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Mon-Fri. 10:00 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Sat. 9:00 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Sun. 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
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Came here today with the beautiful Daniele D. for lunch. I was looking forward to trying a new place and having a lunch buddy today.
This place is not bad....but it's not super great either. Service is really nice though and they were attentive and quick with our food.
I ordered two enchiladas (pork and chicken) that came with beans and rice. I honestly could not tell the difference between the two enchiladas unless you looked at them. Beans and rice were good...I normally don't eat the rice portion but I did today. I must have been hungry! Daniele also mentioned that her lunch was okay too....but I'll leave that up to her to review ;)
Chips and salsa are given to you before you eat and that's nice although they were sort of forgetable. Nothing to write home about!
We arrived at 12:30pm and the lunch crowd was slowly phasing out. We were seated within 10 minutes of putting our name in.
Still a great lunch with great company. I would come back if someone wanted to check it out.
I remember this restaurant fondly, from when I worked in Fremont. We used to go all the way down to Alviso to eat here.
After a 5 year hiatus, I visited with two friends for lunch. The chips and salsa (edit: just the salsa) was good. The lunch, however, was abysmal. I split some sort of "combo plate", which had various items, such as tacos, flautas, quesadillas, etc.
The tacos were worse the the 2 for $1 variety from Jack-in-the-Box. I almost hoped for some of that orange dripping grease, from the end of the taco, but no go. It would have been an improvement.
Taquitos: apparently frozen, and nuked, especially for us.
Everything else: less than mediocre. We all agreed we wanted to visit the vomitorium after lunch, and start over....Have I changed, or has this restaurant gone to the dogs?? In any case, will never go back.
The restaurant was packed with the lunch crowd. Apparently all Silicon Valley drones with no taste buds. Pretty much everyone was fat.... .
Two stars instead of one, because the salsa was pretty good.
I would have really enjoyed my Baja Fish Tacos, if they were actually hot.
Waited a really long time for them and when they finally got to the table, the fish was cold and the tortillas a little oily. It tasted ok though. I could imagine it tasting really good if not for the temperature.
I imagine they were left out too long.
Friday lunch is a killer. Prepare to wait, and wait, and wait.
Pity.
decent Mexican food! refreshing change from the regular Baja Fresh. The ambience is not that great, and if you come during weekday lunch-time, you end up waiting 15-20 mins.. that apart, their food is pretty decent! especially the salsa is yummm!
My first time...went with a large group for a "going away" lunch. The place was crowded, so it took forever to get our food.
My tacos (soft-shell) were the worst, most tasteless tacos I've eaten in my entire life. The shells tasted bland, the meat was seasoned strangely, and there was nothing tasty in them. I won't ever go back.
This has been one of my favorite mexican restaurants since I was a kid. The service is quick, the food is delicious and the staff are very friendly! I can come on any given day of the week and even if it is packed I still get seated in a timely manner. I am also able to make it back to work on my hour lunch break.
The tamales are so good! Definitely reccommended!
I've been here twice now and I think my last time was the last. The first time we didn't even stay because they were so rude during the seating process. This last time our visit was filled with hiccups. The chips are standard bagged chip fare. The salsa helps to make up for it, but I'd rather have both be tasty.
Onto the rest of the meal - my whole table was brought their food. I was still waiting 5 minutes after and hadn't seen mine. After another few minutes it finally came out, though most of my group was halfway done with their meals. What came out was not what I expected. I thought I had ordered basic enchiladas but apparently I had ordered some fancy deal. I swear I read the menu right and when I told the waitress that it wasn't what I expected, she insisted that it was. She brought me a menu and showed me what I had wanted, but never showed me what I had 'ordered'. She finally agreed to change my order so five minutes later I had it. Which made me wonder what had happened with my original order. If it had taken just as long for me to wait for it before, they must have forgotten to make it until after they delivered everyone else's food. By the time my food came, I was irritated and hungry... only to receive food that was subpar. The sauce was weird and the food wasn't hot. Honestly, not worth it, especially when there are so many good Mexican restaurants in the area.
Food is OK here but have not been back in a long time. The reason being is that the last time I went there with a co-worker we saw something quite unhealthy so I vowed never to go back. The old lady cleaning the tables was re-using all the chips from everyone's table by combing them with other baskets to make a full one and then just giving them to new customers. I thought that was so disgusting. I saw her fish out the dirty napkin someone had placed in one top of the baskets on the table and just tip out the chip into another basket.
