Don Panchos Taco Shop

Don Panchos makes some damn good tacos. And they’re open late!

Fish tacos here are THE BOMB: Giant fried fish with cabbage and pico de gallo. $ 2 each. Some times they sell them for a dollar.
Bean and cheese burrito, and taquitos — not recommended. That’s all I’ve tried. Really like their fish tacos.
This place is much better than the hyped-​up Oscar’s or El Zarape.

The best mexican food in Imperial Beach. The carne asada quesadilla, rolled tacos, and carne asada fries and very good and worth the price. definitely will be going back.

The food is almost always delicious and the salsa is one of the best in town. My one complaint is that they have a cashier that is always rude and usually gets my order wrong. She is usually working at night a middle aged woman who hates everything from bunnies to rainbows. Point being, the food is good but they need to fire that woman for 5

I have officially converted my loyalty from El Cilantro to here! I have yet to eat a wide variety from the menu, however their surf and turf burritos, taqutios and tacos are excellent. They are clean and quick, not to mention listen to your requests to add or remove ingredients from your order!

This place sucks, try to avoid it if you can
. lemonade contains a ludicrous amount of sugar, even a 5 year old could do a better job. There burritos taste less than average no wait … it has no taste at all. You can’t Smoke for some magical reason.

While visiting the area, my husband had a craving for Mexican, and he happened to see this little place while driving around. Later, he picked up some food and raved about how this was the best Mexican he’s had in California (no joke, he’s tried a lot of Mexican places). Skeptical, I tried a bite of his beef enchilada and a bite of the Mexican rice. Each bite was packed with flavor and spice (I love spicy), and I ended up eating the rest of his food, with permission, of course. The price was right, too. Before we leave the area, we definitely plan on having at least one more visit here.

We have been coming here for years. It has been our favorite Mexican joint in San Diego, but we have noticed in the last month the quality of the food has been getting worse. Today it was horrible. The chile relleno was tiny and way over cooked. The cheese and the chile was hard like a rock. The shrimp was not fresh as it has been. The prices have gone up, which is ok if the quality is kept good, but not in this case. I think this may have been the last time we come here. Time to look for another favorite Mexican joint.

Growing up in the area, I have been eating here for over 15 years, way back when it was called Los Panchos. Its always my go to place when I’m in IB. I have never been disappointed with the food. In my opinion, they have the best beans around. I don’t know what they do to them, but they’re perfect. There’s outside seating to the right, and indoor seating to the left. If you eat inside they will pass your food to you through a window attached to the kitchen. I love to get a bean, rice, cheese, and sour cream burrito. Also the supreme quesadillas are good. My only complaint is they put nacho cheese on their carne asada fries instead of real cheese.

Welllllll I’m kind of being an ass giving them only four stars instead of five because I think they should deliver! Haha. This place is yummy as hell! From the California burrito to the carne asada nachos, the rolled tacos, the quesadillas everything we have ever tried on the menu is sooooooo good! Perfect drunk or hangover food as well. The prices are cheap, they take cash and card and you can call and order over the phone for pick up so there’s less wait time. We have done many specialty orders (adding or removing items) and these guys NEVER mess up our order. I also love their salsa. Try this place out, you won’t be disappointed.

In the last 36 years I been coming here the food was very good. Today it sucked and the owner was there telling his employees to clean stuff and all the things he should have done behind the scenes. The size of the burritos is soo small as well. Taco Tuesday; well NOT here!!! Had I known I would have rolled to a different spot.
Honestly though, quality was down and the employee had a horrible attitude! She was so unfriendly I don’t even know why she showed up. Maybe the owner being here pressuring her was too much for her to handle.
Horrible taste in my mouth to… Only reason they got three stars was because of the past but honestly should be one star!!!

The food is amazing. But they need to brush up on customer service. Rude as hell! Also someone should tell them that the little cups of salsa only cost about 2 cents (if that) to make. They shouldn’t be so greedy with the salsa!

Seriously no matter how many times you say no Onions! Three cooks laughing and talking! Get food home everything filled with Onions! Not worth having to go back and get it fixed every single time! Need to hire people who care!

Slave girl and I were told, if we were in imperial beach, we must have Don Panchos, especially the surf and turf burrito. I was thinking, holy smoke that must be a treat to have lobster and steak taco! Then we ended up here in front of a little hut with 4 tables outside… As slave girl would say about me, «stupid…»
Anyway, parking was easy and the the line moved quickly. We ordered the surf and turf, carne asada fries and a large fountain drink. The shrimp inside the burrito was tender and tasty but the steak was pretty dry. It was filled with lots of rice and not enough shrimp. While the overall portion was okay and quality was decent, I wouldn’t say it’s a delicacy spot but more of a «I am hungry and fill me up now» joint. The fries was meh, I would suggest to skip that.
Get a large drink if you plan to refill because they charge 54 cents for it. They take credit cards as well but they also charge you 50 cents for it.
The seating area was scary as hell since every flies and their moms from the beach were there playing the hunger game, either you give up and share your food with them or take it to go. I would suggest to get it to go.
Lastly, don’t forget to ask for the salsa. They got red and green and I am on team green.

Food has no taste. They always forget my damn drink. And I’m already gone from the restaurant

Last night we ordered 5 burritos… surf and turf. All 5 of us have food poisoning and puking everywhere. Two people are in the hospital because of it. Unbelievable. Who serves rotten food!!!

For some reason, the staff skimps on green sauce. I ask for it before i even get my order, and they act like it’s a specialty item or like I’m inconveniencing them. I know I sound like a spoiled, tw@t…full to the brim of entitlement, but… is green tomatillo salsa really such an inconvenience? I am treated strangely like a loose canon if I ask for two to three green sauces… Like it’s in short supply or something. If I’m crazy in this so be it. When I order a California I like green sauce. Sue me. I wouldn’t put this in a review if it hadn’t happened on numerous occasions. El amigo is down the street and better.

GET. THE. CHILLE. RELLENOS. I was skeptical at first because usually i’d stick to tacos at a «taco shop» but, they are soooo good. Better than some sit down mexican restaurants i’ve been to.
This place is our go to for take out mexican. It’s inexpensive and delicious. We’re proudly working our way through the menu. The quesadillas are extremely generous as well as the burritos.
Couldn’t give it 5 stars because, they refuse to make carne asada tacos in hard shells (not fond of soft shells tacos) & because even if you call ahead you are waiting at least 20 minutes for your food… i’m starting to think they don’t make our order until we pull up. Regardless– we keep coming back

OH MY WORD! Why would anyone not LOVE this joint? Some people were critical and said that only one or two items were good. Bogus! My wife and three kids (under 10yrs old) ate 5 different menu items and each one was incredible.
I got the Surf and Turf. Its a big burrito, but I was extra hungry. For only $ 1.69 more they made it a Combo with rice and beans. It was awesome and so tasty. The meat, cheese, shrimp, and rice were just perfect.
I could brag the same about the quesadillas, 5 rolled tacos, or chicken burrito. My kids «hate Mexican food,» but they ate all of their food and that of their siblings. This place is awesome. They charge only $.50 for a credit/​debit transaction; reasonable.
WE LOVE DON PANCHO!

Rude staff (cashier woman) and child sized burritos. I had 5 hungry men to feed and they were still hungry after eating their burritos.
There are plenty of other taco shops to go to in IB, I will not be returning.