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Mon-Sat. 7:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sun. 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
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I've been here countless times since my first review and I have to say this place just gets better and better with everything I try.
Great salsa bar too!
It was late on a monday afternoon. I hadn't eaten much and had hiked and run. I was determined to… Read more »
After getting my friends lost, walking down the street too arrogant to admit that I really didn't remember where a good fish taco place was. We came to this random hole in the wall, when we were craving some fish tacos. Well, we ordered some fish tacos and other stuff.
The Good:
Al Pastor tacos, great flavor it's just bursting with fresh flavor and bite...the meat is super tender and yummy. Smaller size, I would get 2 orders next time.
Carne Asada Chips, the balance of sour cream and guacamole and meat...just the right balance (and I don't even like sour cream or avocado). I just couldn't stop eating this, the meat still had flavor as you tried to decide whether you want a crunchier chip or soggy drenched-in-avocado chip.
Bad:
Fish Tacos, the pickled carrots in their pico de gallo salso gives too much of a sweet note in the taco. Fish is fried too much, loses the fresh flavor.
Quesadilla, regardless if it is chicken or carne asada...they use cheddar which is too heavy for the quesadilla. Too much cheese, they should've stuck with a white cheese. Way too much grease and not enough flavor.
Next time I will stick with carnitas tacos and maybe a torta.
The pastor here is real good(has bits of pineapple in it).
Good Chipotle sauce @ the salsa bar. Carne Asada is decent. As for the the Cali burritos here...eh, not a big fan cause their pico de gallo is weird..it has bits of those pickled carrots in it.
This is one of Washington St's top 3 Mexican joints...With Los Panchos being on top of the list.
So my search for a good burrito in California led me to this place on a business trip. The prices are possibly even better than hole in the wall place in Houston, so I was off to a good start already. I was craving a breakfast burrito, and that's what I ordered. The burrito was HUGE for less than $5 if I remember correctly, and it was definitely filling. The salsa bar was plentiful and had really great options. I overheard a lot of people ordering the burrito that comes with fries, but it was 10:57 am, and I couldn't bring myself to do it. I forget what it's called, but I'm definitely going to try it next time!
great burritos and mini tacos; very reasonably priced and all of the staff are a delight
Whenever I'm feeling like GOOD Mexican (no, that doesn't mean you, Taco Rey), I come here. The food is great and flavorful, and the prices are fair for the quality of the food.
The service is unfriendly, but not rude. The speed is average, but it can slow down to a crawl at the lunch rush.
Seating is hard to come by, as all they have are tables for groups of three or four. So when people like me come in alone, we are forced to take one of those, which in this day and age with people and their personal space bubbles, creates a log jam for seating.
This is one of the better taquerias I have found in this neighborhood. The prices are reasonable, the food is pretty tasty and the menu is humongous! Something that sets El Cuervo apart from other Mexican places is that they have a huge menu, with all sorts of daily specials. They serve birria here (which is generally not a common menu item at taco shops), as well as certain desserts I have not seen anywhere else. The service is fast and friendly, and the restaurant itself has large tables and is pretty spacious. I didn't care too much for the salsas they had at their salsa bar, but the food I ordered was pretty good. I had the diabla shrimp burrito, which was good, but could have used some guacamole. My boyfriend ordered nachos, which are actually not on the menu. We both agreed the nacho chips were not very good, as they were dusted in some kind of seasoning that we didn't like. I will definitely come back though. I thought the food here was pretty good.
A fan for 12 years! Great all around food,and excellent prices.The Pastor is so good.Same with the early morning breakfast burritos.The Carne asada Torta's incredible.How about a North County location??
The carne asada is great while the beans are not. They're not horrible by any means but it was the one thing that kept this from being really, really good. They went a little light on the cheese but I'm sure it wasn't intentional. Or was it?
Here's what I done seen with me own peepers:
Carne asada burrito # 6 - http://www.yelp.com/bi...
Located near Bronx Pizza, El Cuervo serves food straight outta Mexico. I'm Jason and this is my… Read more »
I like this joint a lot. I eat here at least once a week .
Just recently discovered they have the best breakfast burrito in skateboard range.
Good enchiladas and combination plates. Also enjoy the bean tostadas and chile rellenos. Digging the new chipotle salsa!
I'd give them 5*s but sometimes the beans are not as good as other times. I think they are best at lunch and get dried out late in the eve...
So I picked up Christina and we wanted to get some food. We didn't know what we felt like having. I briefly told her about the Mediterranean Cafe and she wanted to try it. One problem: I forgot where it was located.
