4370 Genessee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117
(858) 571-8843 (map)
Official website

Bottomline - Classic San Diego Mexican. Some locations better than others.

I've only eaten at the Genessee location. Reviewers seem to like this one and not like the others. So your mileage may vary.

First of all, this is not authentic Mexican food. It is purely and unapologetically the style of Mexican food most San Diegans eat. Burritos, carne asada fries, rolled tacos, fish tacos, etc. And while you'll see basically the exact same menu in hundreds of other San Diego taco shops, I think the food is just a touch better here.

I particularly like the tacos here. Especially the fish tacos and al pastor.

But there is just no getting away from it - This is gringo Mexican. It's fast food. And a chain place to boot. Normally that would be two big strikes against it for me, so why am I reviewing it? Well, sometimes you just need to be open to the idea that fast food can be good. And this *is* what people eat around here. It's our regional cuisine as much as the po'boy is in New Orleans or chowder is in New England or a loaded hot dog is in Chicago.

If you live in San Diego you likely already have a personal favorite for this sort of food, or you really don't like it. If you're from out of town and want to try some local favorites, I think Cotixan is a good place to do that.

So....... Is this San Diego's best Mexican food? No. It's not. But if you're hungry for a fish taco or burrito it's actually pretty good. And if I'm going to pick a San Diego chain as our best, this is the one I'm picking.