Gonzo Tacos

I will never go back to this place!!! I love real homemade authentic food. The quality was not the best and I was very disappointed. I’m very fortunate that I was just passing through and thought I would give them a try. I saw that the owner was very rude and had an attitude with another customer and that really put me off. Sorry this place is not that impressive with its food or customer service. I guess YV just doesn’t have a lot of options to choose from but this place would not survive where I live. We have great small local authentic Mexican joints to choose from thankfully!!! I will NOT recommend this place to anyone!!!

I meant to review this a long time ago, but it’s hard to keep up with Unilocaling sometimes, what with the pay and all. I saw an article today that the owner posted some nasty comments on Facebook and said they are closing. If true, I think that’s really sad, because I was in the camp who thought this was a great addition to Yucca Valley and liked the vibe/​concept. When my husband and I went, we thought it was great, liked the Hunter S Thompson theme and the fresh from scratch fusion food. We liked that we basically felt like we were in a little indie place in LA while inside.
We tried some tacos and nachos, and the carne wasabisada was our favorite, really yummy. I wasn’t a big fan of the chicken tikka taco, and yes I am familiar with and enjoy Indian flavors, but it probably varies on any given day since it’s cooked from scratch. The pork was good. The menu was quite limited, but sometimes keeping it simple is best. The owner was nice enough, not overly friendly but reasonably so, and cooked and served our food pretty quickly. The only reason I haven’t gone back is that I have Crohn’s and at the time everything was a bit too spicy for me to digest, but now I am on a pretty strict diet for it where I can finally eat a little spice but can no longer eat tortillas, beans, corn, chips, added sugar, etc. So we probably aren’t a good fit. If they offered a carne wasabisada bowl as more of a salad version without any grains or starch, I would be there shortly! My husband, however, has returned multiple times and enjoys it. When we went, he asked the owner how business was, and he replied that it wasn’t too good. We hoped that would change and did recommend it to a lot of people.
As for the alleged Facebook post… I can understand the frustration of a business like this trying to make it in Yucca Valley. What was said (and some of the comments I’ve seen on Unilocal reviews now that I’ve looked) is true of some of people you encounter when working customer service here. YV has not had much in the way of good restaurants and a lot of people don’t really have a taste for more fancy or unusual food and some are trashy. That is probably especially true of the neighborhood where the restaurant is unfortunately located. I used to live there and meth is definitely an issue, it’s just very poor and a sad area. That said, I do think YV wants a place like this. We are not all like that, some of us actually travel and have educations. The farm to table movement is huge these days, and even here I have noticed more people, not the majority, but more, seeming to be aware of how much better real food is than the processed crap you get at chains. I have had many friends tell me they liked this place!
I think the location is a big part of the problem, not only is it in a more trashy part of town, but it’s not convenient to the main shopping areas where most of the non-​druggies here go to quickly pick up dinner. It’s easy to forget it is there when we generally only drive past it when leaving town.
Secondly, while we didn’t encounter rudeness, and I think the owner had valid points in some of his responses, some of them were definitely rude and insulting. If you want to stay in business, it has to be more about happy customers than being right. You can’t attack every criticism with insults, and expect people to keep coming in. Some criticisms were dumb, but some were valid as the food was not perfect in my opinion either. There is always room for improvement, especially if you are passionate about what you do. I can understand the response to the person who said they’d rather have Del Taco for instance, but you can’t talk to customers that way if you want to make money, lol. On the other hand, the criticism about the store bought tortillas was fair, and it was not addressed politely either. If this were worked on, and more emphasis put on attracting rather than alienating customers, I think it could do better. I did see the owner’s comment about a church group trying to sabotage them, and if that is true that is really unfortunate and maybe we do not have the whole story, but these are just my observations from what I have been able to taste and see. The thing is, even if the reviews are fake, responding that way will put off potential customers who do not know they are fake because they think that is how you deal with complaints and will go somewhere else.
Maybe it’s too late, but I’d still love to see this place succeed. We DO need the culture, charm, and variety that little places like this bring. Yucca is growing, we can support a place like this, and we should!

This is without a doubt my favorite Mexican restaurant in the high desert. I love everything about Gonzo Tacos — the décor (the tables & artwork are way cool), the atmosphere, the concept, the friendly service, and especially the food.
Not surprisingly given the name and Hunter Thompson theme, the guys at Gonzo Tacos have their own unique take on Mexican cuisine. While you can find authentic Mexican recipes like Pork Al Pastor and Carnitas on the menu, many Gonzo creations are a fusion of flavors from around the world. I generally prefer to stick to the more traditional dishes though.
Rather than offering different options for tacos and burritos, at Gonzo you can get your favorite filling in either. They also have tamales, quesadillas and nachos. And for desert there’s an absolutely DIVINE Mexican chocolate tart.
My faves right now are the fish tacos (you MUST try these) and the burrito with wine simmered veggies, black beans and rice. By the way, the beans and rice here are among the best I’ve had anywhere. I LOVE Mexican rice and beans when done well but so often they’re bland and disappointing. Not here! I’m thrilled to have found a restaurant that serves up Mexican rice and black beans the way they’re supposed to be.
I also love the Carne Wasabisada tacos (though I get them without wasabi aioli for a more traditional flavor) and the spicy Gonzo Mac ‘n Cheese with soyrizo. Oh, and the homemade tortilla chips and salsas are AMAZING.
The menu at this point is pretty limited, but I’d rather see a restaurant with a limited selection of inspired menu items made from scratch using high quality, fresh ingredients than an extensive menu full of pre-​made mediocrity. We already have plenty of the latter in the desert.
Prices are very reasonable, especially considering the quality. For $ 5 – 10, you can get a great meal at Gonzo Tacos. If you haven’t been yet, you’ve got to give this a place a try.