Of course I remember it was in Hillcrest, but I forgot which street it was on! Needless to say, we drove around for a good 20 minutes trying to find it. FINALLY, we found it and Christina points and yells, "Oh my God! It's right next to El Cuervo! I know that place!" Hmmm.. how convenient. Thanks Christina.
By the time we got there, we felt like having Mexican food instead. Sorry MC! We'll visit you next time! :(
So how come I didn't know about this private lot behind the strip of restaurants?! Since street parking can be an issue in Hillcrest, is it awesome to park in a private lot! Needless to say, I took advantage of that bad boy!
As soon as we walked in, the lady greeted us with a big hello! She was looking at Christina, so I figured she knew her. She didn't. She was friendly and that's all that matters!
Onto the food. Everything looked delicious, but since we weren't THAT hungry, we decided to share an order of Carne Asada fries. No surprise, they were delightful. Personally, I prefer the ones from El Compadre, but these were tasty! I have to agree with some of the other reviews. I did feel like I had swallowed a brick. I HATE feeling that way! The CA fries were definitely not easy on the stomach. Then again, I have yet to eat some that are!
I did have to deduct a star because they didn't have any carrots. Whenever I go to a taco shop, I always eat tons of carrots! Maybe they knew I was coming and they decided to hide them!
If I fall in love with a new place, distance is no object! Since I am so in love with El Compadre, I don't know if I'd drive all the way out to Hillcrest to have El Cuervo's food again. But if I'm in the area (which I often am) I will try them again! Next time, I will order something different. :)
This is my favorite Mexican food shop. It's super fast and I'm always satisfied when I leave. I work around the corner so we frequent Cuervo just about every week. The guys behind the counter are very thorough as well.
So since I'm a regular, I have my usuals. I order the chicken tostada, which is just enough for me, but they also have the flying saucer if you want a larger version. It comes with shredded chicken which makes the tostada a little more juicier, but I will often order the pollo asada (grilled chicken)...so delicious.
The garlic and diablo shrimp burritos are excellent! The garlic burrito is REALLY garlicky and the diablo has just the right amount of spice!
My other fave is the pollo asado quesadilla. It is so large that I usually split it with a friend and we'll also order the rolled tacos and share.
The salad/salsa bar is perfect! We pile our mini plates with fresh cucumbers, radishes, roasted peppers and a nice pico de gallo mixture. Plus they have 3 different salsas to choose from, my fave being the darker roasted one and they just added a new one which I like and it is a chipotle (bright orange).
For fast Mexican food, I love this place. My parents used to bring me here as a child. I can still remember how they used to have tons of pinatas hanging from the ceiling. I also remember staring at the mural of the bloody, dying bull in the arena, and the lady selling roses in the stands, on the wall. I am so glad it's still there. I just love it. (The gory depiction of a hog being bled out while hanging from a tree on the other wall isn't bad, either.) I think that my parents might have actually eaten at El Cuervo during their college years, when they were dating. That's how established El Cuervo is! It's a family-owned restaurant, too, which is cool.
I always order two shredded beef tacos, French fries with lots of ketchup, and a cheese quesadilla, plus a drink (horchata or jamaica, whatever suits my mood). Put one little plastic cup of pico de gallo from the salsa bar in each taco and you're good to go! The tacos are PERFECT. The meat is juicy and delicious, and the bottom of the taco gets absolutely saturated and soft with the meat juices. Heaven. (Just be careful. On the day of my very first job interview, I had the tacos for lunch. I wasn't sitting close enough to the table and the contents of my taco broke right through the soggy shell and landed in my lap. Luckily, it was a group interview at a mall, and I hid the disastrous evidence on my pants by being the first one to sit down at the table and by being a stellar salesperson.)
The food here is great, the employees are awesome (they still remembered me when I came in as an adult, even though I hadn't been there since I was a kid), and the atmosphere is cool, too. Go eat at El Cuervo Taco Shop!
Soooo..... go on in there and ask for the Breakfast (Ham, Egg and Cheese) and mix in a bit of Carne Asada and you got yourself the BEST BREAKFAST BURRITO EVER! You should also check out their Chilaquiles with the RED SAUCE.... throw some carne asada on top of THAT... mmmmmm delicious. LET'S ALL BLOG ABOUT THIS PLACE!
- Miguel S.
http://mrmags.blogspot...
Yes, yes, yes.
So, I ate at El Cuervo this week, after visiting once before several years ago. I don't recall why, but my first visit left a very poor impression. When my friend asked me to this week, I was apprehensive but reluctantly agreed.
