their ice cream sundae is the bestest!
Not a big fan of the lunch buffet tho, have the regular menu. -
Review from Miss Maggie C.
San Diego, CA
11/4/2008
**This review is just for the club on Monday nights, not for the food**
The club ... what can I say... it's a small dance floor in a small room... there's a bar next to it. You can get in free in the club if you eat dinner there beforehand... if you're one of the peoples who actually pay to get in this club, then I got one word for you... SUCKA!! Ok, so, music was ok, hip hop. It's full of, what else, mexicans. The drinks at the bar suck really bad. I don't know how you can go wrong with a screwdriver, but they did. So I said, ok, how can you go wrong with cranberry vodka? I don't know what they use, but that shit was bitter as hell. So I tried a bunch of other drinks, and not one of them was good!
This place is great if you like shady guys that hit on you or watching people grinding on each other. Other than that, I wouldn't recommend going here. -
Review from Alex R.
Escondido, CA
1/18/2008
This place is alright for what it is. Its a nice place to go for dinner, but Acapulcos just doesnt taste like authentic mexican food to me. I'd much rather eat at a taco shop for better food at a fraction of the price.
Karaoke night is pretty bumpin though'! I'll go here to hang out with my friends, but not so much for the food. -
Review from Felicia G.
San Marcos, CA
2/26/2009
This is funny every time we have gone here it is with our friends and their daughter and for some reason they always , always seat us at the same damn table no matter what. Its right next to the swinging doors that you enter from the lobby and its sucks because every time somebody walks through that damn door you get this cold ass breeze and its very often people are walking through there being that the main waitress has to seat people.
Every time we order we have to repeat ourselves because either for one they can't hear or two they just don't understand English too well???? I'm tired of it and it has been every time we have been there and we have been there at least 5 times, so guess what no more. The salsa they serve is made with canned tomatoes you can so taste the difference especially when my mom makes bomb salsa, I do have too say the Margaritas are good though.
Any-who at the end of the evening the waitress made friends with my son and ended up giving him and our friends daughter free ice cream to eat, it was a nice gesture but I think she was just in it for the extra tip which she didn't get because her service was horrible!!!
So word to the wise skip out on Acapulco and go eat at another place on restaurant row!! -
Review from Gabby G.
San Marcos, CA
8/20/2011
I always enjoy good service here. I like the patio seating and also their in-mail coupons, which my son n I often enjoy. Their warm chips n tasty thick salsa are my favs!
-
Review from Armando G.
Oceanside, CA
2/26/2009 1 photo
If you never had Mexican food or a foreigner from some secluded island then you would probably think this is the best mexican food out there. Sence we dont live on a deserted island and we live so close to mexico, we know that there is much better mexican food out there.
So do me a favor and dont waste your time or money on this place. It ends up being expensive and the food is ok. -
Review from Holly G.
San Marcos, CA
4/11/2010
Just wrote a review for Katsu Sushi and realized that a lot of the negative experience I had that was as much related to the center that it is located in, Old California Restaurant Row.
Old California Restaurant Row used to be an attraction but over the years it has gotten run down and seedy and lost its old charm.
There was no parking left in front of Katsu, probably because the San Marcos Brewery, the Old California Coffee Shop and IHOP customers take it. We had to park far away in the back and walk. They used to have this cute little 'train' that would give you rides but that's gone.
We didn't feel safe. None of the lights in the parking lot worked so we walked in almost total darkness. Half the restaurants were vacant so it was like a ghost town. The long gone empty Zip and Zacks looks like it could be home to the homeless. Next door some cheesy disco was going on in Fusions (used to be Tony Romas).
The journey back to our car was even worse. It must have been a gang fight breaking out from the bar of Acapulco's Mexican Restaurant. No kidding, about 20 guys were all going at each other with no security to be seen.
This bad experience visit was awhile ago. Since then, I've been back to Old California Restaurant Row to the Market Street Bakery and Friars Folly (now Canapes Grill).
While I didn't see any fights, it doesn't look like anything has been done to improve the center. Since the restaurants don't have bathrooms you have to use a public one with a combination lock. Last time I was there, one stall was flooding over and the other had no toilet paper. -
Review from Channer A.
