Vallarta Express

I get the carne asada fries and its the same as the other mexican shops. nothing special and it didnt blow my mind.

I’ve been to one on Genesee Avenue, but I think this one is definitely better because of the seating and location.
The food is just as good as the other location in my opinion, nothing too exciting or spectacular. I came here to this location since I was in the area shopping at the stores nearby. I got a fish burrito and my friend got a surf n turf burrito.
Both burritos were wrapped well (no surprise there!) and tasted really good with the restaurant’s red and green sauces. I highly recommend mixing both sauces; you’ll have a fiesta in your mouth! My fish burrito was good, but each bite didn’t have fish or whatever was in it consistently. It took a couple of bites until I actually got to the fish, which was disappointing. As for my friend’s burrito, I tasted a couple of bites as well, and I didn’t get any of the meat that was in it until the third bite (he got a bit mad I almost ate the whole burrito! Hahaha!).
I think it’s just a matter of quality that needs to be focused. All of the ingredients were there, but they just need to be distributed more equally and throughout the burrito.

I heard a lot of stuff about vallartas, so I came into the restaurant with high expectations. I went around 7:00 after hanging out with some friends and ordered the infamous Christian fries. In the fries there are eggs, bacon, carve asada, cheese, etc. as I kept eating my food I began to lose my appetite and ended up only eating ¼ of my food. Later that night, I threw up around 5 – 6 times, and had an aching stomach. Couldn’t go to school the next day, couldnt eat any meals.
The food quality is alright. Nothing special compared to the other Mexican restaurants in SD. I would rather eat at Coxitans or Lolita’s than vallartas. Yep.

One of the worst Mexican restaurants I’ve eaten at! Even though Taco Bell isn’t really Mexican food I’d rather eat there!

I been accidentally posting 5 star reviews for wrong place. The Mexican restaurant my 5 stars belong to is the Mexican restaurant a few more blocks east 9175 Mira Mesa Blvd Aji-​Jijo aka MXN.
Came here a few weeks ago ordered chicken fajita which was okay. Cheese enchiladas were cold cheese wasn’t even melted at all still shredded with cold cheese. Disappointed.

I overlook the dirty tables for their Christian fries. One word — YUM! Adding eggs and bacon to carne asada fries sounded a little weird at first, but once you try it, you’ll be hooked. Their rolled tacos are good too.
Bottom line: The food is good, but they really need to work on cleaning their tables. It isn’t busy (only two other tables are occupied) so there’s no excuse.

I WAS going to give this a better rating till I got Christian Fries to go. If I could give no stars at all I would but I needed to write a review. When I got home there was almost NO meat at all!!! I couldn’t believe how LITTLE they gave. Such a hugeeeee disappointment!!! There were literally like 8 small pieces of meat and a sprinkle of bacon and I thought i ordered Christian fries that came with a lot of meat. I guess not! To top it all off, they stacked it with so much fries which were stale! It tasted like it was a day old! They hid the so called meat under the cheese and sour cream. When I lifted it with a fork, I was like, are you kidding me!!! if I lived in Mira Mesa I’d bring it back and show them what kind of food they’re serving to people. I won’t ever come back here again! I knew I should’ve stuck to Cotixan!!!
SO just FYI, I’d check your order before leaving or just never come here bc it isn’t fresh anyways!

As a white boy from the opposite coast I obviously don’t know jack about good Mexican food but I must say that this place is a infinitely better than Chipotle… yes, that was the extent of my experience with burritos. That being said I am pretty amazed that I see any line at all at the nearby Chipotle.
This place packs their burritos with proteins (try the surf and turf) unlike other places that pack their burritos with rice. Its fast service and they’re open 24 hours. Would definitely recommend it.

WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER!!!
Went through the drive thru and the lady taking my order was one of the rudest people I have ever talked too. She rushed me through my whole order and when I got to the window she just asked if we wanted hot sauce and by the time I could respond she walked away. Than after coming back four-​five min later without even acknowledging me she handed me the food with out saying anything and just walked away again. I don’t expect much for a drive thru but a simple acknowledgement or a thank you would’ve been nice. I have worked in fast food and know it’s not a fun job but at least be nice to your customers.

