Casa Sol y Mar

The staff here was excellent and the food was absolutely fantastic! I ordered the seafood poblano, and was by no means disappointed! The food not only looked amazing but it tasted amazing! Our waiter hooked us up with a little tiny play of rice for my 11 month old daughter. The décor was beautiful and brought the overall ambiance of the restaurant thought the roof! I will definitely recommend this to my family friends and co-​workers. Me and my wife will most definitely be going back. Thank you for a wonderful experience.

Great food with lots of flavor and great service. It’s a bit pricey but not too crazy for a sit down restaurant or the area.

When you have a 25 minute wait to be seated at a table, it is not a good idea to place the mariachi band inside the lobby where patrons are waiting. First, it’s too loud. And second… all your waiting customers have to sit and look at each other because it is impossible to hear each other When you have a 25 minute wait to be seated at a table, it is not a good idea to place the mariachi band inside the lobby where patrons are waiting. First, it’s too loud. And second… all your waiting customers have to sit and look at each other because it is impossible to hear each other talk.
But wait there is more to add 40 minutes later when we are still sitting in the lobby with a pager waiting. You know that moment «Wait. Weren’t we here before them?» But not sure so you wait. Then another couple goes to be seated. «I am pretty sure they came in after us.» But no one wants to look stupid. So you wait. Then the moment comes after another couple are seated when you realize you were skipped.
I walk to the counter but the hostesses are missing. I pick up their list and look it over. We aren’t on the list. Our pager # isn’t on the list. We don’t exist! We are waiting on nothing! Up walks a hostess and snatches the paper out of my hand with a mean look asking if she can help me. «Well we have been waiting with this pager for 40 minutes while you seated at least 3 couples that came in after us. And it seems that we aren’t on your list. Why is that?» «What’s your name?» I respond. Then she looks at me and asks «Which hostess checked you in?»
What kind of question is that?! The who is irrelevant by the issue is very relevant of which she is clearly missing. Instead she is looking at me with a blank face waiting on my answer. I turn to my husband sitting across the lobby who looks at me with a «we have a table?» look only to hear my question «SHE WANTS TO KNOW WHO CHECKED US IN BECAUSE WE AREN’T ON THE LIST.»
We were seated immediately. Patrons… make sure when you are handed a pager that the person actually documents your desire to spend your money at their restaurant!

We came in for my work tonight and Eddie was amazing!!! He was so attentive and made our night so special. I can’t wait to come back again!

Ok I have to say I love their chips and salsa! I have been several times now, and the décor there is nice, and it is clean. They have a bar area with low and high tables so depending on what you prefer you have options. Then they have a large restaurant area in the back. Sometimes they have a lady making tortillas there and Mariachas there.
They have a good priced happy hour with drinks and appetizers. I like their taco sampler plate, you get three tacos: chicken, carnitas, and beef on corn tortillas. They have a good restaurant menu as well, though I have usually gone in for happy hour. The food is good and the service it pretty good.
We will be back

I have mixed feelings about Casa Sol Y Mar. It is in a good location and the décor/​ambiance is colorful and inviting. But once we were seated it took about 20 minutes for an employee to come to our table. The service remained slow all evening even though the restaurant was not crowded. The food was decent, but I hope my next experience there is more positive.

I have been here a few times and always had fun, whether for Happy Hour or Dinner. Being vegetarian, I found plenty of options. This time around, I had the Veggie fajitas and a Rolls-​Royce margarita, which I split with my girlfriend — both great choices. Also when we ran out of corn tortillas, they brought us more without charging — very cool.
That evening, it was my birthday and Eddie, the waiter surprised me by sending out a birthday band and a complimentary flan desert, making the evening feeling extra special for my day :)
Eddie was a great waiter and I’d recommend going to this place!