These were the best, most unique tacos we have ever eaten. The restaurant was CLEAN as a whistle. James, the owner and Courtney, who cooks are very friendly and gracious. This is our new favorite place. My favorite is the Chicken Tikka. Yummy. What a great spin on tacos.

This place was great, the staff was really cool. We ordered almost one of every taco and the nachos. They have a Hot Sauce that is full of flavor and kick. It’s Kwanzaa healthy and very clean I got there about an hour and a half before closing.
I can see how someone might think this place has a stoner vibe but that’s not it at all it just follows the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas theme and it’s a very tame version of that.
I didn’t do full stars because there was no way to open a tab so we had to keep going back and forth to order pay then back to wash hands. Get a Taco.

I’ve actually been putting off writing a review for this place because I’m really put off by owner’s who respond to negative comments on Unilocal.On top of that, if the owner is not apologizing and is rather lambasting the customer, I’m even more turned off from the restaurant. Without a doubt, had I read the reviews on here before trying Gonzo Tacos, I wouldn’t have went there at all. There is something to be said about how a company presents itself and treats its customers and bad reviews topped with a nasty attitude do not make someone reading the reviews want to try the restaurant.
With that said, the service I received when I visited wasn’t bad. It was attentive, I got my food quick, I wasn’t unsatisfied in that regard.
However, I come from a land of much better food than is available in Yucca Valley. And I’m sure that this tilts my idea of what good food is. Clearly, Yucca Valley is not a place known for its fine dining or great cuisine and while I think Gonzo Tacos tries really hard to bring something new and delicious into town, it just wasn’t great.
I ordered two tacos, the carne wasabisada and the pork al pastor. I liked the carne wasabisada one quite a bit. The flavors were fun, with the added wasabi to remind me of Japanese cuisine. But, the pork al pastor one. I couldn’t eat it. I took a bite and I was so put off by the flavor. I can’t pinpoint what it was, but I am not a picky eater — I very rarely turn food away or spit food out. I wish I had tried the carnitas instead, but I honestly probably won’t go back.
I also ordered the pork al carnitas tamale. As far as the filling goes, the inside was great. However, the tamale itself was dry. It was disappointing.
Sorry James. You can respond if you want, but had the food just not met my standards I would have given a 3. The bad attitude that is portrayed on this website though from you makes this restaurant less than deserving of a 3.
How you portray your restaurant online really will impact the potential customers.

I’ve been eating at Gonzo for about 4 months. Something like 3 times a week.
I expect the owner to rebut this review with an attack.
Obviously I liked the food, the fusion tacos and enchiladas. I want this place to succeed. Yucca Valley needs good, different and reasonable places.
But James and Keith live out the Hunter S. Thompson drug lifestyle to the detriment of the store… quality, consistency, friendliness, cleanliness all suffer .
One of the first things James told me 4 months ago was that he just scored some acid. I ignored that. Then a couple days ago Keith was drunk or high beyond belief. To his credit James removed him but he’s back in the kitchen again as of yesterday, Sunday. I’ve had enough.
I brought in three MORE guests over the last 2 weeks and all of them hated the vibe, the service and to some degree the food.
James contacted me on Facebook by looking into his employees facebook account. Not cool at all and she (Erin) is one of the bright spots at the store along with Lizzy. Both attentive, great food prep but have to put up with nasty, druggy colleagues.
Instead of a straight up apology and explanation that they are going to make things better, much better… I’ll be surprised if James doesn’t attack. Take a look at the unreasonable, hate filled responses out of the playbook of good old Hunter S. Just f**k off everyone.
One less great place for me in Yucca.

I decided to give this place a shot because i saw the groupon. When I arrived the atmosphere was just not what i expected very tight and unwelcoming. We all ordered one of each the tikka, the wasabi and pastor. The food came out pretty quick, but sadly it was all cold. The tacos were very disappointing not to good the nachos on the other hand were pretty good. Even though the chips were from dollar tree and the guacamole was out of a jar. It was a disappointment i wouldn’t recommend this place.

I have been meaning to try this place for quite some time. I have actually seen reviews on Unilocal for this place and it looked really unique and this town needs some more cool eating establishments. Fun décor with Hunter S. Thompson themed Art on the walls. I gotta say I am a pretty picky eater so the tacos looked a little strange to me but I went here with an open mind. Not strange in a bad way but just different from your typical taco place. I ordered the Carnitas Nachos and wow these were up there with some of the best nachos I have ever had. The Carnitas tasted similiar to Chipotle Carnitas which is my favorite but of course no Chipotle around here. The size of these nachos was generous and priced at just $ 6. I would highly recommend them. Also the staff was very friendly and made sure that you were happy with what you ordered and they did so in not an annoying way but in a way that made you feel very welcome. I will definitely be back to this place. Thanks again Gonzo Tacos for yummy food.

