Tacos El Gordo

Hands down the best Mexican food I've had. The vampiros are delicious, and it was the first time I've had adobada before too. And it's my new favorite. If your in the area it's a must.

I have been going to this spot for years. I've never been disappointed. Today we ordered the al pastor, lengua, cabeza, carne asada, and vampiro with adobada tacos. They are currently closed on Tuesdays (due to a staff shortage) and are doing online, drive through, and in person orders on other days.

+ The meat is tender, well cooked and well seasoned. Trust me, I've tried A LOT of street tacos.
+ The salsas are always fresh and come on the side (If you ask).
+ The agua de Jamica is very fresh and not too sugary.
+ Tacos have a lot of meat.

-  Expect to be in line to get these tacos. The wait will probably be around 15 minutes to get to the front, but well worth the wait. Have someone secure a spot to sit at while you order tacos.

Rank:
1. Al Pastor
2. Vampiro + Adobada
3. Cabeza
4. Lengua
5. Carne Asada (This taco was a little too smoky today and was almost burnt. Would not order this again.)

Pro Tip: Order the AL PASTOR + PINEAPPLE (They don't add this automatically, but you NEED it.)

the BEST adobada I've ever had! I got the taco, but also highly recommend the sope which my friend got. It's essentially bigger, softer crust with cheese on the bottom. The adobada fries is also really really good.

There's a lot right before you reach the store. The lot does fill up quickly though.

The store is separated by different meat, and you line up in front of each window depending on what you want. There's additional seating in the parking lot as well.

I've been wanting to try this place for YEARS and it got so hyped up for me as time went on. Fortunately, I had the chance to try it recently but I was just very underwhelmed by the entire experience. I got a bunch of their adobada tacos after arriving from the airport and they were good but nothing special. I thought the tacos seemed more authentic than Taco Stand but I just didn't understand the hype that surrounds this place.

To add to my experience, we had to wait so long for pineapples that we just left without them. We asked for pineapple with our tacos when we placed our order, but we didn't get them when we got our tacos so we asked for them again. The guy just ignored our request and started preparing a party tray of tacos, so we decided to wait patiently for him to finish. Well when he finished, we asked again and he started on a SECOND party tray of tacos. IT WOULD HAVE TAKEN SECONDS to give us the pineapple for our tacos.

Anyway, I'm glad I got to cross this place off my list but in my opinion there are taco places that are just as good in LA and don't have nearly as long of a wait.

If you are ever in San Diego, this is the one spot everyone tells you to visit!

I came here on my first visit for dinner and I was impressed with how everything for COVID was still in place. They do temperature checks at the door and have outdoor seating available. There are restrooms that you can use when you exit (once you pay) and parking was not too hard to find. There are a couple of other locations down the street for drive through, but most people say this is the main one to go to with the best tacos.

We ended up get 18 adobodo tacos, fries, and quesadilla to bring back and share. They ran out of pineapples but I definitely want to try it when I am back!

There are lines for each station and the fries usually take the longest. The 18 tacos and quesadilla were done before my fries were made. I got a small carne asada fries but I would skip it next time since it was too heavy for me.

Overall, great taco place and I was not disappointed! There are so many options and I would come back to try the lengua next time. The total of the order was well over $60 which is definitely on the more expensive side but it was definitely great to try!

Best tacos/quesadillas. They are so yummy which can be never found in the bay area. Wish they also make California burritos, bet that they can make the best one

When the food is this good and the prices are this low it makes sense why there are lines at Tacos El Gordo and why they also have a drive through take out only taco shop just a few blocks away.

5/5 Adobada (spicy pork) Mulas (two cheese melted tacos serving as a pair of buns for the filling): first they melt cheese onto two tacos; they then take one of these tacos and slice adobada pork off the rotator grill, place a cream salsa, onions, cilantro and top it off with the second cheese melted taco. It's as amazing as it sounds when it's put together and I like it especially more with a squeeze of lime over the taco. There is plenty of adobada pork in each bite.

4.5/5 Adobada tacos: same as mulas without the cheese and extra taco.

4/5 parking: there is a lot available but it gets filled quickly!

Absolutely the best authentic tacos you can get in San Diego without having to cross the border. I think the closer to the border you are, the better the tacos. You cannot leave San Diego without stopping by Tacos El Gordo.

My favorite items to get are the adobadas (roasted pork),and mulas (the cheese and your choice of meat, I always get the adobadas). The green sauce on the adobadas is killer, I always ask for extra onions and get extra limes because they just enhance the tacos. The onions, cilantro, sauce mix with the juiciness of the adobadas with and lime juice will explode in your mouth, and it gets better with every bite. Mulas are just tacos with added cheese and cheese definitely adds an extra omph to the flavor. Expect your hands to get oily at the end of the meal :D

The tacos are cheap too (under $3 each) and you can get quite full for under just $15 plus a drink. Their tamarindo and horchata drinks are great too!

Quintessential San Diego - if there is ever a spot you take your visiting friends, it must be Tacos el Gordo!!!

Best friend from out of state was visiting this week so I took her here on saturday for lunch and she loved it so much we came back on Monday

Service: Right now because of COVID, theyre liniting the amount of people inside so there may be a line outside the door (as it was on Saturday). Once you're inside, there are separate lines for adobada, lengua, carne asada, and a line to order fries. You pick which line you want for the meat and can order how many ever tacos/mulas/quesadillas, etc.
Then you go to the register for the cashier to ring you up and you can order drinks here as well. They ask if your order is for here/to go and help you pack limes, radishes, utensils, and napkins.

Food: My go to is always 1 adobada mula and 1 lengua mula! I used to only order tacos but I tried mulas once and never went back because the cheese on top and bottom is a necessity for me now! Adobada is super flavorful and the lengua meat is soo tender it's unbeatable.
I ask for extra adobada sauce on the side to pour some into the mula for extra flavor because I love the sauce!
Don't forget to line up for the onions & jalapeños they provide free of charge as well!

We ordered:
Adobada Tacos ($2.86)
Carne Asada Tacos ($2.86)
Adobada Fries
We ordered through the phone at around 12 PM and waited ~30 minutes before picking it up, and when we got there we still had to wait at least 15-25 more minutes. It was PACKED with people.
Parking was easy to find, and they have a massive tent filled with outdoor seating. You can additionally sit inside too, I believe. Didn't see many people sitting inside though, only a few.

Ooooh the Adobada tacos were like nothing I've had before. The sauce is so creamy along with the cilantro and onions, and the meat was yummy!! Could've been better if we ate it fresh because the meat wasn't as juicy and warm after we went to the park.

Was not a fan of the carne asada tacos, sadly. The meat was different than the traditional carne asada tacos i'm used to. This meat was more chewy and didn't taste seasoned or anything.

The fries were good- just not delicious. I like my fries filled with guac, salsa, and other ingredients rather than just the meat and cheese, but that's just a personal preference! Also, the fries weren't crispy at all, more soggy and soft which I didn't appreciate. There just wasn't a good enough ratio between the meat+cheese and the fries. There was like a 65:40 ratio of fries to meat... waaay more fries than meat.

Tip: if you don't finish the fries or if you don't enjoy them as they are, pop them in the air fryer and crisp them up! 100% tastes way better.

Overall, my expectations for this place was high, and I was let down. Whenever I think about San Diego, I just thought about Tacos El Gordo cause that's what people recommend when visiting. This was my 3-4th time coming but I never got Tacos El Gordo and was super excited to try. I probably wouldn't come back, and if I was in the area, I would try something else.