La Pinata Restaurant

Very bland and boring. Definitely made to serve gringos. I would not recommend this place as it is not authentic Mexican food.

La Piñata is a little more hidden than many other touristy Mexican places in Old Town, but unfortunately, it’s not a whole lot better. I do end up going to La Piñata more than the other touristy Mexican places because I can walk here from my office, this is the cheapest place with the least touristy gimmicks (and therefore less tourists and less crowded), and the food is okay — about on par with the other Mexican food in the area. I also like that they offer you either free chips and salsa or a free «quesadilla» (which is just a fried tortilla with cheese melted on top) when you come in. It is rarely crowded (at least for lunch) and the servers are very friendly. They have indoor and outdoor seating on a nice covered patio. But, like most other Mexican food in Old Town, the food does not blow me away, so I cannot give it more than three stars.

This is my favorite restaurant in Old Town. The atmosphere is super colorful and cheery with piñata’s hanging above the tables. Our favorite waitress is Teri, she always gives the best service, and remembers us when we return each time.

This place is the BOMB! West, our waiter, was exceptional. The food and service were MEXCELLENT!!! We loved the crispy tortilla with cheese, the shrimp enchilada and the Mexican pizza. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Wanting a fun, full on San Diego Cinco De Mayo, I decided to come to Old Town for some Mexican Food, Drinks and a good time!
Yes, you can get Mexican food everywhere in San Diego, but I wanted the true tourist experience: p
My first stop was at ‘Fiesta/​Casa De Reyes’ right across the street from here, but it was so packed I could barely walk! My date and I waited in line for almost 10 minutes to get to the hostess who told us it would be a 2.5 hour wait until we could be seated! She might as well have said they’re closed LOL
I was starving, I had intentionally not eaten for like a day and a half because I knew I was going to over eat and drink too much. I couldn’t wait 2.5 more hours.
So we left the square and were considering leaving old town for food and coming back, when we walked past this place.
I’d lost hope as everywhere else seemed to have the same wait time, but I asked the hostess inside as a last ditch effort to try and dine here before leaving Old Town.
I gasped so loud as soon as she told me it’d be 15 – 20 minutes. Oh my god, sign me up!
We waited outside for maybe 5 minutes before being told our table was ready. I couldn’t believe it! :)
There was an inside seating area and an outside. I didn’t get a chance to check out the outside but the inside was very fun themed. Little Piñata’s hanging from the ceiling and colorful, Mexican décor all over. I’m not sure if it’s an everyday thing but they also had a guy coming around, serenading some diners with his guitar and what sounded like traditional Mexican songs.
Our waitress was very nice, came up and took our drink orders and brought out chips and salsa. Salsa was delicious, as were the chips.
I ordered the regular Margarita on the rocks, and my date ordered a blended strawberry margarita. I’m not sure if it was because it was blended, or strawberry, but my margarita was a lot stronger than hers! Hers was yummy though.
She ordered the Carne Asada Burrito dinner combo and I ordered the Carne Asada Taco dinner combo. Flavors were good and meat was cooked well. Rice and beans were good as well, it all had the flavor I was looking for! They didn’t have salsa verde for me though, which was lame. Boo. Still, the salsa roja was good enough to keep me happy :)
The taco I ordered was bigger than I thought it would be, but it was only one on the plate. The burrito was smaller than one you’d get at a hole in the wall joint, but the plate was big and covered in rice and beans and filled you up.
It was a little over priced, at $ 13 for a plate of rice, beans, and a taco, but it’s the tourist prices. And I didn’t mind cause service was great and ambiance was lively :)
Total for the two dinners and the two drinks came up to $ 50.
Overall, i’m super thankful I got to dine in Old Town on Cinco De Mayo and this place was great for having us. It’ll always be a nice little memory when coming down here. Thank you guys! :)

First time here. Restaurant quartered filled but service sucked. Waited 30 mins no server not even water. Put us in the corner n forgot about us. NOT GOOD!

Larger portions but wasn’t crazy about the food. Just ok. Living in the LA area i am used to good Mexican food so this was just ok. Décor inside is classic due to the age and story if the area and restaurant.
Chile Verde wasn’t that great. Not much flavor and didn’t like the Carnitas flavor.
Chile Relleno had way to much cheese.

There are a lot of Mexican restaurants in Old Town. Depending on the location, some restaurants are more popular than others but it’s not about the food. However, this place serves excellent meals and the service is exceptional. Their fajitas are the best.