San Diego, CA
9/15/2010
I've never gone in to eat there, I usually only go on Mondays or Fridays.. Their margaritas suck cause its premixed and comes from the gun but for 2.50 can you complain? The place is always jumping mondays and fridays yet everyone says its ghetto so go figure..
My only gripes with the place is in the bar area there aren't enough tables and chairs, it can become standing room only when you have around 40-55 people there, and with the size of that area thats not good. The bar itself is too small if you ask me. Not utilizing the space. Karaokee can be ok at times, The selection though is horrible. And the regulars that go there sing the same songs over and over again..Not the best place in the world but yea like alot of people have said for some reason you keep going back..
For those that gave it a bad review you probably went a bar area, and either didn't asked to dance or couldn't get anyones digits.. Any place is good for anyone if they meet new people and have a good time. Chances are it was probably you, not the place. -
Review from Frederick H.
Carlsbad, CA
3/19/2010
We went here for lunch, wanted a sit-down Mexican place near Fry's and this was the best we could come up with.
Sat outside, it was nice. The chips were WAY over-salted - we asked for some without salt, and after waiting half the meal we finally got them and they were a lot better. The salsa and small guac was good. I had tacos, rice, salad and it was fine; buddies had buffet lunch which he liked but which didn't appeal to me much, and fajitas which he also liked. The waitress was attentive and friendly, though she did make the mistake of telling us what SHE liked, not what customers tended to like.
The bill was cheap, since we didn't drink. All in all, somewhat better than expected. -
Review from Alyssa G.
San Diego, CA
4/15/2010
There's TONS of room for any size group. Every time I've been here there was never a lot of people.. and by that, I mean like 5-10 ppl at most. Not really a good sign.
Word to the wise, head over to Fidel's (now Norte?) in Carlsbad instead.. same price for 3x the portion size, don't let Acapulco's huge plates fool you. But if you're really curious about their food, I suggest going with the combo deals.. you get the option to create your own combo so you get a lil taste of [almost] everything. I heard their buffet is alright too, but again, the portions are much smaller. -
Review from Christian M.
San Diego, CA
8/19/2008 8 Check-ins Here
I'm going to review the restaurant only. I don't ever go to the club there so I'm not too sure what the fuss is all about.
Ever since high school, Acapulco has always been one of my favorite places to eat at. Upon arrival, you should be able to get parking fairly easily unless you go on a friday night, in which it can get a bit tricky. The queues can get long as well, but I don't think I've ever had to wait more than 30 minutes.
On to the food. The food is actually really good. Once you sit down, the waiter will serve complimentary chips and salsa. In my opinion, it's the best chips and salsa combo that I've ever tasted. The chips are very light and have a nice corn flavor to them. When I'm with a party, we usually go through like 3 baskets of them before our food arrives.
The food is excellent as well. I used to get the plato yucatan before they took it off the menu. That was very tasty. Now, I usually get the carne asada y camarones. It consists of carne asada on a bed of java rice with some freshly cooked vegetables, baked beans, and some shrimp. I recommend asking to get some of the buttered wine sauce. This goes GREAT with the meal. It's something that you need to request though. The meal also comes with a choice of flour or corn tortillas. I just think that the flavor of the meal is great. I've been going here for years now and very rarely does this place disappoint.
I'd say that the service is pretty on par. They've got a bunch of busboys running around to keep your table clean so that's no problem in my opinion. Overall, I'd highly recommend this place if you are looking for a more refined version of Mexican food. -
Review from Kimberly R.
Carlsbad, CA
3/10/2008
This review is based on their bar for happy hour only.
Went here with some friends for happy hour on a Wednesday night. Service was terrible, took 20 minutes before a waitress took our order and another 20 minutes for her to bring our first round of drinks. After that she disappeared for another 20 minutes or so and when a friend tried to order a drink at the bar, the bartender just seemed annoyed that we were bothering him. Now on top of all that, we had karaoke singers screaming in our ears and couldn't even talk to each other it was so loud.
The food and drinks are cheap for happy hour, but not sure it's worth putting up with the crappy karaoke singers and slow service for it.