I love Vallarta’s, and you can always count on them to have bomb food. Whether it’s lunch time cravings, or the drunchies (drunk munchies), they deliver.
Huge portions, fresh always, great prices.
I really like their carne asada fries, but they also have buffalo fries (buffalo wings on fries) and even a shrimp asada fries. So good.
Recently I also tried their fish taco, and it was fresh, loaded with fish and cabbage and all the goods, and the fish was hot and crispy on the outside, but warm and moist on the inside. Definitely hit the spot!
People are always eating here, and it’s easy to see why. They have pretty good seating, and for a Mexican restaurant, it’s pretty clean and well lit.
Decent parking too!

Coming from a Los Angelino, IF THEY HAD THIS IN LA… MAN !!
My partner and I had the Quesa Burrito and the Surf and Turf Burrito. They were both mouth watering and full of food orgasms.
The quantity was perfect, huge burritos. The wait was not long yet the food was so authentic.
The employees were very welcoming.
Perfect for the late night munchies, love the atmosphere.

Not sure why people are hating on this place so hard. It’s a destination for late night drunkies that just finished getting plastered at gas lamp district. Regardless of their cleanliness and quality of service, their food hit the spot. I would say this is the taqueria de anda of San Diego (referencing it for all you OC kids). I normally can’t go through an entire taco after DTF at taqueria de anda but here… I ate an entire taco and a side of Mexican rice. That’s a lot for me for a 2am meal. Come here with an open mind and an open stomach. You will not be disappointed.

This is my local go to 24hr Mexican drive thru. And because of this I have never even been inside the building. The drive thru can sometimes get backed up, but it’s worth the wait.
Here are my 2 favorites:
1. Breakfast burrito with sausage (and no beans for me)
2. Quesaburrito with carne asada with their green salsa
* {you can choose which meat you want for both burritos}
Yumm yummmm yummmmmm! They’re huge burritos! The breakfast burrito has big chunks of potatoes, eggs, cheese and sausage in it and it’s a perfect burrito to get your morning started! And the quesaburrito, omg, is melted cheesey goodness with carne asada, pico and guacamole! They’re soooo delicious! I’m getting hungry just writing about them!
Pro tip: don’t forget the green salsa at the window!
#sandiegofoodgirls

Always our go to spot after a night of drinking.
Open 24 hours! So why not?
Usually we would get regular carne asada fries, jesus fries, or surf n turf fries.
It’s always a good large portion.
The fries are always nice and crispy.
And they’re the thin cut fries, not thick cut.
And there’s always a good amount of sour cream, guacamole and cheese.
Only complaint is that the cheese doesn’t come melted on top.
And their orange hot sauce is fireeeeeeee.
So much flavor and is a very spicy kick.
It’s delicious.
And they make the food pretty fast too.
Overall, quick and easy place to go when you’re craving mexican food because this place never gets packed.

I only crave this place when it’s past 12am… in other words, Vallarta’s is good for late night munchies (or should I say drunchies) because it’s open 247!
Their Christian fries and burritos are at the top of my list, but I’m not impressed with their tacos. The shell is so hard it makes the taco unenjoyable to eat. If you’re coming for a late night snack, I’d recommend getting their fries. They’re loaded and can easily serve as a meal! Friendly staff and plenty of seating inside.

This place is a solid option for the late night munchies or a cure for the early morning (okay. mid-​afternoon) hangover, and their orange/​red hot sauce is actually legit spicy.
But other than the aforementioned pros, the real reason why we come here so regularly is because they’re open ²⁴⁄₇ and are located in a pretty convenient spot.
The portions are acceptable for the price, but they probably won’t blow you out of the water by any means.
I like that the quesadilla comes with a ton of guac and salsa, but I don’t like how the cheese in their burritos/​carne asada fries aren’t melted. I’m all for gluttony, but the original location on Genessee is definitely better than this one.