It’s a nice place, and a nice meal, but at this price point the service has to be better.
The ambiance is cookie cut from the traditional Old Town tourist traps, but that’s okay. It’s a gimmick that I admittidly enjoy especially with a margarita in hand.
Overall the food was very good. The table salsa was on the spicy side, so hopefully you get your drinks (water) before your chips and salsa… We didn’t.
My favorite item was the California Burrito. It’s twice the price of the Alberto’s version, but this included sides of beans and a nice tangy slaw. Sol y Mar’s burrito included battered fries (a real pet peeve of mine) but somehow it all worked. Yum
Kids meals are above average. The winner I guess would be the fish sticks. It’s probably a disservice to call these sticks as they looked more like fish and chips.
The negative was the service. Everything was painfully slow from drink refills, to salsa refills, to the food arriving, and to getting our check. Not what I would expect from a higher priced Mexican restaurant. Also, I seem to recall that sister restaurant «Casa de Bandini» was more attentive with the staff and they were dressed more festively. Our server looked more like a floor manager. Hmm.
3.5 stars

First time here and will never be back. What a waste of money. We were walking over to Rubios and decided to give your spot a try… We should have rather gone to Rubios
The chicken tortilla soup was like water
the kids burrito was tasteless
You guys need to get your act together
On a good note the our server Bri was very pleasant. The managers answer to my complaint about the watery soup was — perfect … ???

Had a great happy hour. We enjoyed the mariachi band and let them play a few songs for us. The dinner was kind of heavy. I ordered the special Cheese Tortilla which I envisioned as a fried quesadilla with stuff on the side. I was probably not clearly reading the menu as it had refried beans plus all the works on top. Lesson learned.
Service was really good though and the others at my table were happy with their choices.
Would go back.

I had high hopes for this restaurant but overall I felt it was average at best.
The restaurant is large with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. They do provide complimentary chips and salsa which was tasty. The menu is comprehensive with various options from salads, tacos, enchiladas, and steak/​chicken entrees but the food is overpriced. I got 2 carna asada tacos with rice and bean for $ 15. The tacos were average in flavor and the rice and bean tasted like they were from a can. The service was decent but I did have to ask a few times to get our waters refilled. Plenty of other Mexican restaurants to go to in SD with better quality and value.
Tip: there are coupon in the local ad for $ 5 off $ 25 or $ 10 off $ 40.

I am a fan of this place. At first, we stayed away because of the bad reviews here on Unilocal.Then, we went to a party, and some friends of ours told us that this was their go-​to spot. So we decided to give it a try.
I’m glad we did. My husband and I are used to Tex-​Mex, not the typical Cali Mexican food. If you want typical Cali-​Mex, then go to Fidel’s or Tony’s. This place is much closer to Tex-​Mex than anything we have found.
We have been twice and both times our servers were fantastic. I can’t remember the first guy, but the second time, we sat outside with Courtney and she was bomb.
The first time we went, we told the guy we were used to having queso in Texas, and he ended up bringing us out a jalapeño cheese dip thing that is not on the menu, but was good and satisfied that craving.
The salsa has a good flavor and tastes fresh. Their cheese and chicken enchiladas with red sauce are surprisingly good.
My husband had the fajitas and said they were decent.
The homemade flour tortillas are where it’s at! Must try. They are so fresh and delicious.
Don’t be deterred by the bad reviews, but also know that this isn’t Cali Mexican food.

Delicious margaritas and pretty terrible food.
Full bar with a good selections of drinks. Get the cadillac margaritas, Delicious. Munch on the complementary chip and salsa, best idea ever!
Located at the Del Mar town center mall, next to Chevron, easy to spot.

Just a short update to my previous reviews. I took advantage of Unilocal’s free dessert with purchase of two entrees check-​in offer the other day and I have to give a shout out to the Deep Fried Ice Cream.
I’m usually so stuffed after dinner at a Mexican restaurant (I blame the endlessly delicious chips and salsa), but I figured I could indulge in a few bites. Besides, who turns down something that’s free? I debated between the deep fried ice cream and the churros but the waiter recommended the ice cream. My oh my, was that a good decision!
The deep fried ice cream is served in a martini glass with whipped cream and caramel drizzled on top. It’s the perfect amount of sweetness and I was in heaven. By far one of my favorite desserts and I may have to indulge on future visits too. ;)

