Taco Mesa

it’s fresh, bright and delicious! make a stop on taco Tuesday’s, baja fish tacos, al pastor tacos and crispy chicken tacos never disappoint. But if you can’t make it on those days, blackened chicken burrito hits the spot, in fact, any burrito hits the mark. I could be biased because it’s also down the street from where I live but there are Mexican joints all over town and this if by far my favorite

We love going for Taco Tuesday and Burrito Wednesday. Food is always super fresh & delicious.

I ended up at this place 11 years later and it still fells the same. If you are looking for an authentic home style Mexican food that does not break the bank, this is for you. Hole in the wall place, menu choice is unlimited and comes with a great salsa bar. I cherish everything about this place — the food, the atmosphere, the art on the wall, the colors, ticket numbers being called on the microphone; it is a true hole in the wall feeling.
I wish they had better/​cleaner seating options. I will continue to go.

Came here for taco Tuesday at around 8:30pm and apparently they were closed. Either the posted time on here was wrong or they closed a lot earlier then stated.

Went for taco tuesday!
Really good deal on tacos, guac is on point, limited parking and seating –1star

One of my places to go when i am looking for a healthy lunch spot. The prices are extremly reasonable, the staff are friendly and the menu is unlimited. Never disappointed when i visit all of their locations. Fresh, fast, healthy and affordable under one roof.
What else can i ask for?
Thank you Taco Mesa for the service and the quality.

I love the funky painted walls and the potent margaritas but mostly I love the blackened chicken quesadillas and the guac that’s as good as any I’ve had in Mexico. I usually make my own quesadillas because I never found a place that did it right but Taco Mesa nails it and it’s not only cheaper but a hell of a lot easier than making my own. Fresh ingredients, real chicken, gooey cheese, authentic and delicious flavor.

Tacos were solid. Rice was good. Beans were bottom barrel. Nothing good about the beans other than maybe being a good source of protein. The al pastor meat was pretty well done and flavorful. However, I’d still choose just about any good truck before I chose this restaurant again. Given the circumstances, though, not a terrible choice.

4 stars only because it’s not my grandmas cooking, but for being a Mexican grill it’s pretty good! I had the torta Asada con todo (with everything) pretty good and got full! The horchata not to shabby. I’d come back if my grandma didn’t make me lunch that day:)

This is about the best place that I know to get the freshest Mexican tacos and food at relatively affordable prices. They even have a beet salad that you wouldn’t expect at Mexican joint and its awesome. The staff is friendly and kept clean, the food is made to order and comes out quick. I’m heading over today for $ 1.50 Taco Tuesday and I am talking real fresh meat tacos. Who’s coming?

I LOVE Taco Mesa. I used to come to this restaurant 5 – 6 years ago when I used to work in the area. Now my boyfriend lives here and I decided to come back.
I’m not sure if I’d call the food authentic but it’s definitely food of good quality (you wont get the refried mush you get at other places for beans) and you definitely get your money’s worth. I got the Chile Relleno with rice and beans, with a fruit salad on the side. Yum. And the burritos always come wet-​style so you don’t have to pay extra for it. They also have aguas frescas and other things that you don’t normally see at Mexican-​American restaurants.
Great ambience in the patio seating. Love it!

Love this place! It does not get more authentic then Taco Mesa. If you want legitimate burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, and tacos, you’re in the right spot.
They have rotating daily specials featuring fresh sea food and dishes with mole sauce (yum!)
They serve a wide array of beers, sangria, margaritas, and bloody Mary’s.
They have delicious guacamole and churros.
Definitely come prepared to wait if you’re here on a taco Tuesday, and the parking lot is small.

Have been here several times and each time the food has been amazing! I have taken my out of town parents here and theyve fallen in love… taken out of town friends here and they love it. All around great food and service!
Most recently my friend went to grab some food for take out and said that it was his first time there. The guy at the counter asked if he liked spicy food, to which my friend responded yes (of course, spicy food is the best). When my friend came back to my place, he opened up the take out bag to find that they had given him an extra order of food; these spicy chile rellenos! That was very nice of them. Im a stickler for good customer service, and Taco Mesa hits the nail on the head with that one :)

I KID YOU NOT. I drove all the way to Taco Mesa from Phoenix. Not kidding. I’ve done this trip multiple times JUST to eat here and hit up the beach for the night. Literally even if you live 30 miles away. Give it a try. I make a 600 mile round trip just to eat here.
The aesthetic of the place is also amazing. I grew up eating here as a kid when I lived in Irvine. If you see yourself visiting the beach in Orange County please go here. The blackened chicken burrito is to die for. They smother it in sauce and cheese. The chicken is cooked to perfection. The calamari tacos are also amazing. I get both every time I go because the trip is so seldom. I even grab a burrito to go and keep it on ice when I leave back for Arizona.