I LOVE getting the surf and turf burrito here. I’ve tried all the other ones on Mira Mesa Blvd but the one here gives large portions of shrimp and steak in the burritos which is a huge plus for me. I always get one and just share half with my boyfriend. Also the super fries, which are basically carne asada fries, are enormous! It’s big enough to share with parties of 4 or more. Definitely would recommend this place to people who are looking to get full for cheap out if they’re craving a surf and turf burrito.
My friend also had the mahi mahi burrito before and, again, huge portions of the fish where you get it in every bite. Definitely come try this place out!

I love this place! The service is fast and friendly and the food is bomb! My husband loves the Christian Fries and I love their Pepita Cesar salad with steak. The salad is huge and comes with a ton of meat. The dressing is an amazing cilantro dressing that I am totally in love with!
I highly recommend if you’re looking for a late night eatery in Mira Mesa!

I first tried Vallartas at Genesse first but decided to go to this location because it was closer to me and has more indoor seating. They also have their own salsa bar, which is nice because you can get your own limes and other things. However, I must say that I was slightly disappointed.
I liked this place because they give you large portions, enough to leave leftovers for lunch the next day. Seems like that only happens when you take them to go, with the carne asada fries at least. When I ordered them for dine in, their portion was a lot smaller, since they put it on a plate rather than packing it into a to go box. I finished the entire thing in one sitting. The fries are hot and crispy though, which is great. But the steak is tough and dry. They give a nice big portion of guacamole and sour cream, which is what I like getting, so that the plate isn’t too dry.
Their sauces are usually what makes everything taste so good. But the last 2 times I’ve tried the red/​orange sauce, it was wayyy too spicy for my liking. And it’s not really the chili kind of spice, it was the black pepper kind of spice. It overpowered the entire plate and I wish that I had tasted it before pouring it all over my carne asada fries like I usually do. I can’t remember if it was always like this, but I don’t think so. It means that they’re either not consistent with how they make the sauce, or the red sauce at the Genesse location just tastes better, and it became what I was used to.
I went with my friend last time and he ordered a california burrito. What he got was most likely not a california burrito. There was steak in there, but there was also rice and shrimp, and no fries. I don’t know what kind of burrito he got, but they got his order wrong.
This location needs to step up. It’s a bummer because this location is way closer to me than the one on Genesse. But, I still think that I’m going to keep going to the Genesse location.

I found myself here along with the rest of the Mira mesa people today after we drove by cotixans and the power grid was down causing more of a clusterfuck on Mira mesa boulevard and none of the businesses appeared to have no electricity. Driving through Mira mesa? NO thanks, I’d rather take a bath in hydrochloric acid.
I went thru the drive thru because well, it’s the weekend and I’m lazy. And if you saw my outfit of choice for my lazy saturday, you’d understand why drive thru LOL. Go ahead, judge me.
I ordered for myself and a friend of mine. The machaca plate which I think is #8 under the combo plates and a fish taco. We shared the food while channeling our inner fat girls and eating our feelings. Hahaha.
The drive thru line had about 5 cars in it, but surprisingly it moved quickly. Got home and unbagged everything.
Fish Taco: 2 out of 5 stars. $ 3.65. Barely anything on the damn taco. If it looks like something I could eat without making a mess while I’m driving the car-that’s an issue because you all know how messy a fish taco is. Usually you have cabbage hanging from your hair, lip and chin and all over the front of your clothes. The fish was not crispy AT ALL and was soggy. I’d have a better fish taco by slapping a few van de kamps fishsticks in a store bought tortilla. Just saying. My friend and I each took 1 bite of the taco and decided to throw it away.
Machaca Plate: 4 out of 5 stars. $ 8.70. Holy shit batman. I took the the container out of the bag and the fucking container bent from the weight of the machaca. Read it again? THE CONTAINER BENT FROM THE WEIGHT OF THE MACHACA. Hmm. Interesting. I looked at the container because I seriously thought it was a cheap container, but nope… sturdy container that you get from a boojie place. The machaca, beans and rice were delicious. The only gripe that I have is the tortillas. I’m used to getting this combo at Cotixans where they give you 2 big ass tortillas where you could make at Least 2 decent size tortillas. Here? They give you 5 mini flour tortillas. We ate some for lunch and we have enough for dinner.
But there you go folks, my take on Vallartas.
Would I come again? Sure. But will not order the fish taco. I repeat, DO NOT GET THE FISH TACO.