I thought it was kind of strange why there wasn't a huge bin with tortilla chips in them under a heating lamp. Usually in Mexican restaurants you see large bins of chips warming under a heat lamp but this place didn't have one.
Let me start by saying I was told this is the best hide away in the Soouth Bay. So I told my son about it and he loved it. He was shocked when the waitress asked him in spanish if he wanted Guacamole and he was charge $9.00 for atferwards. Lessons learned.
He had a Quesadilla.
So a week later I thouoght we would go back.
I asked the waitress for a recommendation between the Chicken Mole and the Chili Colorado. If a Mexican place can't do either one of these they can't do anything. (Refer to my La Paloma review).
So she recommended the Mole.
My wife hade the Carne Asada. She gives it about a 3 of 5. Not bad.
My son had the special Burrito. He was shocked at the size. A 20yr old college kid. He couldn't eat the whole thing so he took half home for lunch the next day. He really liked it also.
Well I guess it's my turn.
I guess I'm one of those people that are hard to please.
THe waitress asked me how I liked the Mole. She gave me one of those looks were she already knew the answer.
I told her I didn't. I did however tell her that my son liked both of his meals and my wife liked hers and we would be back.
It could have ended there. She asked me again. I told the Mole was honestly the worst I ever had. It was almost the consistancy of paste anjd the flavor was like uncooked Roux (raw flour). Not much dept and very pale in color.
I guess I surprised her with my honesty.
I know my son will go back. My wife might go back. I will go back if they want, but I'll try the Colorado next time..
On a good note. The Salsa is pretty good and even though the chips aren't fresh they give you a lot.
I use to come here a loooong time ago & I stopped because I had food poisoning from their food =x Yiiikes I know. But about 5 or more years later, my parents decided to go back to show the hubbby the place. We went around 5 30 pm & there was barely no one. We did to-go cuz it was cold & I wasn't feeling too well. I got a chimichanga, my parents got enchiladas, and the hubs got a torta. I thought it was ridiculous how they charge extra for GRILLING chicken!!! WTFFF!! That was a first for me. I also ordered a jar of their salsa, cuz it's my fave! We got home & seriously, I was amazed cuz some of the items were small for the amount of money we paid. The torta looked like a freaking Subway sandwich but HALF of that! Ayyyyyyyy. The only thing I enjoyed was the rice & salsa! Thaaat's it. The lady who took our order wasn't the happpiest person there either. At least they gave us extra little salsas.I don't know if they are under new management or something cuz it's not the same like I remembered it..Maybe it's been too long? Whooo knows. All I know is I was disappointed =\\ I don't think we will be going back anytime sooon.
Authentic Mexican food? I don't think so. And trust me, I'm Mexican... I know my stuff.
Anyways, came here last week because my coworkers and I were craving Mexican food. We ordered the following dishes: fish tacos, chicken mole, chicken enchiladas and a veggie burrito. We weren't happy with our food at all. Our food was mediocre in terms of flavor and quality. I only tried two of the dishes so I can only comment on those two. The fish tacos were small and so soaked in oil that you couldn't even taste the fish. The biggest disappointment was my chicken mole. Their mole is a watery tomato type sauce with no flavor. I honestly can't even call that thing mole. Not only was the sauce horrible, the chicken was cooked separately in chicken broth because it was white and not completely dipped in the sauce.
I am never coming back and I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone...
Great place to grab a Mex lunch during the weekday but it will get very crowded and loud on Fridays. The wait can be quite long also. Food is decent and quite nice. Santa Fe taco salad and burritos are all good choice items. unlimited salsa and chips are a plus as with most Mex places.
Let me cut to the chase - their liquor license has been suspended. Yup, that means no beer, no margaritas, nada! The bigger shame/crime is the fact that they don't tell you and tried to hide (quite successfully I may add) the violation sign posted outside the establishment.
I don't know why my friend thought this was a hole in the wall taqueria, it's not. There were people waiting and we put our name down. I really didn't want to wait so I asked if there was a bar thinking we can start with a beer or something - now, instead of telling us their license has been suspended, she told us the bar was unstable and has been moved so she can't sit us in there. Never bother to mention their license was suspended and there will be no alcohol. Oh the violation sign is posted on the right side of entrance BUT it was well hidden with a very strategically placed large plant AND a large gumball machine. How did we find out - while we were waiting for our food at one of the tables in the outside shack. Actually, my friend saw it and said "how sleazy of them".
