Lucio’s III

This is under new ownership. The new name is Denato Taco Shop. Oh so delicious! I look to how the beans and rice are done and theirs were soooo yummy! The salsa on the Chiles rellenos was flavorful and not so spicey. The prices are comparable to other shops. I love the customer service. The family came out to talk to me as I was the only one in the shop. I thought that was really nice. I will definitely go again.

Just ok, doesn’t compare to Estradas

I am a big time foodie. If you think this place is bad tasting, you have no idea what true Mexican food is all about. If you have met the owner, a really nice woman, then you would know she puts love into the food she makes. This food is authentic!!! It reminds me of my grandma’s kitchen. My grandfather was a big time snob when it came to eating his homemade meals and insisted on perfection, the same perfection you find in this kitchen! They have hit rough times recently, and your support of this place will not only help the family but will help their business thrive in accordance with the AWESOME food!

We have been going to Lucio’s for years. They make the best breakfast burrito ever. Bacon, ham, real potatoes, lots of cheese. Yummm! Rolled tacos are great. The Santee Burrito is a meal & a ½. Prices are good. Owners are really nice!

I would love to try this place. Or would have I guess. It seems they don’t want my business, as every single time I have come here they have been closed. Not worth my time to try again.

You’re traveling through another dimension — a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s a signpost up ahead: your next stop: the Burrito Zone!
Well walking into this dark shop, lights were completely off at noon. Tables twisted around, one guy siting by himself in the dark eating. I felt like I was entering a zone or maybe a prank show?
When I first moved to Santee this place was in my taco shop rotation. But after a couple of bad small burritos I haven’t been back in 3 years or so. So walking into a dark and beaten down shop made me rethink it again but, I sucked it up .
The real reason I came back was, I saw on the front window a painted ad for there Santee burrito (
) .The cook, only guy working here came out of the back he took my order. One Santee burrito for $ 5.43 out the door. Seemed cheap for a burrito that includes carne, fries, sour cream, cheese, pico, guac, beans/​rice, enchilada sauce, and lettuce. Holy crap!!! So with that been said I expected a higher
first I didn’t think they had a salsa bar but, I saw a small metal frig. Slid back the lid and 3 types of salsa inside. Loaded up a few of the red and waited.
He yelled out Santee burrito, and shocked again! It was not in a bag but in a styrofoam to go container, HA. (
) Opened up it up when I got home and double holy crap! It filled the whole container, then I weighted it, came in at 2.28 pounds (yes I have too much time on my hands!)
After a few bites good tasting burrito, a lot going on in this thing. I really like the enchilada sauce mixed in, good ratio of all the ingredients inside, this burrito is kinda similar to the monster at Lolita’s.
This burrito is like a daily requirement of Mexican food in one burrito! Glad that I give this place another try.
If your pocket poor and want to eat once for the whole day this is your place!

This is the best mexican food in East County.
Service is good and the food is filling.
Cheap and you get decent food that fills you up.

Hole in the wall meican food in SD IMO is usually a good sign. this place is a beacon.
Family owned I presume by the kids watching cartoons and the marker drawings all over the walls. the place is pretty much held together with duct tape and make shift repairs can be found while you wait for your order. I got the santee Burrito, carne asada burrito with fries, beans and cheese all in one ginormous burrito — if I had to guess — close to a 2LB burrito. Red salsa was tasty, and normally I can finish a good sized burrito — but I could only finish half of this monster.

num num num. That’s all i have to say.
breakfast burrito: delicious & cheap! score!
rolled tacos: delicious & cheap! bigger score!
best of all… THEY CATER! They recently did a graduation party for me and the food was AMAZING! They are very professional and very reasonably priced! Can’t wait to have them cater another party.
I think i will head here for my lunch break!

This place is just fine for all your basic cravings of Mexican Food. Obviously they make a great California Burrito, but I like their rolled tacos, tortas, and Fish tacos! They even hooked me up with Carne asada rolled tacos! Imagine using the rolled tacos in place of the Fries and they put loads of Carne Asada, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole!