This time, whole different ball game. I ordered the garlic shrimp platter, and it rocked my box. Intense flavor, and good quality shrimp. Not those little wanna be skrimps most taco shops around here seem to utilize.
My friend had the carnitas which were also excellent. While I don't think I'll be here too often (because El Zarape is a few blocks from my place), I will definitely return, and recommend it to all.
Que bueno.
I was craving for al pastor aka mini sized tacos and happened to be in the vicinity since I live close by to Hillcrest. Well, let's say I'm very disappointed with what they offered in spite of good price. For 4 tacos you get them under 5 bucks. But there were no lime, cilantro and chopped onions. It only came with guacamole and bits of salsa.The meat itself was a little fatty around the edges and a bit difficult to chew. Ack! Not soft, well cooked meat.The place was extremely quiet and not a lot of people coming in. But maybe that's because I came in a quiet Sunday evening. It looks like I won't be coming there again.
I love El Cuervo!! Definitely my favorite Mexican joint in Hillcrest. The breakfast burrito is to die for, I could seriously eat one every day (and, sometimes I do). They just started making this Chipotle Salsa that is ridiculously good. I also love the combo plates. Yes, it's true, sometimes the beans are not the best, but throw some of that yummy salsa on and you won't even remember.
Um yes, so delicious! I love their crispy tacos and bean and cheese burritos --- the best in San Diego! A family of four could eat here for less than $10 --- need I say more? Cheap really does have a special taste :)
I guess it's sort of a 2.5 really, but I'm not feeling especially generous today. :-P
It's really all kinda meh. The carne asada is actually pretty good - if they didn't drown it in very, very average guacamole. How does one make guacamole watery, anyway? It's a serious question - do they actually water it down, do you think? The guac is also way too oniony. And the carne asada burrito comes with too much of this oniony, watery guac and more onions and even some chopped up spicy carrots, which is just weird.
The rolled tacos taste kind of stale and freezer burned and topped off with more bad guacamole.
The salsa bar *looks* good, but the salsas don't seem to have much flavor.
Carne asada fries are again, only meh.
It's a really extensive menu, but I don't think I'll be back.
Sidenote - seriously, I have four taco shops within a few blocks of me and I don't like *any* of them?? Is it me or is it them??? Sigh.
Had to re-post this one and promote the TACO CARNITAS!!!
I can't even guess how many tacos I've devoured over the years. My endless quest for the best quality and tasting little folded tortillas of savory goodness has been a long one indeed. And although my journey for the best pastor, carne asada, pollo, dorado, langosta and many other great tacos has taken me to Mexico and back, the long and winding road to the finest carnitas this side of the border has brought me to El Cuervo.
Their taco carnitas are served with two steamy hot corn tortillas wide open with a generous helping of their amazing, marinated, shredded, lean, crispy, and moist carnitas topped with shredded carrots, cilantro, homemade guacamole (different than your typical guac and perfect for this application) and a side of lime to squeeze for tartness. I always add a generous helping of their amazing red hot sauce for the ultimate explosion of flavors! The tacos are not tiny. Sometimes one taco is all I need.
The restaurant is located across the street from Bronx Pizza. There's plenty of parking on the side of the building. It's roomy with lots of big clunky wooden tables, funky murals, and a TV above the sauce bar for those who like to gaze and graze.
The lovely lady at the front and the cooks are a wonderful family from Mexico. They are all so nice and professional. They keep the restaurant clean. That big screen door . . . keeps fresh air flowin and the flies out. What more could you want?
Well, I would give them 5 STARS if their other dishes were as extraordinary as the carnitas.
El Cuervo is one of the Mexican places that made my husband and I fall in love with the food in San Diego. His aunt took us here on our first visit as a married couple, and we loved it! We got takeout and went to Balboa Park to enjoy the food near the botanical pavilion there. Anyway, the carnitas at El Cuervo are awesomely delicious (we got the platter with rice & beans I think), and I believe we tried the carne asada too. We loved everything! His aunt says it's kind of salty, but regardless it's delicious. I remember the people working there being very friendly, too.
Best dang potato rolled tacos I've ever had! For vegetarians out there, you can't go wrong with these rolled tacos. As for their chips, I used to order the cheese and guacamole chips, but too many times the chips would be over-cooked or there wasn't enough cheese. And the cheese isn't even melted! But the potato rolled tacos keep me coming back, as well as the fact that El Cuervo is one of the few restaurants in Hillcrest that has their own parking lot!
I ordered the chicken quesadilla and it was super oily. I hate it when I pick up a slice and everything good slides out!