We visited some years ago to try out their happy hour and found the food (& service) to be mediocre. But a group of friends recently wanted to get together for lunch and one of the girls suggested Casa Sol y Mar. I wasn’t going to throw in my .02c (shocker I know) as I figured perhaps the restaurant had improved since my last visit. Plus, hello, they have complimentary fresh chips and salsa.
Danny deserves 5 stars for THE MOST amazing service. He gave each girl a separate check so for that we were grateful.
3 of us ordered:
CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP:
— The hot cup of soup came out and I loved it. The broth tasted of tomato, celery, and carrots. The chicken tasted tender. I normally don’t like avocado in any broth but the creamy avocado here melded so beautifully with this comforting soup.
GRILLED FISH TACOS:
— I believe this is halibut that’s served on flour tortillas (per my request). The fish was a bit dry and underseasoned. The best item on the plate were the sauteed vegetables (in lieu of rice and beans) of mushrooms, squashes, peppers, onion.
GRILLED CHICKEN & AVOCADO TACOS:
— The strips of grilled chicken breast were dry. Our favorite part of the tacos were the avocado slices.
TOSTADA CORONA:
— I have to admit that this dish was delicious as the flour tostada somehow remained crispy after being smothered with all those items. I’m not a fan of refried beans but the beans paired well here with the melted jack cheese and queso cotija.
A friend and I re visited on a Sunday as margaritas and chips sounded nice on a humid day. Items ordered that day:
SKINNY MARGARITA
— This was a large (& heavy) margarita glass. I believe there’s Espolon Silver tequila, agave, and fresh lime juice in this. Friend liked it and said it tasted quite light and refreshing.
BLOODY MARIACHI:
— I figured if I’m sinning it up after church I might as well do it Bloody Mary style like I did last Easter at Davanti Enoteca. I didn’t think much of this drink. It tasted tomato-​y and nicely spicy but that’s about it.
CEVICHE DEL MAR:
— Terrible. The shrimp tasted like they were boiled in water and then seasoned with citrus juice. The shrimp didn’t taste, or feel, like they had been cooked from bathing in lime juice. They tasted bland and almost hard.
CHILE COLORADO:
— The beef tasted a bit tough and the sauce needed to be served at a hotter temperature. Both the beef and chile sauce tasted almost lukewarm to us.
CARNITAS A LA MICHOACAN:
— The chunks of carnitas tasted fine. But I wished there was some sort of sauce (other than salsa quemada on the side). The meat almost tasted dry without any type of sauce accompanying this carnitas dish.
Courtney was our server & bartender that afternoon. She was busy but attentive so all was good. Don’t forget to CHECK IN on your Unilocal app to get a free dessert !

Casa Sol y Mar is one of those Mexican places in San Diego that aren’t super authentic, but still taste good enough to not be ruled out. I come here once every few months because it is so easy and close to my house. There is almost never a wait, and the food is consistently good. It’s not great, but it leaves me feeling full and happy and relaxed (or maybe I’m describing their margaritas?).
The parking isn’t terrible, since it’s at one end of the complex — away from most other shops. They’re putting in a parking garage now, so that should help even more.
This place is great for large groups, though I suggest making an reservation so they can have it ready when you get there. The ambiance inside is really nice, and though I typically like sitting outside at any other restaurant, the layout with the plants is a bit odd so in this location I stick to inside only.
Overall a nice place to wind down after a long day, but if you’re looking for cheap authentic Mexican food from San Diego, I’d keep driving south.

I’ve been here enough times to write an appropriate review. I’ve been going since the place opened and it really hasn’t changed in the years they have been open.
It’s located in a moderate sized strip mall with generally adequate parking. The restaurant itself is quite beautiful and very clean. There is a large dining area and a nice bar with several screens to watch sporting events and one large high definition screen where they show the main event for the day.
We decided to sit up at the bar so we could watch the final game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. There were plenty of open seats at the bar and several servers working the bar area and right away someone asked for our drink order. Someone else brought the traditional chips and salsa. The chips were warm and fresh. The salsa they give is also fresh and just the slightest bit spicy but you can ask for hotter salsa. We ordered up guacamole for the chips and although it’s an extraordinarily small portion, it’s quite good. In comparison with other restaurants, I would say their guacamole rivals any other restaurant. I ordered the combination plate with two crispy tacos filled with shredded chicken. It also comes with the traditional rice and beans.
We had gone through about half of the chips and salsa when our meals arrived and the presentation was beautiful. I took a bite of the refried beans and they too are exceptional. The rice was just about average. I put some sour cream and the salsa in one of the tacos and started to eat. The crispy shell was indeed crispy but pretty flavorless. The taco had just a little bit of lettuce and even less cheese. I actually think I could have counted the strands of cheese there was so little. The chicken was very dry and without any particular flavor. They weren’t bad but just incredibly average.
As I said, I’ve come here on several occasions and the food has never changed. For those who have been on the East Coast, this next part will make sense, but if this restaurant was back East, they would call it «great» Mexican food. But here in SoCal, it’s average at best. On a Saturday evening the place is not even half full and if you look at some of the surrounding restaurants in the same strip mall, they are always full. If you need a sit down place, it’s clean, very nice and the servers are great so you might want to choose this place because there aren’t any other Mexican restaurants nearby. But if you just want Mexican and don’t mind taking it out or eating in a fast food type dining area, there are two taco shops less than a mile away from Casa Sol y Mar that are infinitely better than this place. It’s unfortunate in all the years they have been here that they haven’t tried to make the food better.
Last, we came here to watch a game but left because it was too difficult. It’s such a shame they have this huge, beautiful high definition flat screen yet it was almost impossible to watch because the bartenders/​servers were standing right in front of us just talking away. One in particular must have been 6′ 4″ and while there was really no business at the bar, he had to just perpetually stand in the way and block our view of the game. And sadly he was so oblivious to this. He did note we were trying to watch the game and that he was somewhat in the way but this didn’t seem to matter to him. And again, it wasn’t as if the bar was busy. I don’t even think I saw them fill one drink order while I was there. So, to the servers/​bartenders… you are NOT a window. You want people to tip you but you might try being courteous yourselves. And finally, when it was time for me to leave the bartender called me «big guy». Hey, I know I need to lose a little weight but you don’t need to be rude. First and foremost, I do not know you and don’t appreciate you calling me any name regardless of how you might have meant it. You don’t need to be formal either call me sir or Mr. but certainly do NOT start calling me names like «big guy».