What you don't know - after we placed our name down, we drove to the other taqueria nearby and sat down. When we realized they didn't serve beer, we apologized and left to return here. So you can imagine our major disappointment and rage when we found out after sitting down that their license was suspended. By now, we are too hungry to try elsewhere.
We waited over 30 minutes before our waitress said our food will be coming soon. It was another 10-15 minutes before she came with our lunch with an excuse "our kitchen is so busy"...we know she was full of crap when we touched our food and it was cold. No clue what she has been doing but she wasn't getting our food. My friend had the chicken mole and the sauce was like brown gravy, am I wrong or should I expect a dark color sauce for mole??? I had the taco fiesta or something - basically soft tacos - each tortilla about 3" round. The carnita was dry, the fish was ok, the chicken was bland and the carne asada was blah. My horchata was water down.
Only good thing about this place is their salsa or maybe because we were hungry.
I come here pretty often and lots of folks tell me it's the best Mexican restaurant in the South Bay. I honestly don't think so. I will admit they have some awesome Enchiladas. And they have a killer Vegetarian Tamale! Now that was yummy!
Alright so maybe 3.5 stars. I can't give them a 4 because I know I've had better.
It might be the location, they're far from the hustle and bustle of the Valley and maybe the fact that it's not your ordinary taqueria around the corner is what makes the whole experience. I don't know, I took my parents here once and they loved it. And my boyfriend swears by it.
So I dunno, maybe it's just me!
Fun place to go with colleagues for lunch. Food is okay, not great. I've been to many taquerias with much better food in the area. Fast and good service. A decent choice when you want to get away from lunch at the office.
Amazing, amazing, amazing salsa. Very good food, reasonable prices. Service is hit or miss.
Don't get the chicken mole. As other reviewers have said, it's not really mole sauce, it's brown gravy. Very disappointing.
Beyond that, the service was pretty good, and the menu seemed extensive. The plentiful free chips were above average, but the salsa was bland. We sat in a patio-like area with space heaters, but it was still uncomfortably cold without a jacket on.
Nothing stood out that would make me come back here over any other Mexican restaurant.
Maria Elena's is good and the atmosphere is very authentic feeling.
Their chips baskets are larger than can be asked for which is awesome compared to some other places where you're constantly having to ask for more chips. Also the chips are harder and crunchier which I prefer.
I ordered the Spinach enchiladas the baja fish tacos. Both were good and large portions. I would say my only complaint would be the many flies buzzing around if you sit in the outside portion of the restaurant (Even though it is all covered and sided). Also, the prices are a little high.
I recommend the fish taco platter.
To be honest though- these were my first fish tacos but I thought they were *excellent*. Light, fresh, buttery and they serve with fresh salsa verde and limes. Yum. I've been here several other times before because they have a whole portion of the menu dedicated to vegetarian options. My other friends who eat meat have always been very satisfied. I'd like to try their margaritas one of these days...
Also, so far: good, friendly service.
It's a bit out of the way but since you're in Alviso you might as well go take a walk and check out the birds feeding in the wetlands, slough and old salt ponds. It's one of my favorite places in the bay area. Not stunning views but it's a quiet, pleasantly funky little community and in the right weather can be fairly delightful.
Hands down the best fish taco in recent memory. Not something you'd expect from a place bearing a Russian-sounding name, but this is actually a great Mexican joint. Truth be told, an Indian and a Chinese don't know the first thing about authenticity of Mexican food, but I really enjoyed it - enough said!
Don't come for the food - unless you like your mexican food drab and mild.
Don't come for the drinks - I'm told real sangrias are actually wine & fuit flavored, not water.
Don't come for the clientele - every table looks like the cast from Office Space, khaki panted tech dudes going native for their lunch break.
So why do I still come here? M.E.'s somehow manages to retain a tiny trace of old school alviso vibe. And that is cool enough to make this worth a visit or two per year. Take your boss from Minneapolis - he will think you are really in the know.
We got here for lunch from work. I like the place, and the authenticity it holds (that's how I would imagine a small lunch place in Mexico ;) ). We were served some freshly roasted tortilla with their homemade Salsa's, while we waited to be seated.