Once I got a fork and managed my first bite it wasn't so bad.
eh.
Good cheap food, very reminiscent of TJ but at least you know what you're eating. For a moment, however, I did feel like I had stepped into Los Panchos across the street, as their menu is almost identical.
I got the pollo asada burrito, by far the largest and tastiest I've ever had (sorry Los Panchos!). On a separate occasion, I tried the carne asada chips, which were okay. It probably would've helped if the chips were crispier and if they didn't assault them with so much seasoning salt. But still, they were okay.
The salsa bar is a nice touch (again, very similar to Los Pancho) and you get free refills on fountain drinks (except Horchata). This is a family run business so they're generally closed by 9-10pm (in order to avoid the drunks spilling out of nearby bars)
I've never been let down with the quality of the food. Absolutely love the tacos el pastore!
Don't be surprised to be the only white face in the place, it's authentic!
Una poema para El Cuervo
In the morning, desayunos
Chilaquiles, huevos rancheros
All day she thinks of you,
Obsesses,
Carnitas.
She returns that same noche
Tamales y guacamole.
There was a rubber band in the boyfriends taco today. =(
I can not find the words to say how much I love the chicken tacos here.
My favorite mexican food…
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One afternoon I fell off my skateboard right outside this place. I banged myself up pretty good. I may have been drinking.
All I could think was "Gosh, I hope I didn't hurt myself so badly that it will take me longer to get home and eat my burrito".
Yes, they are that good!
Where do I begin? TJ tacosare authentic and delicious, the salsa bar features several different types including a chipotl and roasted jalapenos, the carne asada chips are fantastic, and the camarones a la diabla are delicious!
There are very few taco shops I would trust the seafood at. In fact, this might be the only one I would trust. They are family owned and operated, which means they put that much more effort into their food. They also serve Negra Modelo and TJ beer. This place was my favorite budget dinner out while I was in school and poor. The fact you can order a beer made it seem "nicer". It is still my favorite taco shop in town.
Oh and Raiders fans are not allowed here-nice!
Ew ew ewwww! I always see people going in this place and I'm always thinking, I should check it out. Well, I did. After strict orders from my friend to get me a ground beef burrito with sour cream and cheese with sauce, but no onions.. I sought out my trusty La Posta location to deliver only to find out, the onions are mixed in their beef burritos.
So I tried El Cuervo. And guess what? They had a ground beef burrito. And guess what? It was cheap! And guess what? I asked the guy what it came with, and he said, "just ground beef" so I said "may I add sour cream, and cheese, and guacamole and make it wet?" and he said, "Of course" like I was some rookie
Well, I ordered it and this rookie took that burrito with pride back home, where I was proud of my gem... until... we opened it.
First, there was just ground beef and nothing else like I asked. No wetness, no ONIONS, thats good, but nothing else. PISSSSSEDDDDD. So I thought, ok, I got some stuff in the fridge, I'll fix this sucka up, but we had to try it to see what kind of damage control we needed..
A lot.
I mean, they sauteed brown beef and it tasted like there were no spices! Nada! Zip!
Soo, we mixed in some sour cream, added some avocado and melted some cheese on our COLD burrito that we had to heat up... which tells me that beef had been sitting there a while.. we salvaged it but I could've made a burrito better and in the time it took for me to go thru all that..
Alas, I failed my mission alright. I'll never go back there again...
Yuck!
Carne. Asada. Fries.
El Cuervo has the perfect guacamole:salsa:cheese:fries:carne asada ratio. Word of advice though, the smaller size is not listed (or at least, it wasn't the last time I went). But it exists! And it's cheaper! And it's not too big for an average person!
It looks like what I want a Mexican restaurant to look like. There are huge, chunky wooden tables and chairs. The walls are painted with, what I gather are, murals of Mexican landscapes. There is always a Spanish langauge soap opera on the television.
This place is definitely not for the faint of heart. Expect the grease, the saltiness, and the huge portions. But isn't that what Mexican food is all about??
Ths ONLY thing I am reviewing here is their Shrimp Diablo. That's all I've ever had here. It's the BEST frickin' shrimp diablo anywhere. The shrimp are plump, juicy and they sing to me as I eat them. The diablo sauce, now it's shrimp tail lickin' good. That's right, I suck those shrimp tails dry.
The diablo sauce has got to be made in house (if it isn't, don't tell me otherwise). It's a dark, deep, rich sauce with hints of citrus. Yes, it's spicy. Spicy on the way in and out.
The guacamole they serve with the shrimp diablo is less than mediocre- but they still get 5 stars for their shrimp diablo.
