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El Compadre Taco Shop
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Late Night, Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
35 reviews for El Compadre Taco Shop
Review Highlights
"Seriously, I love their Carne Asada Fries."
(in 9 reviews)
"...just top off my fries with sour cream, cheese and guacamole."
(in 3 reviews)
"get the carnitas mini tacos and take a flan to go to share..."
(in 3 reviews)
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35 reviews in English
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Review from Matt b.
San Diego, CA
1/11/2012
These reviews do not lie. Hands down their carne asada fries are mondo tasty! If for some reason you find yourself drunk, in El Cajon, do not panic. Go to this place and grub down. Immediately following ingestion, note that it is right next to the 8 freeway, which will take you and your designated driver FAR AWAY.
See also: bean and cheese burrito, chili rellenos, quesadillas, awesome service at 2 am. -
Review from Christy H.
Chula Vista, CA
8/28/2011
Great food. Great prices. Open 24 / 7. Drive-thru. Fast service.
Almost everything on the menu is really good, but the stars of the show are their Fish Tacos, Street Tacos, any quesadilla, really good guac.
Their carne is good. Better than ok, but not the best I've ever had. (ergo 4 stars)
THE BOMB: Shrimp Burritos. Seriously great flavor and huge shrimp. -
Review from Alex B.
El Cajon, CA
12/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
I always get their bean and cheese burrito with extra cheese and I must say they make it the best. If you want mexican food go here becuase I swear it is the best around by far!
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Review from S D.
El Cajon, CA
1/20/2012
I'm hooked on their Carne Asada plate. That's all I ever order, so my assessment might be of limited use. This place is open 24 hours, has a drive-thru and most importantly great food and generous portions. Their carne asada is among the best I've had. Also they take credit cards without charging an extra fee.
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Review from Hali H.
San Diego, CA
10/19/2011
I used El Compadre Taco Shop to cater my fiance's 30th birthday and mine as well! Both times, the food was awesome. The prices are extremely reasonable (less than $10 pp for carne asada, pollo asado, camarones, rice, beans, tortillas, and pico, with all trimmings [lettuce, onions, cheese, sour cream, cilanro, lemons]!!) and the food is delicious--especially the shrimp! My one suggestion is to get the mini flour tortillas instead of the regular-sized ones which are equally delicious, but massive. No complaints about El Compadre at all. A perfect solution for any catering event. Will definitely use again.
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Review from Alexander M.
Santee, CA
9/24/2011 1 Check-in Here
Their speed of service is usually moderate. Everything tastes alright, just a little bland at time. Bean burrito is fine! =]
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Review from Josiah S.
San Diego, CA
10/19/2011
The carne asada fries here are amazing especially after late drunken nights the only reason it doesnt get a 5 is because most of the burritos ive tried here are average and i like to switch it up and not get carne asada fries everytime
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Review from Melissa M.
San Diego, CA
8/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
The best spot in El Cajon to bring your drunk friends. Seriously, I love their Carne Asada Fries. Yummmm
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Review from Courtney B.
Denver, CO
6/12/2011
Best carnitas. BEST FLAN EVER. open late or even 24 hours. The rest of the menu is just ok. carnitas and flan are the shining stars. get the carnitas mini tacos and take a flan to go to share with someone cuz its HUGE
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Review from Matt G.
El Cajon, CA
1/2/2011 29 Check-ins Here
The best carne asada in town!
A great family owned business with consistently good food. -
Review from Joe S.
Alpine, CA
4/21/2010
At one time, long ago, this place was a Wienerschnitzel. I remember going through the drive through to get corn dogs before heading to the Aero Drive-In for movies when I was a kid. Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back etc... I think I even saw Porkey's there... This was before my family moved to Lemon Grove.
Anyways....
I moved back to El Cajon decades later for a brief time. I still remember when I was living on Oakdale in the Compound, and the night that some dirty tweeker shot the El Compadre dude... He was back at work a week or two later too... Can't keep a good Taco Pusher down..
I assure you that any Cockroaches at El Compadre only serve to add to the flavor of whatever you're eating. I would put the Carne Asada Fries among the top 10 in San Diego. Once in a while when coming back into town late, I will still stop here because it's the only place aside from Jacks, that is open at 3am, and is on the way. A concoction like this could only be born of a border town. It is a part of the soul of San Diego.
As matter O fact, we in San Diego can make anything into a Taco or Burrito, I've seen it done... Curry Tacos, Spaghetti Burritos...
This place is A-OK as far as Taco Shops go. -
Review from Alan K.
7/12/2010
The building was ghetto fabulous. It looked like a converted Wienerschnitzel with a drive thru cut in the middle of it.
I ordered a Carne Asada Burrito Combination Plate. The rice and beans were okay. The carne asada burrito was bland. It was just okay.
I probably would not return here because I believe there are much better taco places in the San Diego region. -
Review from Warren W.
11/19/2007
A-Frame with a Drive-Thru in the middle of it.