The place serves a good variety of Mexican dishes, but sadly we ordered the standard Tacos, Burritos and one of them got Tamales. I found the Taco's a little bland. The spinach quesadilla was decent. I could not try much since I stuffed myself with the delicious nachos served as soon as we were seated. Definitely would update my review sometime later. For now, I think I would give this place another try and explore more of the non-standards. Adios!
I used to work in the area and was introduced to this restaurant by co-workers. Not a place I would normally visit since it looks like a dive from the outside. But once you get closeby and see the line out the door, then you realize you've stumbled upon something. The food is pretty good and tasty. Cuisine is authentic style Mexican food. The menu is extensive so there are plenty of options to choose from. I always have a hard time choosing so I stick to the combo sections and have a little bit of everything. Over the years, my personal favorite has been the chili rellenos and the steak tacos. I'll occasionally sneak in a Corona here and there, too. Although this place is a madhouse during the weekday lunch hour, it is a ghost house during the weekends; that would be the best time to go.
Judging by the line when we arrived at 11:45 for lunch today, I'm not the only one who likes this place. Complete dive atmosphere with rooms that seem to be taped together, but for a party of 12, the service was great and I very much liked my food. I had the al pastor tacos (3 small) and it came with rice and whole beans with a sprinkling of queso. Quite good, and unlike others, I liked the chips and salsa too.
Water was kept filled. My only complaint was that it was so noisy it was almost impossible to hear any of my companions. I'd go back and I'd make sure to get there by 11:30 next time.
This used to be one of my favorite restaurants. I'd bring my friends to eat here and even recommend it to others but I've visited twice in the past year and I have to say that each time I've been completely disappointed.
I'm not sure what has changed but the food has lost its flavor. The service was horrible. We were seated pretty quickly but we had to wait in excess of 15 minutes to have our order taken. The food took forever to come out of the kitchen. Two of my friends were served before me. By the time I got my food, they were already 3/4 done. I received no apology for the late food. It wasn't limited to our table either... there was a group of people sitting next to us that came AFTER us and somehow they got their food before us! They also suffered from poorly timed food service.
Even if the food were to improve and taste like it did in it's glory days, I wouldn't come back. The service kills it.
This is about as Mexican as Brad Pitt.
....
Yeah, exactly.
(Extra star for being work-expensed.)
I went to Maria Elena's for my "Welcome to the Team" Lunch after I got a new job at an office just off First Street near Alviso. 4 out of 7 of us were out for the rest of the week with a severe case of our insides wanting to be on the outside. I talked it over with other co-workers and they've had similar experiences. Might just be bad luck, but I will not be going back.
Read a wide range of bad reviews but tried it anyway. While I realize that Alviso isn't exactly the dining capital of the world, the food here was pretty dismal. The chips and salsa were good but that's where it ended. I had the beef taco salad and it was like chopped lettuce with leftover gravy on top. It's too bad because the service and general attitude were terrific. Place was mobbed for Tuesday lunch though so clearly, they must be doing something right.
bad bad bad.
i been going there more than 10 yrs but recently their food and service is getting bad. First their salsa was so fricking salty and I told them if I can change. The server told me that no one say it's salty. Fine, maybe my friends and I might have different taste than others. But, WTF, the main dish is salty as hell. my friends and I try to finish it but it was too much. I ask customer surrounding us if their food was ok. They all told me it is salty especially the Salsa. I did not feel like arguing like other customer for discount check so we just left. never go back there again.
Went here for lunch today and i just got back. Sleepy! The chips and salsa were great, and i ordered the Colossal burrito with the shredded chicken. it was really great. the chicken was so juicy and i have no clue what type of sauce they put over the top of it, but it was killer.
the location is in a funky place, but who cares. great food, good service and theyre pretty quick for lunch. Im going back for sure!
I came here because my coworker was leaving and expected it to be really classy and modern. I was wrong. This is the real Mexican experience. You know how people describe restaurants to be "a hole in the wall." This has got to be the best hole in the wall for Mexican food. Theres about 4 small rooms to this restaurant. Two of the room's roof tops are made of plastic. HAHA. yes. The food is quite expensive for the "hole in the wall" place. $10 for a burrito or enchilada or two item lunch plate, etc. but their portions are huge. At least the price was about average. Along with the food, theres a huge bucket of complimentary chips and a side of salsa in the middle. Their margaritas were 4 bucks a glass. CHEAP. I'd come here for a snack n drinks anytime.
I didn't like how they refilled the beverages (soda, ice tea, etc) with a pitcher. I like my sodas with tons of carbonation and when they served my coke, it was half flat.
