524 Stevens Ave
Solana Beach, CA 92075
(858) 755-0788 (map)
Official website

Bottomline - Some of the best street tacos in San Diego. Seriously good meat.

I have no idea how a hole in the wall convenience store in Solana Beach ends up having some of the best Mexican food in San Diego. Logic would suggest that the closer you get to the border the more authentic the food would be. Not in this case.

The star of the show here is the meat. The carne asada has that great grilled taste. The cabeza is crunchy and tender at the same time. The carnitas is juicy and unctious. The al pastor is sweet and savory. The al pastor is actually my favorite here. Rudy's recipe is orginal yet familiar, with carmalized onions replacing the pineapple for sweetness.

While I recommend just getting the street tacos, they do have all the usual San Diego Mexican fare, including breakfast burritos. And it is a full convenience store as well, so you can also pick up beer and cleaning supplies if you wanted. If you're just coming for tacos, inside seating is rather limited, but there is a patio out front with several tables. It's usually pretty busy though, so you may end up eating in your car. In my humble opinion it's worth it.

Rudy's food has soul. Many restaurants lack that. So don't be scared off by the Solana Beach address, as this is the real deal.

1417 University Ave
San Diego, CA (map)
Official website

First, the Food Network thing. I read a lot of reviews for Mama Testa where people have seen the fish taco throw down with Bobby Flay and come here with weird expectations. Stop that. The restaurant has never been about fish tacos, and they don't even do them in the style most people are used to. So forget about the Food Network thing and try something besides just the fish tacos. Or.... better yet.... try one of the only unique fish tacos in San Diego.

Bottomline - This is an authentic taco place in a fancier setting. More tacos styles than you'll find anywhere else. Delicious food.

The menu here seems pretty simple - soft tacos, crunchy tacos, and steamed tacos. Don't let that fool you. The stews are great, and there are some creative dishes like the crunchy rolled tacos in broth. It may be just tacos, but you'll likely see some things you've never encountered before. Also, don't let the Hillcrest hipster location color your opinion, the place is legit. The owner is from Mexico and is dedicated to real authenticity.

The salsa bar is also a star here. The generic red and green sauces are gone, replaced with 9 complex sauces plus other toppings. With all of those flavors you can really customize the food you get. So be sure to sample anything that loks good so you know what to put on your tacos. Especially with the little street tacos, you aren't suppose to just eat them as is. You could of course, but try some salsa.

There are a couple problems. The prices are higher than you'd pay for great street tacos at places like El Paisa or La Fachada. You'll have to decide whether the bigger menu, nicer neighborhood, and better salsa bar make up for that. The seating is also an issue. When only a few people are there it's fine, but when the place is full you'll end up bumping and being bumped a bit. Sitting outside might be better.

For me those things don't really matter. When you combine the quality food with the diverse menu you have a real winner here. Mama Testa is a restaurant that has taken a chance and tried something truly different, and made it work beautifully.

3627 University Ave (map)
San Diego, CA 92104
(619) 584-6244

This may be the best authentic home-style Mexican food in San Diego. If it isn't, it's certainly near the top of the list.

Where to even start.......

First of all, don't worry that you may wildly out of place if you are, like me, a gringo who doesn't know what anything is. They'll be happy to not only give you samples of things, but also to suggest things you'll like (and steer you away from things you may not like). My first time there I didn't even have a chance to order before they'd offered me five samples, all of which were delicious. Not just good, delicious.

Secondly, this is a buffet type place and many entries will change every day. So while I thought the mustard chicken was one of the most original dishes I've had in my life, you'll probably never get to try it. This is a good thing, because you don't want to get bored with this place. It's a restaurant you want to come back to and try new creations. Supposedly there are over 100 recipes in regular rotation here, with about 20 available each day.

Bottomline - If there is Mexican soul food, this is it. Eating here makes me happy. And you'll get food here you aren't likely to find anywhere else. It's honest Mexican. Honest food of the people.

Also, this is home style. That means you'll be eating meat off the bone with just about everything, and there will be plenty of cartilage involved. So don't get flustered when you bite into something hard, because it's suppose to be there. The technique is to suck the meat off the bones rather than just start chewing. Bones = flavor, and you can taste the difference. in fine dining place this would be unacceptable, but here it's part of the attraction. But don't be fooled - Spend a bit of time having the owner talk to you and you'll quickly realize this is a restaurant that cares about food as much as any.

Don't look for tacos and burritos here. It's not that kind of place. What you want here is meat stewed in flavor. Also don't look for the salsa bar, because the food already tastes the way it's suppose to.

I have heard, but can not confirm, that the standard process for this place is to hire Mexican home cooks and then have them cook what they're best at. Thus, you get real Mexican food that changes all the time. Damn fine idea.

Tourist advice - If I was a tourist I would not feel comfortable going to a strange city in a rental car with a map I printed off the Internet and then driving around this area of San Diego. It's not what I would call a "bad neighborhood", but it's certainly not touristy. Having said that, I have *always* felt welcome here and gotten great service.