The staff is friendly, but sometimes you feel they’re talking about you right after they walk away to talk to coworkers. The food isn’t good, very bland. I don’t recommend this place. Sorry.

The restaurant is located at the beautiful old town Diego. We had the yummy carnitas burrito, but I was not impressed with the staff there. I probably would go there again, but not anytime soon. If you like to have a romatic walk, it’s perfect! Enjoy!

Decent place food was good and fast service. The guy that comes and sings was ok but you better pay him or he won’t go away

This is a generic Mexican restaurant. The food is very Americano. The atmosphere is nice and friendly waitresses.
Overall this is the first time and last time.

Had a beef fajitadilla and it’s one of the best Mexican food dishes I’ve eaten anywhere… and I grew up in San Diego. I can still remember the taste two weeks later. Many thanks to Rosa, our waitress, who did a fine job.

The décor was very interesting and caught my eye. Piñatas everywhere and they are on the roof!!!
I was included in a large party on the upper banquet room, and. I had to say I was impressed by how fast we got our margaritas. There were two servers working our party and I am a server myself and I was blown away by the professionalism these two displayed.
The food was spot on, true Mexican cuisine, I enjoyed my food so I took some more to go. Gladly the portion sizes are big! Very nice place to eat if you are with you and yours.

The food is so bleh, no taste at all. The drink are great. The service not so good, went on a Wednesday and wasn’t busy at all and it took 30min for us to get our food. 20 to get our drinks. There was nothing special about it.

I grew up eating at La Piñata here and at it’s other locations. After 43yrs I will have to say the quality and the service is still the same. Though I may now live in Phoenix, every time I go home to San Diego La Piñata is a must too stop!

I’ve been coming here for years and the shredded beef (a la carte) burrito is amazing! The quality, consistency, and presentation is amazing! The burrito comes wet, but you can request how moist you want it. The enchilada sauce that the burrito is laid in adds to the flavor of the dish.

Five stars for the portion sizes!
My boyfriend and I came here looking for the authentic feel to Old Town without the crowd of people.
Our server, Wes, gave us the option of complimentary chips or crispy quesadilla. The salsa with the chips is great! We thought we’d only be able to get one basket of chips since we were starving but Wes brought us a second.
Our food came out quickly and the portion sizes were great for the price we paid. He ordered a carne asada (wet) burrito and I had the sour cream enchiladas with shredded beef. Both plates came with rice and beans. We ended up eats parts of each other’s plates because it was so good!
At the end, Wes brought us some free pieces of buñuelos for dessert.
Overall our expectations were blown away because of the salsa, portion size, and food and we’ll definitely be returning customers.

Went there last night and waited quite a while for my meal. Turned to the left of me and a gentleman who had gotten there 20 minutes after me got served quickly. Wasn’t to much of a concern, but he got his food even quicker. Never even got a refill, or asked us if we wanted the quiesedilla or chips. Food was decent, but service was lousy. For out of towners, beware.

Been coming here for 18 years! The chips are great but the crispy quesadilla is so yum! I love the huevos rancheros but today tried the pescado (fish) rancheros and it was excellent. The salsa is super hot but great. My husband loved his shrimp enchiladas. The wait staff has been the same forever are are very sweet.

Didn’t get to eat here so,…
Called in a large party and was greeted very politely. When I arrived there was a good sized line waiting to be seated. I walked in to inform them I had arrived. Was rudely told by a waitress «No, you just called in» I told them I was just letting them know. Had my feelings hurt (Lol) so I left. Not my fault you’re having a bad day.

My family came here Halloween night and to celebrate our daughters 15^th birthday.
I’m truly sad to report that the only thing going for this place is that the staff was friendly and the patio was very welcoming; that’s about it.
No beers on draft.
My margarita tasted weak and off, the mix tasted strange and bubbly like it had carbonation in it.
The food was ehhhh, nothing special and to be completely honest, I’ve had better food in taco shops.
I wanted to like this place more and I’m disappointed that I didn’t.

I love eating here and have lunch here about 2 – 3 times a week because I work close. There is a really cute quaint patio with umbrellas, its a very relaxing atmosphere. The servers are friendly and the food comes out quickly. As far as the quality, it is not high end gourmet, but the prices good for what you get. I also love their margaritas. It is only $ 16 for a liter of margaritas. Way cheaper than the other restaurants in the area.
La Piñata is the oldest restaurant in Old Town. They have a large parking lot that surrounds the restaurant so parking is not an issue.
With all of the places you could eat in Old Town, it’s probably one of the most affordable and has a great patio atmosphere. Less touristy, more locals, but sit outside for the best experience.