And the restaurant gets crowded at lunch. good thing we had reservations. That just means it is a good restaurant.
Forgot to mention, the food was pretty good, but wasn't the best. I ordered the mexi quesadilla. I would have finished it all but i was too full from the chips n salsa.
My motto for them is: You don't need to go to Mexico for the whole Mexican experience! :)
Great place for lunch or dinner or margaritas ;)
This place looks like dive from the outside, Great food - full of flavor. I think this is the best tasting Mexican food I've EVER had. Our waitress was nice and friendly. Who can beat a pitcher of Margaritas for $10. I'm going to make more excuses to pass by Alviso in the future!
i work in the area, and everyone keeps raving about this place. i've been here 3 times, and i think i've given it enough chances. the food just isn't tastey, in fact, sometimes it's down right disgusting. the soup they give occaisonally smells like sewage. plus, this joint is out in the cutties, so it's totally not worth going to such a remote area for food that is whatevers. tacos del oro are right next door, and they are amazing.
Honestly, this place isn't really that good. If we go there I can get by on a couple of cheese enchiladas but they're not nearly as good as La Fiesta's.
We went for impromptu after-work drinks & munchies last night. Ordered a few appetizers...the guacamole was heavily lime-y, the taquitos were huge plain beef chunks fried in a tortilla and served with more lime-y guac, the quesadilla was a big cheese plank. My enchiladas were OK -- their sauce is a little cinnamon-y but innocuous. I guess it works as a general brick o'cheese delivery mechanism but as before, if I'm craving enchiladas I'd rather go to La Fiesta (plus La Fiesta has better chips).
I don't drink, so you'll have to take my coworkers' word for it, but they said the margaritas reminded them of margarita-in-a-bucket, and the sangria reminded them of either "wine and grape juice" or "a melted scented candle." D'oh.
Not that great. Take 237 a little further to Mountain View -- much better Mexican in those parts.
My favorite Mexican dishes are chicken enchiladas and chile relleno, but definitely NOT from this restaurant! Their enchiladas were okay. Their chile relleno was NASTY! The egg batter that makes up the chile relleno was so densed. It's suppose to be fluffy and taste like a cloud of heaven oozing with "queso". This one tasted like it was cooked weeks ago, shoved in the freezer, thawed for a day and served! YUCKO!
The other time I came to this restaurant, I ordered their grilled chicken taco salad. It was bland and boring.
I would rather go to El Taco De Oro truck right around the corner for some real Mexican food!
The food is (how do I put this delicately?)...not so good. But the service is superior and this place is very accomodating to the lunch crowd and large parties.
We had the guac as an appetizer and it was bland. The salsa was chopped up tomatoes and the chips were not fresh.
I ordered the beef taco lunch. Again, not at all up to my Mexican food standards. Fried, crispy tacos with hamburger meat. The beans were so so and the rice had some good flavor (if it was a little burnt).
I wouldn't come here by choice but I also wouldn't skip a group lunch with the work crowd because I'm picky about my food.
Great food! I love their taqueria menu - the tacos carne asada lunch platter is excellent. Salsa and chips are always fresh and tasty. Service is friendly and attentive.
If you aren't afraid of venturing out to Alviso, this is great place to eat!
Amidst a hodgepodge of buildings in the random city of Alviso is this gem. It honestly has had built upon itself to yield a restaurant that relies upon heat lamps for a portion of the restaurant. In all likelihood you would only find out about this place if you work in the area--or you find it on Yelp!
The food is awesome here. The combo plates are all pretty decent, but where it's at is the chile verde; nice tender pork, and yummy sauce. As other folks have said, get here early or you might get accosted by other Silicon Valleyers lining up to get into this place.
This place is pretty much dead on the weekends, so it's a good choice for cheap, tasty Mexican food for large groups of people. Since they have no liquor license, you will be stuck with beer or wine. Their sangria is decent, but not the best I've had.
Parking is a bit hellish here, cause if you blink you will miss their five spot parking in front of the restaurant.
The food is OK, but the service could be improved. No alcohol, either. What's mexican food without an alcoholic drink? Well, Taco Bell.
Alviso, CA
Category: Delis
Alviso, CA
Category: Mexican
Alviso, CA
Category: Ethnic Food
Alviso, CA
Category: Food Stands
Alviso, CA
Category: Restaurants
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