Puesto Mexican Street Food & Bar
| Address: | 1026 Wall St, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA |
| Phone: | +1 858-454-1260 |
| Site: | eatpuesto.com |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
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Sonal Patel
After numerous visits to San Diego, we decided to changes things up from our usual getaway and head down to La Jolla instead. We made reservations here for a date night, 1) because of the glowing reviews and 2) the area would be a new change for us. So glad we did too!! I made reservations because it seemed like for a Friday night, there would definitely be a crowd. Sure enough, that was a great decision made by me. The ambiance in here is so rustic, modern and trendy! I loved the massive glass doors, the upstairs "indoor/outdoor" feeling of sitting near by the window. The patio was super awesome and of course packed with so many patrons. I couldnt get over how awesome this ambiance really was. Great for groups, date nights and girls night out! Food! We ordered the Puesto Perfect Guac, which came highly recommended by our server. It was delish, despite me having my hesitations with the cheeses. The tacos are mix and match and great portions sizes. I recommend 3 if youre super hungry - 2 if you dont want the post-Mexican food coma. My standout favorites were the Filet Mignon and the Lamb Barbacoa....yummmmmmm. Service was FANTASTIC. The phrase, service with a smile, goes above and beyond here. I loved how attentive and knowledgeable the server was about the menu. Being "newbs" to the Puesto concept, we didnt feel like we were getting the upsell or to rush getting our order in. He really took time to explain it all to us and help us with questions....not to mention having so much patience with my indecisive nature around what to order for dinner. Tough choices guys...welcome to my first world problem. Overall, great food, great service, loved the ambiance and Im coming back...FO SHO!
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Courtney Hartmann
Great experience all around here for a weekday lunch. The parking lot was still full and so was the restaurant, but get your ticket validated for $3 parking for 2 hours. Service: Warmly greeted, seated right away and we had a fantastic server who was friendly and on top of things not just with our table but with those surrounding us. Decor: Open, bright, beautiful, interesting. It was a little too hot to sit on the patio, but I liked the semi-open area we did sit in that was next to it. Food: Uh-mazing. The fish taco was my favorite of the three I tried. I ordered the shrimp and the lobster one as well and that is the order I enjoyed them. The flavors with each taco are pretty spot on. The lobster one had a sauce on it that tasted a little like a deviled egg (weird, I know) but that definitely could have been my weird palate and it wasnt an unwelcome taste. My friend had the chicken and filet taco, which she claimed was the best taco she ever had. The complimentary chips and salsa are tasty and plentiful. We ordered the guacamole as well and Im glad we did. Wish I didnt have to work after or I wouldve ordered a cocktail. Thats next on the list along with the chicken mole.
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Josh Torgersen
My wife and I were on our honeymoon. We were exploring La Jolla. The building and atmosphere looked cool so we decided to stop at Puestos for lunch. We were seated immediately and the waiter brought out chips and salsa and some waters. He disappeared for 5 minutes and came back to take our order but forgot to take the couples order next to us and told us hed be right back. He disappeared again for 20 minutes. The place didnt seem to be busy so we decided to talk to a manager. We told her wed pay for the chips and salsa but that we were going somewhere else for lunch. She talked us into staying and that shed make it worth our while. She then came out and took our order. She then came right out with our tacos and guacamole that were decent but nothing all that great. She told us lunch was on her and that she was really sorry that it had happened. Overall it was a crappy experience with only decent food.
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Mike Sylvester
Disclaimer: Im a Mexican food and margarita expert. I eat Mexican food 4-5 days a week and drink my margaritas the right way...on the rocks with salt. My wife and I have always been fans of Alfonsos but havent been for several years after moving to the North County. After seeing the reviews on Alfonsos circling the drain recently, we changed our lunch plans to Puesto. I had never heard of Puesto but the reviews were good and I saw a lot of quality tequilas in the photos of the bar. Ill get right to the point...I had (4) different street tacos, we had the freshly made guacamole and I had multiple cadillac margaritas. EVERYTHING was worthy of 5 stars but especially the margaritas. If Puesto was within 10-15 miles of my house, Id probably gain 50 pounds and be an alcoholic. If you like street tacos and/or a great margarita, you cant go wrong here!!
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e18rayan1
Puesto is the place you go if you like tacos but with a modern, hipster-ish twist to it. They have some interesting items including cuitlacoche (corn smut fungus) and hibiscus. Whats best about here is the good, filling vegetarian options including soyrizo and potato. The tacos are first made by putting a cheese layer on the bottom and then adding the ingredients on top, wrapping them up like a taco and putting it over a tortilla. Service is fast, friendly and lots of seating. Tacos can be expensive at around $3 each one. They recently expanded so it has larger beer and liquor selection. Also, you should be there for lunch only (before 4) to have the fast-casual method (like ordering at chipotle) otherwise you have to sit down and it cost more and takes longer. I am not particularly happy with the change so I avoid it after 4pm.
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Lilu S
It is a casual place with modern deco. Prices are about $$. The menu choice is limited and it is mainly tacos (there is no burritos, tamales etc.), and ,of course, they serve margaritas, tequilas, beer, etc. There is no reservation accepted, first-come, first-served basis. The wait time for the order is pretty long. We got beef, lamb, zucchini tacos, salads, and some appetizers. It took them about 30 min to have it served. There is paid parking nearby, unless you are lucky to find street parking. The waiter was unfriendly, abrupt and lacking listening skills. He was kind of irritated that my guests were asking lots of questions. They are tourists and are not familiar with local food. I think little bit patience and understanding would go a long way.
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Ralph Leftwich
Veggie bowl was huge amounts of beans and rice and bits of all the other ingredients. My guess is that if they were not as busy, they would have been willing to vary the amounts of each, but the pace that this was thrown together they did not ask for input. The cheese that they put on the bowl was nice that it was heated on the grill, but then it was served without a knife (and none were anywhere to be found), so it was difficult to cut up into bite size pieces. The tacos my partner had were better, but they were quite simple. One veggie and one carnitas. It took time for them to get us our chips and guacamole. We had to ask two additional times and then go get it ourselves after being promised it would be delivered to our table.
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James Hawks
We visited for lunch. The food was decent but nothing spectacular and they had notable margaritas but again, nothing above and beyond. They werent busy when we arrived but the service was extremely slow. The manager took our drink order immediately but the server didnt stop by to introduce himself for at least 10 minutes. When he did stop by he immediately asked for our order rather than if we had dined there before, had questions or needed recommendations. We even had to ask for chips and salsa. The manager stopped by again to run our card and asked how lunch was. I was honest and she made a nice gesture and gave us a $25 gift card toward our next visit. Overall, while the gesture was very nice, I wouldnt recommend Puesto.