This place is warm, inviting and very well decorated. Right when I walked in, I was impressed with the friendliness of the staff, the overall ambiance and it’s cleanliness.
It was a Friday night and we didn’t have reservations, so my husband and I had to wait a little. The chairs were comfortable so it wasn’t torture and we only had to wait 10 minutes.
I’m not a Mariachi fan. But… these guys didn’t annoy me! The music was fun, not obnoxiously loud. It was actually a nice touch. This is a real compliment coming from a ‘non-​Mariachi’ band fan.
The chips were hearty and the salsa was good, not too spicy with plenty of cilantro.
I’m disappointed because I feel like I didn’t order the ‘right dish’ for this place. I got the chopped chicken tostada salad (or something similar to that title).
Sadly, it was just ok. I really didn’t like that the olives were the sliced canned kind. There should have been more crunchy veggies (like more red pepper or something) – It just felt like there was a LOT of iceberg lettuce and not much else! I was so sad to dig around and only discover tiny bits of avocado in it. The salad definitely wasn’t anything to go on about. Lesson learned.
The good news is our waiter, Dave, was very on top of our table and accommodating to my salad omissions.
There is a beautiful outside patio with large tables that would be great for a birthday party or family gathering. I’m taking note of this for my 40^th B-​day bash…
THE TAKE-​AWAY: This experience won’t stop me from coming back because the staff and service were really great and the atmosphere was warm and friendly. I’ll update this review. Next time I’ll let ya know how the Fajitas are…
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UPDATE: Went back, ordered the Chicken Fajita as promised. My girlfriend ordered the Shrimp Fajita and… DANG! Looks like I keep ordering the wrong thing when I come here!
1.The chicken slices in my dish were small.
2. The Fajitas were kinda greasy (even though I asked them to be light on the oil)
3. The guacamole was fresh and made well, but the little side of beans had no flavor.
I’ll try one more time. (I’m not sure if this is because I’m a sucker for Mexican food or good ambiance…)

finally returned for dinner… we had a huge party of 14 people…
dinner menu is much better than HH menu…
server kicked butt even with our huge party
kids loved the food…
parents had left overs…
please change your HH menu a bit so i can enjoy that!!!
we had a bunch of cadillac margaritas… OMG so good!

I have known about this place for quite a while, but mostly based on the mediocre reviews, had delayed coming here until yesterday when I met a friend for lunch. Unfortunately the reviews were justified.
We were seated quickly, but then it went downhill. After about 5 minutes, the chips finally arrived, but the cheese sauce we ordered never did. The salsa was very mild and bland. Water refills were slow.
The main course wasn’t much better. I had the grilled chicken mango and avocado burrito. It wasn’t horrible, but was very lacking in flavor. The rice, slaw, and black beans were decent, but nothing special. I felt like I could have eaten a similar meal at El Pollo Loco next door at less than half the price.
My friend commented that they had raised their prices from the last time he had visited. When we received the bill, the cheese sauce that we never received was included. They took it off, but for the prices they charge, the service and food were definitely sub-​par.