That's one of two notable things about El Compadre. The food was average, and the service was messy. They put so much sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo in their California Burrito that you can't taste any of it - it's just a big sloppy mess in a tortilla.
The other notable thing though was that, despite their poor quality, the drive-through line was stacked with pickups and small SUV's, all bearing the stickers from ORW and other desert sports companies. The cooks inside were shoveling out dinners faster than you can imagine.
I guess people like messy and bland, as long as they can get it handed to them through a window while they sit in their pickup.Listed in: Go East, Young Man, Lasciate ogne speranza, voi…
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Review from Albert W.
2/9/2009
The best way to describe how El Compadre looks is like a triangular Wienershnitzel hut with a drive through forming a rectangular hole in the midsection. It was very brightly painted and looked like one of the only places open in the vicinity past midnight. After being the only one who was up after leaving the casino with his friends, our generous hero offered to buy them Mexican food here as a small consolation prize.
The breakfast burrito our hero decided on tasted horrible. He had to turn on the light in the car just to figure out was he was eating. The bacon was lukewarm and chewy rather than crispy, and the eggs were somewhat burnt. His friends' quesadilla and tacos were also a "meh" at best.
PROS:
- Open 24/7.
- Unable to miss it due to the convenient location and unique architecture.
CONS:
- The menu for the drive through is posted right above the tunnel you drive in to for ordering, so you will have to crane your neck or look out your sunroof to see what's available if you're not sitting in a lifted truck. Why couldn't they have placed the menu board NEXT TO the drive through like other well designed fast food restaurants?
- Really mediocre food, which was quite disappointing for such an interesting looking joint.
- There's barely any seating outside. This is meant to be a drive through fast food place.
- Bad bacon breakfast burrito. -
Review from Lin G.
El Cajon, CA
6/12/2011
Had a California Burrito and it was fantastic. Usually a lot of the mexican food makes me sick but this was great. Our new favorite place :)
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Review from Mireya V.
11/1/2008
Hands down, the best Mexican food in East County! Especially for the late night munchies!!! :)
Despite the previous review, this place DOES have carnitas. I don't know of ANY taco shop that doesn't sell them. If there's something that you're craving and you don't see it on the menu, ask! They might just have it!
Carne asada fries/burrito are good, but the chimichanga is my favorite! I feel so guilty after eating it, but damn... it's good!
Yes, they're always busy but be patient. It's worth the wait!Listed in: No Games. Just Food.
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Review from Robert C.
9/18/2009
I don't live in El Cajon anymore, which is overall a good thing. However, not being close to this place is a bad thing. It is cheap, really good and the guy is always super friendly (but not in a phony way). Right off the freeway, so it's super convenient, 24 hours a day they are ready to serve up some goodness. I love their cheese and guacamole, get that on anything on the menu and you will leave a happy camper. Cheap taco shops are dime a dozen around town, this is one of the good ones. When I was a younger man I had quite a bit of weight on me and it was mostly because of this places' amazing carne asada fries. My willpower is better now, but if they weren't so bad for me I'd drive out to El Cajon right now and crush an order of them. I could always go for a jog later, hmmm.....
Oh ya, don't cut in from Second Street, that is so not cool and everyone in line will hate you, go in where everyone else does on the side. -
Review from Daniel S.
Del Mar, CA
1/2/2011 1 Check-in Here
Its kind of dirty here.
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Review from Talar P.
San Diego, CA
9/7/2008
I'm giving them 5 stars mostly because i don't think the other reviews are very fair ... they do have carnitas and not sure what the first review is about (sloppy CA Burrito? i ordered one right after reading this review to see if he was right....and it was off the mark). Maybe they've changed a bit since we started going there - who knows - but all I can say is we drive 10-15 miles to go to El Compadres when there are at least 10 that are closer to our part of town.
They're always busy (both drive thru and walk up window) - open 24 hours - the employees are super nice at all hours of the day ("hola my friend!" is a common greeting, with a huge smile...even the first time we were there).
Definitely good all around pick for mexican food. My boyfriend (mexican foodie!) and I give them an A+ ~ check 'em out! -
Review from Paul S.
10/5/2010
For years, I have avoided this place. Looking like an old Weinerschnitzel. The pyramid building isn't much too look at. I work in the area and have been going to Estrada's next door for a while. So the first time I came here I was pressed for time. I didn't feel like getting out of my car so I was like I will give this taco drive thru a shot.
This 24 hour taco shop has two drive thru lanes that converge into one. I can see there being mayhem if two cars show up at the same time in the different lanes. So far I haven't had any problems though.
The guys working there are cool. They always get my order right and are pretty fast getting it together. The food is also decent. Their fish tacos are my addiction for now. Their burritos and tacos are pretty good too. I recommend their shrimp burritos. They use full size shrimps. Not those tiny shrimps you can get at other taco joints. They make a killer cheese quesadilla as well. I am continually amazed how simple ingredients can make something great like a cheese quesadilla- tortillas and cheese. Definitely my first stop for Mexican food on a lunch break in El Cajon. -
Review from Laura S.