A Hunter Thompson themed taco shop in the middle of yucca valley!
That’s either perfectly fitting or way out of place. But the long and the short of it is that the fish tacos here are fantastic. Also try the chocolate tart, because it may not look aesthetically good but it’s amazing.

Ok, so let me start off with the location and atmosphere. Gonzo is located towards the beginning of Old Yucca in the Jelly Donut complex. Surrounded by some old and outdated looking businesses, it is easy to miss the shop. As you walk in to Gonzo you will see a well laid out seating area of about 12 tables. The prep area is open for customers to view the making of their meal. The interiors are semi-​modern with vibrant color walls, however the tables covered in laminate takes away from the glamour. Wall décor is ‘unique’. Ambient music, well, it was playing from a laptop on one of the tables.
We visited around 5:45 for dinner. We walked in and grabbed menus on the counter, there was no greeting or acknowledgment from the staff. The Menus was short and simple, making it very easy to order from. But some might see it as not enough for choices.
We ordered the Carne Wasabisada, Chicken Tikka, rice and beans. The food came out fairly quickly, but one order came on a paper plate, the others came out in plastic baskets and the rice came is a paper cup/​bowl. There were no plasticware available instead we were given some cheap flatware.
The Carne Wasabisada and the Chicken Tikka were right on point with the flavors. I will give them credit for creativity. However, it was disappointing to see that the taco shells were not fresh, they were standard Wal-​mart or stater bros. tacos. In fact they could very well have been purchased next door at the Mexican grocery store. The rice seemed like a boxed mix and the beans definitely came from a can.
Overall, it is a good spot to stop in after a few drinks or just to taste something different. There are quite a few improvements the store needs to make to truly set themselves on a whole new level.

Very nice girls running the shop just before closing.
Chicken is very good, but the rest of the fillings need work. Quite bland, though the carnitas and carne goes from no flavor to pretty decent if you load them up with salt and lemon.
A damn good idea slash concept, the food (outside the chicken) just falls short

The exotic fillings are actually well done, but come on, not everyone wants their burrito or taco to be Indian or Japanese.
Give the people some choice!

At first glance Gonzo’s is easily overlooked, however, once you’ve fallen into the rabbit hole of vibrant color, killer artwork and an aroma of unlikely spices you’re sure to leave with a fully belly and a big smile.
We are vegetarians so we only tried one of their fillings which can be used to fill either tacos or burritos. They also have a Mac and cheese option with soyrizo or classic chorizo. However we didn’t get to try that.
We did receive a FREE slice of their chocolate tar for checking in on Unilocal and it is TO DIE FOR!!!
Visit this place immediately before this hidden gem is discovered by the masses (which isn’t too long from now) !

Rude owner/​cook or whatever James C of Gonzo Tacos is… He has now sent me two rude messages as a result of my previous review! What a total jerk!!!
Maybe he not only needs to learn about flavor combinations, but he also needs to learn about customer service and how to treat people.

BOMB!!!
Don’t ask questions, just go. My mouth is still salivating.
I had the chicken burrito and it was amazing! So flavorful. It was like biting into a unicorn burrito.
Clean
Good atmosphere
Good customer service

Locally owned and very yummy! Not your normal taco shop. The chicken tikka taco is what I had, and it was great! The salsas seem to be home made and very flavorful! Cannot wait to try more of the menu! I really wanted to try the gonzo Mac and chess (Mac and chess made with pepper jack and chorizo/​soyrizo)
They also advertise that they cater.
I like to support local businesses, especially good ones. This place has done it right! We will be back!

Gonzo Tacos is, by far, the best restaurant I’ve tried in the high desert area.
I got the Carne Wasabisada taco, the Chicken Tikka taco and their mac and cheese. Everything tasted amazing, and the atmosphere is comfortable and artistic. I highly recommend stopping in if you’re looking for a fresh, delicious meal with world flavors. I wish I could add another star.
Oh my god I had to add to the review: we got a free Mexican Chocolate tart for checking in and ITS SO SO GOOD. Do not leave without trying it.

The owners are serious Hunter S Thompson Fans. This place is so hipster, it belongs in LA and Silverlake, but sits here in the middle of nowhere, which makes it even more hipster.
The tacos are novel in flavor. Fusion style. Chicken tikka tacos. Carne wasabi tacos. They are all pretty delish. If your headed out to Joshua Tree, Gonzo tacos are worth the stop.

Nice fusion food-​truck-​style taco cuisine. I had 3 tacos ($ 1.99 each) and left full and satisfied. Interesting flavors on all the tacos but I liked the chicken tikka taco the best. My wife had the Mac and cheese which was quite nice.
The sign out front is rather hard to see from the highway so you really have to look carefully to find Gonzo Tacos. It’s a few doors West of Algoberto’s in the same mini mall.
The interior is clean and well lit.