Oscars Mexican Seafood

Wow - the food is so good I would come here everyday if only I had the time to.

5/5 Adobada Speciality taco: I can tell this was made fresh and the heat and flavor profile was amazing. The pork was tender and every bite was just a delight.

5/5 Pulpo taco: octopus is cooked surprisingly tender.

4.5/5 fish stew: boy they stuff so much fish, shrimp, and octopus into this large fish stew that I wonder why I ordered anything else. This is a savory broth with potatoes and vegetables and comes with corn/flour tacos.  

3/5 grilled sea bass taco: the fish was just lacking in flavor in comparison to the above tacos, otherwise this cooked well.

3/5 parking: there is adjacent street parking, although usually occupied. There is also a nearby lot you can pay for parking.

When I come back I am definitely trying the other specialty tacos.

The best fish tacos and ceviche I've ever had.

Got the especial taco and the regular fish battered taco and the ceviche mixed.

definitive sauce ranking on a battered fish taco:
1. orange (chipotle): spicy, smokey, compliments the fish very well
2. white (tartar?): creamy, savory, less punchy than the orange
3. red: the only spicy one but it's not the winner b/c it's weirdly sour

Ok - Whenever I come to the west coast, my first foodie craving and search for is some amazing tacos. When visiting San Diego for our first vacay after been quarantining for God knows how long, that was my first quest. Oscar's Mexican Seafood came up on my search and it was on my to try for taco locations in the SD area. It did not disappoint!

Location/Atmosphere:
I believe they have a few locations now. We came to this particular location on Turquoise Street which I believe is the original one. You know you're in for a treat when it's got that many reviews and it's this hole in the wall when you come up to you. Because you know the food is banging! lol. : ) It's easily missed and down the block there is a newer looking Taco place. The sign isn't the most out there, so park nearby and find it on foot is my recommendation. They do have a small outdoor covered seating area. 2 tables? But they also have some long counter with high stool seating so you can definitely eat there while everything is hot and fresh!

Food:
We went all out and ordered like 4-6 tacos. Everyone else there probably thought we were fatties haha. We got there right around 11:30 AM so there wasn't a line or anything. But shortly after, when we started eating, a queue and line got a bit longer. They have tortas and also some specialty tacos with more unique meats and items like bacon, chorizo and some others. We went with more of the staples and they were all delicious. We got the battered fish, surf and turf taco, Taco Especiale with the shrimp and grilled octopus!

Summary:
Definitely a viable taco option. I have to say Taco Stand was my favorite Taco place I ate at in SD and Oscars came in a close 2nd. Can't go wrong with some of the classics like the taco especial and the battered fish tacos. As more uncommon and strange as it sounds, the grilled octopus is definitely one to try and was pretty darn good!

Tried Oscars for the first time!
- Battered shrimp and battered fish tacos: pretty good! I'd rate it a 3.5/5, definitely worth the try, but I personally wouldn't get it again. I couldn't really taste the shrimp much, and the fish had nice flavoring, but the batter overshadowed the tortilla/the taco overall in my opinion.
- Taco especial: 4.5/5, I would definitely get this again! But more specifically, I'd probably just try the smoked fish tacos next time. The flavor of the smoked fish blended well with the fresh salsa; I loved its flavor so much that just adding lime was enough!

Oscars is my favorite place to go in San Diego!! This is the only location that I've been to and it's so good! I've tried the ceviche, fish tacos, surf and turf, taco especial, and a couple more. The menu items are all really yummy and I highly recommend eating at their outdoor dining instead of doing takeaway. Fresh tacos are just THAT much better than 20-30 minute old tacos imo.

Service has always been friendly. Parking is generally always ample around this neighborhood. Line can get pretty long on the weekends, but it moves quickly!

TLDR: 5/5. When I said I wanted some really bomb tacos before I left LA, this is what I meant. Great service and the best dang seafood tacos (and biggest) I've ever had.

SHEEEEESH my dudes, if I go back to San Diego this is the spot. My friend and I were trying to figure out a taco place to eat at and knowing myself I whipped out good ol yelp and I didn't have time to even read through a lot of reviews before deciding to just "Trust the process" and go for it and I'm so glad we did.