At least once a week, for the past 3 years, my honey has asked, "Can we go to El Cuervo?" Each time, it makes my heart sad that we are not in San Diego eating lard fried carnitas and lard enhanced refried beans. Some history: While living in San Diego, I ate at El Cuervo at least 3-4 times a week. Sometimes I walked from work (it's close to the hospitals, and gives them a steady supply of heart attack and stroke victims) and ate there for lunch, only to return after work and eat there for dinner. I consistently ordered the carnitas burrito with refried beans, sour cream, and cheese...sick, I know. But SO yummy. Though the carnitas was obviously fried, the burritos weren't greasy, while the tacos on the other hand dripped grease. They put the meat into the taco shell then fried them both...my honey LOVED this and he too got quite a belly while we lived there...and my a$$ while living in San Diego was proof of my love for El Cuervo.
At one point, my mom came to visit and asked, "Are you pregnant?" When I said "No" she asked "Were you recently pregnant?" Again, "no" but she looked skeptical. Until she came with me to El Cuervo. It seems that a diet rich in fried pork did nothing particularly good for my figure (except the weight that managed to make it to my chest) so after my mom called an intervention, I made a tough decision and moved. It was the only way to keep me from El Cuervo. I will be back though. And it will be worth the 6 months it will likely take for the weight to come off...
My boyfriend introduced me to El Cuervo and their food was delicious! It was greasy (which is a good thing in my opinion for Mexican food) and the salsas were good. I normally stick with the small carnitas tacos and have always found them delicious. Last time I went there I had the potato rolled tacos but found it was too much food for me; however, they were still excellent. I recommend eating here for delicious Mexican food in Hillcrest :)
Sushi and taco shops are my two favorite foods. I guess a little odd.
I have to say I really don't love the taco places in SD all that much. Whenever I say this I get lots of flack, but this is how I feel, so that is that. I prefer San Francisco style tacorias better. I think they are closer to the real Mexican style. The thing I do love about SD is it's vicinity to TJ, and some Mexican friends have taken me to the best freak'n taco's I have ever had in my life in TJ. Why you can't find equivalent taco's just a few miles north in SD, is beyond me, but that is that. Once you get over the boarder to the US, the style changes and and that's the way it is.
I would have to say El Gordo is the closest thing to good TJ style taco's but both times I have gone, it was just too salty. It's also a bit far from UTC where I live.
That's a lot of writing without mentioning EL Cuervo. I find the quality of El Cuervo closest to my liking (though I'd like El Gordo better if they used less salt). El Cuervo also have lengua (tongue) which I really like.
They have their own parking lot, the prices are good, good selection, and they are within a reasonable distance to UTC where I live, so it's my pick for tacos in SD.
Been there 20 to 30 times. Only one mediocre experience, all the rest were fantastic, and if they had a drive thru, we would not go anywhere else.
Love this place!!!!
Granted, I don't eat beef, but a any good Mexican joint should be able to make a decent bean and cheese, right? It's a staple! I have been here several times and El Cuervo has failed to impress me. Maybe next time I will try the potato rolled tacos as Erin W. suggests...
One star alone for a private lot in this area though.
Great Mexican Food :)
This place has great potato rolled tacos. They are really inexpensive and come with all the fixings. I think five will run you about $3.50. Does not get better than that.
They are really friendly here and have a huge menu. They also have parking. I know it is a crazy idea to have parking in Hillcrest, but they do.
I hear that their breakfast is delicious. A must try!
There are several Mexican eateries on the same street and this is undoubtedly the best Mexican restaurant in Hillcrest/Mission Hills. I would even be so bold as to propose it's the best Mexican I've had since I moved to San Diego seven years ago. I've been an admirer for about six months now and found it appropriate for El Cuervo to be my first review on Yelp.
While the food is mildly heavy, it's not greasy which is a pretty remarkable for Mexican food, let alone food that is prepared on the faster side. Menu selections are practically endless and everything that I have tried, I have enjoyed. I do have a favorite - I recommend the chimichanga with shredded chicken as it comes with the whole of tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, lettuce, and all for a very reasonable price.
The salsa is made fresh daily, (picante, chipotle, and verde), and hot peppers are at the salsa bar for those who flirt with spicier side of life. The staff are incredibly friendly and are quick to make conversation.
Even though the atmosphere is open and unordinary, the quality of food and service more than makes up for it.
They get 5 stars for having good California Burritos AND for having a mini Luke Walton shrine.
If Luke Walton (Los Angeles Lakers, SD Native) eats here, it must be awesome!
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