Marlen’s Taco Shop

Got the carne asada burrito from reading the other reviews. It was very good. Hole in wall place but good!

I’m new to spring valley so I went on Unilocal to find a good taco shop nearby. I read the reviews on this taco shop, there was good reviews on this place so I decide to head over there. I order 5 role tacos and carne asada fries, I was very disappointed on the role tacos. The role tacos did not have any meat in side them, it was only tortilla. The guacamole was water down and the cheese was in thick peace’s. The carne asada fries was alright, I might order them again if I have no other choice but nothing else. I will not recommend this taco shop to any of my friends and family. And a tip for this restaurant please do some upgrading to your place, it seems like your still stuck in 1995.

Great taco shop! I have been coming here for years and the people are always friendly and the food is awesome. I recommend the fried talapia, it is bomb!

First time coming here which was tonight. I ordered a carne asada burrito. It was delicious! The meat was fresh and the guac! I know for a fact that I’ll be stopping here more often! Plus the cashier woman was sweet and polite!!! :)

I’ve been coming to this taco shop since I was 13 it is absolutely amazing!!! My favorite is the California Burrito with there homemade salsa is delicious !!! Come to Marlens you won’t regret it, best taco shop in Spring Vally !!!

Good service, good food, and very good prices! Had a ham and bacon breakfast burrito and it was awesome

Ok what can I say little hole in wall spot to tell you the truth we past it up trying to look for it keep your eyes peeled we got beef taco bean and cheese burrito and a order of rolled tacos
Bean and cheese was bomb cheese was melted all the way through beans where great
Rolled tacos where agh so so tiny I liked that they mixed there guacamole with sour cream lettuce and cheese
Beef tacos the wifey said they could use more seasoning.

So many memories of this taco shop been coming here for 15 years, it’s like a bliss everytime i come here from orange county, how I miss marlens taco shop.

Prices are fair. Had carne asada burrito. Good amount of meat, mexican quac was good. Taste is fair, nothing spectacular. No salsa bar, and the salsa was unimpressive. Not the cleanest looking and in a pretty dilapidated area. Def hole in the wall. Better than that Alibertos next to Jack in the Box, but that bar is set low.
My quest for great Mex in Spring Valley continues.

After landing in San Diego last Monday evening we headed to my sisters house and the first thing I said was i am starving lets get Mexican! She went on to Unilocal and read some hilarious reviews about how great this shop was so we had to check it out. This place was a little hidden off the road but not to bad. We pulled right up front went in and ordered. The customer service was great and the food was even better. I loved my fish tacos on the corn tortillas they were the best i have ever had. The place was very clean and the prices were very reasonable. We will definitely be going back to this shop when we visit Spring Valley again soon.

Judgmental Hospitality Student Quick Analysis:
I used to go to this spot back in middle school. It has not lost its touch. Not the best, but not bad at all.

Great Mexican food… Been coming here since the early days of elementary to the nights of craving mexican food! I always push my friends to come here! CALI fries and CALI burritos are on point! Carne Asada Burrito is also on point! it litterally makes that other spot next to jack in the box look like crap! ENJOY!

I came by for lunch here during my lunch break. The place can be kind of hard to find because it is behind a business in a small strip mall. I ordered the Pollo Asado Burrito combo for $ 6.19 plus tax.
The highlight of the burrito was the flour tortilla. The tortillas was nice and moist. The chicken in the burrito was leg and thigh meat. It was mostly tender but some of the pieces had that rubbery texture. The condiments inside were good. The guacamole did not however appear to be that fresh. It was a little dull in color. Everything else inside tasted good including the tomatoes and onions.
The rice was very good with bit of potatoes blended inside. The re-​fried beans were good to average. The service was good and the place appeared a little run down. There was some kind of construction going on in the kitchen, so from time to time the sound was deafening.
All together it was a descent meal, but It’s not a place that has left me yearning for more. Well, at least not for another pollo asado burrito.

Love this place. Been coming here since the 1900s era. Ditching my middle school La Presa just to eat the bomb tasting Rolled Tacos. Very affordable and Tasty Calories (:

I have lived in spring valley for thirty years and this might be the only taco shop I havent tried. There’s something about the location that seems unappealing, maybe its because its tucked behind all the cars parked at the repair shop out front. The place is half taco shop and half fruteria. The carne asada burrito tortilla had a home made taste, the meat was tender, but it lacked flavor. I had a fruit plate and a «aqua» drink from the fruteria and it was real good. The fruteria is a definite yes, not sure about the taco shop.

Holy sheep shit! I’ve lived next to Marlen’s for almost a year now, and every time I go to that taco place next to Jack in the Box, my roommates ask me why I didn’t go to Marlen’s. After finally going there the other day… I have no fucking idea why I ever went to that other place, Marlen’s is to die for good.
Now, honestly, the only thing I ever eat at Taco stands is Carne Asada, but Marlen’s is juicy; spicy; and looks like it is chock full of fresh ingredients. Further, at a ton of Mexican joints I end up pealing off the tortilla and eating the innards… because damn it, I’m picky. Marlen’s tortilla s however are soft; warm; and taste homemade. Yum!!!
Also, they recently let some family open a smoothie joint in some spare space they had… Speaking as a barista who knows my smoothies… Those smoothies are A++. Dude who made them even had me drink it down some so he could give me all the extra bits.
For a suburb with a dearth of good eateries, Marlen’s is a gem.

Oh my little ghetto taco shop, how I love you.
Did you ever date a girl that would wear stupid tee-​shirts with wolfs on them, and not comb her hair, and possibly walk around with barbeque sauce on her face?
But when you looked past the barbeque sauce, and the unkempt hair, and took that damn wolf shirt off you realized that this girl had an amazing body, I mean a body that said «ahhhhhhhh» like you were looking up at the sky through the pearly gates of Heaven!
Well this taco shop is a lot like that girl, except way different.
Beyond the rusty steel door entrance, and the three broken– ass arcade games from before The Who were singing about Pinball Wizards, and the three kids outside throwing dice and dealing drugs, is a place that has great food for a cheap price.
Seriously I got this mammoth taco, it was like the size of Shaq’s baby leg, and I looked that taco square in the face (cue wild western showdown theme) and I said «taco, today you met your maker», more like eater really. I pounded that taco harder than the corner dwelling prostitute in Bangkok gets pounded by ugly businessmen with hairplugs… oh and here’s the thing
They both cost five dolla! haha