Del Taco — Restaurant in Barstow

Overall: 4.1/5 (dine in)

It was my first time trying Del Taco and I was so excited since this location had 4 stars. It seems like this place has location specific tacos since it had Barstow in the name but I could be wrong. The food came out quickly after we ordered. The packaging was great; they wrapped the tacos in an aluminum foil to keep the food warm then wrapped that with a yellow paper one.

Fish Taco ($3.29): They wrapped a lime wedge separate from the fish taco but the fact that they even include it for a fast food restaurant was impressive. The fish taco was a bit small but it was good. It does have a bit of a fishy taste to it at the middle of the fish stick. Still really good overall, especially with the lime. No sauce needed.

Bun Taco ($3.39): This is basically a taco filling placed on 2 hamburger buns. It was interesting to try but we wouldn't get it again. The mashup just didn't work. I think the meat didn't have enough flavor so I had to add a lot of hot sauce.

Barstow Steak Street Taco ($2.89): You can choose between chicken or steak and we were recommended the steak. I was surprised by how tender their steak was. The flavors on this taco was phenomenal. It tasted just like the one you can get on the street but without that oily, warm tortilla. This was both our favorite item we tried of the three....

Del Taco is a chain, and this review is only about the one I visited. This Del Taco does not stand out (to me) in any significant way from other Del Taco locations I have visited, and the food is as good as (or as bad as) those others...hence, the 3-star rating. Typical to Del Taco, the fries are mostly cooked, leaving the middle somewhat tacky, though that's not nearly as bad as when they are lumpy and truly undercooked (a condition I have experienced at several Del Tacos, but not this one). My Combo Burrito was a good buy in terms of cents-per-pound (there was enough food for the price), but again - as is typical with Del Taco - the beans and beef mixture tasted like it was cooked several hours before I showed up. The flavor was somewhat bland on both, and the tortilla itself had that "freshly microwaved" gummy texture. I added chips and queso, and although the chips were crunchy, there wasn't much flavor to them, either. The queso had an excellent flavor, but it wasn't enough for me to truly enjoy the combination.

Overall, when I was done eating, I felt full but mildly unsatisfied. It was something of a "meh" meal...not bad enough to keep me from coming back, but certainly enough to have me continue searching for good burritos and good...

I don't know if it's just because the locations in Barstow are independently owned or just plain weird.... but let me elaborate my first experience was in Barstow's Lenwood station I was literally an everyday customer and I noticed that they would prioritize the Hispanic and Caucasian customer service but would ignore and be unconcerned about other race's specifically African American customers meals or presence.. not to mention at all 3 locations there was not 1 Black worker (only Hispanic and Caucasian) .. so one day I asked for an application in the city, just to test out my judgment ... and would you know they didn't have any available not even a website 😒😑 so I went to the next location in Lenwood and the same thing so I asked for the Manager and I politely asked do you ever get applications from African America's because I've never seen one working at your locations and he says every once in a while .. however by the end of the year I saw them hire 1 disabled Black kid but I guess that was because people started to notice. Now even with all that said I have to be honest and say these locations do have the best tasting and best portion sizes I've ever seen 😍👌and for that they get 3 stars but if you're from out of town you probably...