El Cajon, CA
Great late night greasy food. I spend way too much money a month here because it is so good.
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Review from Amanda W.
San Diego, CA
2/5/2011
Best Taco Shop in El Cajon!!! They have the best Carne Asada fries ever and give a great portion. What does it for me thou is the mini carne asada tacos, even thou I wouldn't consider them mini. They are almost as good as TJ tacos and if you buy them between Mon-Wed they are only 99 cents a taco! The reason I give 4 stars instead of 5 stars is because they do mess up my order often, so just make sure you check your food before you order. I recommend you trying this taco shop if in the area, u can't miss it, it looks like an old wienerschintzel and is open 24/7!
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Review from Heidi W.
San Clemente, CA
1/13/2011
After years of getting off @2nd St to get gas on our way east. I finally convinced my wife to drive thru. I had the #17 fish taco combo and she had rolled tacos. Both were great. I loved the rice, the tacos were yummy too. Will stop again and again.
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Review from Roseann S.
El Cajon, CA
2/10/2010
Best Pollo adasa (o) fries! I love how they chop up the jalapenos I order and just top off my fries with sour cream, cheese and guacamole. LOVE it. I don't really get anything else there..the wait is long at times but hey it's worth it.
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Review from Jesse D.
El Cajon, CA
8/11/2010 1 Check-in Here
I've eaten here about 2 or 3 times a month for the past 2 years. The food is good and the price is right. I love that they have drive thru service but only if there's no more than three cars ahead of me. More than that and it takes too long, my patience wears thin. It seems that walk up service gets slight preference to drive thru service. So if there's too many cars in line, park and walk to the window. The place is open 24/7 and is pretty popular. The building looks like a big yellow triangle. The neighborhood isn't the best but we are in El Cajon. It's close to the 8 freeway, bank, gas station, and other fast food spots.
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Review from Doug B.
Yorba Linda, CA
11/19/2008
Excellent, cheap, flavorful authentic Mexican food. Great place. Do yourself a favor and try it. The fun colored building is a bonus.
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Review from Matthew H.
El Cajon, CA
9/24/2008
Tough because they are alright, but there is just two better places near by them so I give them 2.5. Ritas is a little better they got a 3 and Estradas is a lot better and got a 4. if you want to get it quick and back on the road go here good alternative because the other good mexican food places near 2nd don't have a drive through.
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Review from katie f.
San Diego, CA
2/21/2011
I went here like a year ago...This is the only mexican restaurant I have been to that told be I could not have beans because they had run out of them. What the hell kind of mexican restaurant runs out of beans at 4pm? needless to say, that was my last visit there.
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Review from Nick G.
Berkeley, CA
7/29/2009
The California burrito I got was probably the least tasy one I've ever purchased. The potatoes were really bland as was the meat. I also thought the price was pretty high when compared to the quality of the product. I don't recommend this place; there are better alternatives in the surrounding area.
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Review from Vinny M.
San Jose, CA
8/11/2009
My only experience of this place was the chicken tacos, which to me were not that great. I like the chicken in my tacos to be chopped up not just one big piece. I did enjoy the cheese that they put on it though, not sure what kind it is. Also the rice and beans here are pretty good.
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Review from Stacey C.
San Diego, CA
7/28/2009
Pretty good.... pretty pretty good. The staff are super friendly and the food is tasty and fast. They always have customers, so that has to be a good thing too.
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Review from Erik L.
Goose Creek, SC
11/27/2008
Some bomb Mexican food. usually quick unless some bastard sneaks in the side entrance and has to order at the window. Carne asada fries are very good would def recommend, also couple lights away is valerios....both are muy bien!
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Review from Donald W.
El Cajon, CA
2/20/2011
great deal on mini carne asada tacos. .99 cents monday-wednesday. good prices, friendly service
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Review from Maristel R.
Escondido, CA
11/1/2008
Hands down, this place has the best carne asada fries in San Diego.
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Review from Joyce D.
El Cajon, CA
12/11/2008
I LOVE this place! Carne Asada Fries are SO good. My brother orders the fries so much the guy at the window knows my brother and asks how he's doing. I'm tempted and excited everytime I see the place isn't packed (I drive by the place at least twice a day). I have tried the other Mexican places (I live like 5 minutes from El Compadre) and within that vicinity nothing compares. My friends have told me that the cheese that use is authentic and that they don't see it in other taco shops that often. As far as service goes I think you should go there around midnight because the man working there at night is the cheerful and energetic. Strange considering during the day the lady is cranky and sluggish, but I don't care cause the food is still great. I recommend that if its your first time you should go to the walk up window to order because the menu is so huge that you could be pissing people off trying to make up your mind in the drive thru. I know I have and I've been here almost weekly!