Do not come here … probably the single worst mexican food experience ever!
We are here with a group of people btw.
1^st we found hair in our margaritas …
2^nd: we had made a reservation for our group … we showed up an hour before out group did and the chips and salsa had been sitting there for who knows how long… the chips where stale and cold
3^rd: They only brought us hot salsa even after asking for mild
4^th: it took me an hour to get a refill on my ice tea !!!
5^th: the food was cold
The Biggest issue is they served part of our group that can’t have alcohol. Alcohol. their virgin margaritas were full tequila. I’m sorry I could understand the screw up if the cups where the same size and shape …
I also made the mistake of wearing the same color as the managers… let me tell you I was not the only one pissed with there food and service …
Please take caution when coming to eat here they may hurt you if you have a food allergy.
And they just charged me for a Margarita that’s not mine …

Just tried this place today.
Pros:
Delicious fajita salad with steak, which was tender and served with a good portion.
Chicken Fajitas were flavored amazingly, good portion
Service was average
Food came out quickly
Cons:
Beans and rice were below average
Carne Verde was tough not well flavored
Flour tortillas were tough and tasted as if they had been laying around for a bit. Not fresh.
Strawberry Margarita was average very light alcohol for the price
Overall it was average but would not make a beeline to return.

My wife and I like visiting this restaurant. It’s located near Old Town, San Diego and has a very nice atmosphere with a cool side deck area. The staff is friendly. They have Mariachi’s (which I do not like) but other do. Generally, the food is a 4 star rating from us. Unfortunately, the last time we visited the food was only average.
I’ll still give it 4 stars for now. I plan to update my review the next time we visit.

Great restaurant! Food very affordable. I have read previous comments of food being expensive, but if $ 12 or $ 15 plates are expensive for a sit down restaurant with free chips and salsa, free parking and a waitress then they should go to taco stands.
Margaritas are delicious. I tried the regular ones and if you are buying two small ones then you should get the ½ liter one, its cheaper and it’s like 3 margaritas.
I will definitely go back to La Piñata!

Had a work party here and it was quaint but didn’t really thrill me. Here’s why:
So as far as a party of 20 they are pretty organized. But I wasn’t thrilled with service. It’s like older people who have been there probably forever and they aren’t like super attentive. I don’t need people kissing my ass but I do want friendly, approachable, and attentive.
The food: I’m Mexican so I sometimes feel like I’m extra picky. It was good but the rice and beans were not to my standard. It didn’t taste fresh at all. Their salsa was good though.
Biggest gripe: the Margaritas/​Drink selection!
I HATE sweet n sour nasty concoctions of margaritas. A real margarita is fresh lime, agave nectar, you know fresh yummy stuff not like half assed syrup crap.
My all time favorite margarita is a mango one with a chile rim or like a spicy one with a chile rim, nothing like that here!
This place might be the oldest Mexican place in Old Town but it is certainly not the best. My suggestion is that they keep some things old school but they need to update their menu and (this might sound mean) servers and bartenders.

I don’t want to rag on this establishment because the staff seemed really friendly.
My lack of stars is for the food– overpriced for what is was and just awful. I went for a work lunch and couldn’t believe how sub-​par it was (messy platters of tepid meats and mushy beans). Unless I am forced to go back, never again…

Tucked away on the outskirts of Old Town is this little resturant filled with well, pinatas!
After grabbing a table with my friends, we were seated and ordered our drinks. I felt like our servers was awesome and friendly with my friends but with me, our server gave me a little bit of an attitude. When we ordered our food, our server was a bit short and just straight to the point. There was no other tables in our area so I didn’t know what the rush was.
Overall, the food here was just the same you’d find at a regular burrito stand. Nothing really stood out and made me go wow! but it was just a regular meal.

I’ve eaten here before so this latest visit was par-​for-​the-​course. I would not take my out of town guests to this place for authentic, amazing, Mexican food. This place is fast and the service is just barely ok.
I could deal with sub-​par service if the food was better. I’m never impressed here. I’ve had super dryed out chicken, food lacking flavor, and food is always just «meh.» It got the job done, but wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. The carne asada burrito was filled with what appeared to be flank steak that was just chopped up in various sized bites. Not the carne asada I would expect. At least the meat wasnt burned or dry — but not ideal. Did good at getting me full, but not keeping my taste buds entertained.