Location: 4/5 This is that "hole in the wall" kinda place. They have outdoor seating rn but if you didn't see that you'd probably drive right past it. There's street parking and a lot next to it but I'm not sure if they're affiliated with the lot so just be mindful.

Service: 5/5. I came in around 2/3 on a Wednesday and it was pretty dead so I only waited 10 minutes for my food! The lady was really nice in helping me decide (cause i didn't check the yelp recs before oops). I should've asked how big they were cause I ordered...

Food: 5/5
Tacos Especial
Shrimp Taco
Steak and Shrimp

Across the board, all of these were delicious and DAMN were they huge! I was already starting to get full of the first one. I will say I didn't have scallop in the taco especial but I believe that is because its dependent on what's caught that day and that wasn't on the menu. I have NEVER had such generous strips of avo on each of my tacos and you know what I paid for that so lay it on me. The slaw was crunchy, the shrimp was fresh and generous too. The steak was skirt and was shredded actually which made it blend nicely and easier to eat.

Minus: I will say this is all a la carte and there's no chips or guac or such to add onto the meal so just be mindful. But I really did forget about that because these did not need backup dancers. Full Beyonce.

It was way too windy to get a good pic from where I was eating but I did snag one. Wow I'm still thinking about these tacos. But anyway

Cooley Complimented :)

I cannot believe it took me so long to try this place out!
I have heard many rave reviews from Yelp and from talking amongst friends.

We finally decided to head to the Turquoise street location on a weekday. Unfortunately, on a weekday parking (only curbside parking available) is minimal.
I suggest going past Oscar's to park somewhere in the neighborhood because the walk is less than 8 minutes away.

Fortunately, we avoided the weekday crowd so the covered street side "patio" wasn't too full of people.

The food is a feast for the eyes as it is for the stomach. The tomatoes are bright red and the mass of fresh greens on top contrast well to the warm brown tortilla.
Don't worry, under the heaping mound of fresh veggies is an nice serving of tasty seafood.
Notable are the fresh slices of avocado they place on each taco.

My fave here were the octopus tacos. The tenderness of the octopus go really well with the crunchy veggies. The octopus here is made well. Not chewy at all. The grilled flavor also goes well with the freshness of the veggies. I opted not to add any salsa or sauce into mine because the flavors were already yummy.

Smoked fish taco also has a nice combo of flavors. The smoky soft fish and the fresh veggies are refreshing on a sunny day in SD.

Battered fish tacos: what I like is that the batter is not too thick. Fish to batter ratio is a thumbs up!

Service is fast and friendly.

The shrimp tacos are immaculate and the habanero sauce was the perfect spice! Will be dreaming of these tacos for the rest of my life!

Wow! Just wow! The quality and freshness of the seafood combined with the amazing flavors and spices is the reason why Oscars is always insanely busy.

Ordering:
This place is really popular so the line will probably be along the sidewalk. When I was here on a Saturday at noon, the line took about 30 minutes. Once you've placed your order, they'll call your number and you'll pick up the food from a window in the middle of the exterior wall mural. They knock the food out really quickly after the order is in.

Food:
Most people get tacos and ceviche, and the tortas are really good. The tacos are really huge, which justifies the prices. The Taco Especial has all the meats (at least from the ocean) with shrimp and a couple awesome items you don't normally see in a taco, scallops and smoked fish. The scallops and shrimp are fresh (the ocean is only a block away!) and cooked perfectly tender. The fish is soft, briny, and smoky.  The giant churn tortillas are coated with melted cheese and topped with really fresh crunchy cabbage, onion, tomato, and cilantro, with huge slices of avocado. The white and orange sauces are creamy and tasty with a gentle kick.

Dining Area:
They have some picnic tables in a tent by the sidewalk, but good luck trying to get one of those. They also have some outdoor countertops that you can stand or sit next to.

Parking:
There are lots of spots in the neighboring residential area in PB or La Jolla. It's a pretty quick walk.