Finally a place that serves a trully HOT Diablo Shrimp Burrito. We used to go to the «other» mexican eatery for their Diablo Shrimp burrito only to find out that they no longer make it spicy because of complaints. Well then, DON’T ORDER SPICY THINGS PEOPLE if you are going to complain of it’s spiciness. We ordered it extra spicy and I swear I saw small bits of habanero peppers chopped into it. It is the kind of burrito that makes your forehead sweat and nose run!
Thank God for Lucis!

I tried this place a few years ago and it was pretty god-​awful bad in my humble opinion. But, that was before Unilocal came along, and after reading the reviews here, I decided it might be worth a second try for a Saturday lunch.
I ordered my usual — bean and cheese burrito along with some chicken rolled tacos — they did not have fish rolled tacos and their fish tacos were fried not grilled so I went for the chicken rolled.
After waiting over ten minutes and watching Mun2’s music countdown on their TV, the kid who took my order came up to me and told me that his father said they were out of beans. I looked at him and said «really?» As I was getting my money back less the Diet Coke I had already opened I said «he can’t go to the grocery store and get some beans?» The kid just shrugged…
Sorry Lucio’s … tried you twice and got burned twice… move along. ..

Lucio’s III is probably has the best burritos in Santee, Great salsa, quality products and the staff is polite and nice. I will continue to give this shop my business.

Really nice family. Really good food. There breakfast burrito is really filling, offering ham bacon potato and cheese for like $ 4. Other places is either ham or bacon. There California burritos are really good too. The meat is really tender and well seasoned. Just the right amount of sour cream and guac. Everything is priced well.

Based on the verbose back-​slapping Lucio’s 3 has received on Unilocal,I decided to visit the much heralded Mexican food shop, only to find myself helplessly agitated. However that may be, I did find some positive points.
The salsa bar, one of the first things I noticed upon entry, was impressively coordinated with green and red salsas, guacamole, and an array of colorful peppers and hot carrots. The entire shop, in fact, was well kempt and aesthetically neutral if not altogether pleasing.
Nevertheless, the food, being the obvious focal point of the trip, was hardly as passable.
My California Burrito, largely bland and suspiciously lacking in carne asada, was hugely disappointing. For whatever reason, there seemed to be an entire head of lettuce in the burrito, making me think I had mistakenly ordered a BLT wrapped in a soggy tortilla.
My friend, who also ate with me, ordered a Chile Relleno, and was upset at what he found inside; a large, cumbersome toothpick, the size of a Lincoln Log, was embedded within the burrito’s contents.
I suspect, no matter what the excuse, this is pure negligence on the part of the cook.
I will not be back, unless I need to borrow a large pike to fend off an enemy, in which case I’ll just go into their kitchen and take one of their staffs of wood that they insert into their meals at random.

Lucio’s makes one of the best carnitas burritos for a taco shop in all of San Diego. As Socal natives, we’ve eaten at many a taco shop and have found none better than Lucio’s. The meat is not hard little cubes of fatty, gristly pork like most taco shops dish out. The meat is so good, almost as good as the kind found at a legendary sit down place like Carnitas Uruapan. It’s always so flavorful and tender and never disappoints. Actually all of their meats are tender and flavorful. The carne asada is excellent, as are the shrimp burritos and rolled tacos. They make their own fabulous chips fresh which are available for FREE on their salsa bar, which is rather unusual given that most places charge for the chips to go along with the free salsa from their bar. They only use real guacamole made from fresh avocados, none of the nasty lime green sour cream we refer to as «guacacream». They always have specials and sometimes even feature some specialties that are less frequently seen in Santee, such as tacos de cabeza or lengua. Try one of their soups when feeling under the weather, our personal favorite is the caldo de res, tender beef in a delicious broth with various veggies, served with your choice of hot, fresh tortillas and rice. Also their breakfast burritos can’t be beat. Their horchata IS great and the family is so helpful and always glad to see you again.

Best carne asada burrito that I’ve ever had! Yes, that means better than JVs, Cotija’s, La Post #8, etc. Tender and flavorful meat, tasty avocado and tomato. Excellent red sauce. This is a friendly family-​run place. First time I was there it was hard to believe my order was being taken by someone who couldn’t have been older than 8. Don’t miss the horchata either. Highly recommended!