This place is hands down my favorite taco spot in Costa Mesa. I’ve come here many times before but I am always satisfied when I leave. I usually come and get the tacos here. The ingredients are fresh and very well used and prepared right on the spot.
The location is right across the dmv and is colored in bright pink. The ambiance of the place is great because they always have some music playing in the background and the outdoor seating area is very nice and relaxing.
I love the different condiments that they have especially the pickles vegetables ! It doesn’t look that amazing but they really do know how to pickle their vegetables. I recommend you try them .
Overall this is a spot you have to try if you’re ever in The mood for some great tacos.

Taco Mesa has two redeeming qualities that keep me coming back:
1. It’s walking distance to my crib. But that’s irrelevant to you bc no one in Cali walks anywhere and you likely aren’t my neighbor.
2. Oh that GREEN SAUCE though… AKA the avocado salsa, that stuff is slammin’. I’m not going to attempt to describe it. My finite vocabulary will fail to adequate capture the boundless wonders of the delicacy. You just gots to try it.
Other than that, Taco Mesa is pretty average. The chicken is dry. The carne asada is gristly. The portions of the fish in the tacos and burritos are anemic. Please don’t even talk to me about the fact that they put craisins in the brown rice. What is that about? Does not blend at all with the rest of the flavors.
I dig the punk rock meets taco vibe, the blend of yuppies and families and hobos that frequent the spot making for rock solid people watching, and the little outdoor patio with heaters. It is the ideal place to relax with my plate of mediocre fare and drown it with that magical green goodness.

I thought the food was just ok. the price is right though. I had the al pastor taco and it had an off taste to me. I also got the fish taco and thought it was pretty good. If I lived near here I would probably come back but I wouldn’t go out of my way. The unique thing that they do here is churros with chocolate dipping sauce. It was pretty good.

OMG WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN IN MY LIFE?! No seriously though, I can’t believe that I just rediscovered this place recently… on my Unilocal bookmarks haha. It was meant to be! I was really hungry on a Tuesday afternoon and luckily it just happened to be Taco Tuesday. I was about to end my shift and Hoag and was desperately looking for places to eat around the area. Then… I noticed Taco Mesa and knew I had to stop by at least once haha.
Parking is in the back of the restaurant. I went in and I was amazed by all the variety of Mexican food options in their menu. This place definitely portrays the hole-​in-​the wall image. There’s some limited seating inside but there are more tables and chairs outside. I sat inside because it was really cold that day. Who knew this place would be so popular in the OC?! On Tuesdays, tacos are $ 1.50 whereas on regular days, it’s typically a dollar more or so.
I couldn’t decide what to order for Taco Tuesday so I ended up getting one of each of the Taco Tuesday menu since I haven’t had good authentic tacos for so long! My favorites are definitely the al pastor and the Baja fish. I also enjoyed the chili Colorado as well. All tasted really fresh and well made with the spices and bold flavors. I forgot which I least like but I think it was on the the beef, bland tacos because I didn’t really like the soggy texture that it gave off.
I definitely will come back for the Baja fish and the al pastor next time on a Tuesday for some bomb ass tacos! Thanks for the great experience! Tacos here were amazing :)

So you know when it’s Taco Tuesday, you gotta go out and eat your tacos, enjoy your tacos, feast upon all your tacos cuz there’s a deal! :3
They have $ 1.50 taco tuesdays so you can order 7 different tacos for $ 1.5 each.
Baja Fish– deep fried YAY. They don’t have enough of the sauce that I like (that I forgot the name to. Oh shoot what’s that white sauce called? TARTAR SAUCE. They don’t have that there :’(. So even though the baja fish is deep fried well, they don’t have the tartar sauce to compound and bring it to the 5 star level.
Chili verde– Do you love chili? Spiciness? You can’t handle it? It’s okay, it’s not spicy lol. Salsa? Yay.
Al pastor– This one was the better one I had. Flavorful and delish.
Jalapeño poppers– I don’t know what they’re actually called but my friend ordered it and I just ate it. I love deep fried stuff. Not spicy either because the seeds aren’t there!
It’s a small place, there are a few places outside to sit and a few places to sit inside. Parking is a little bit of a hassle and getting in is a wee hard :-/​
But tacos. I’d put it around the Hole Mole status.
I still like Pacific Fish Grill tho haha

The reason why this place gets a 2 star is because we found hair in our food (we are two females with medium length hair) and our food definitely had one of the cook’s hair in it. Only pro about this place is their self serve salsa bar provides large containers instead of the dinky ones you usually get elsewhere.
I think the prices are very reasonable for what you are getting. Tacos are good, but nothing spectacular. I tried the:
Taco Al Pastor (⁴⁄₅)
Baja Fish (⁰⁄₅)
Carnitas Pibil (³⁄₅)
Alambre Steak (⁴⁄₅)
Carne Asada Quesadilla (³⁄₅)
Margarita and Sangria were good as well.
Also, they were taking out the trash while we were eating and were reckless about it so I ended up getting trash juice on my purse. No apologies or any acknowledgement of the mess they were making. They are lucky my Dooney and Burke is all weather leather.