Tacos El Gordo — Restaurant in Chula Vista

EDIT: long unnecessary lines

I had to edit my review from a 3/5 to 2/5 After doing some reading, these folks know that their lines are an issue for years and haven’t done anything to address. Yeah, def won’t be back. Sucks to see this happen. Hope you guys address the line issue.

Original post:

I haven’t been here since maybe 2012, it seems that they moved from their location on H street. The food is still great and for that they get a 2/5 but their ordering process is absolute GARBAGE. There’s no excuse why it should take an hour and 15 minutes to order a few tacos and some asada fries then still have the gall to charge damn near $35 for this. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE me a good taco but I also value my time. There has got to be a more efficient way to order your food. I would invest in doing some sort of analysis and reevaluation of your process.

Which brings me back to this, again I have not been here in over a decade. It used to be that you wait a little and just go up to the counter. Now you have to wait in individual lines for individual meats. Example: if you want tacos or sopes or anything de al pastor… you need to wait in that line. If you want a single carne asada taco… you now need to wait in that line. If you want fries… guess what? You’re waiting in that line too. Once you are done getting your various meat products, you go to pay for them. Then if you’re lucky to get a table .. your fries are now cold and soggy, your tacos are now cold… and you’re sorta annoyed and stressed.

I didn’t know this was the process and I made the mistake of going alone and wanting at least one of each meat. I started waiting in line at about 6:20pm and got all my items by 7:35pm. This was all a function of trial and error as I made the stupid choice of getting the fries. I went to go pay for the fries and asked how I can go about getting additional tacos, the gal working the register seemed rather annoyed with me and said something along the lines of “they told you how to order up front.. “ I retorted politely… I’m sorry, the gentleman just told me to wait in this line for fries… I didn’t know I had to wait more. I understand that she’s probably stressed out but a) I’m not a local anymore and didn’t know the process had changed dramatically b) there isn’t some sign that says exactly how to order as we are waiting.

I’m sorry to say, the food is great but the ordering system is absolutely inefficient as all heck and garbage.

This will likely be the last time I come here, not because the food isn’t good but the whole system of ordering is a waste of time and could be done at like 75% more efficiently. It’s your restaurant, you want to make it easy for both your employees and the customers. I know I’m not the only one complaining about this, most of the one star reviews are about this.

If I were you guys, I would address this issue and would reach out to some consultant or something to help you guys streamline. It’s really not that difficult, you might need to buy a few pieces of equipment and train your taco guys how to engage in the new process but it will solve your wait time issue and will make your employees lives a lot less stressful...

My first time at Tacos El Gordo, but street tacos run through my blood so I know a thing or two. In Summary: No lines here at the Chula Vista Location, open till like 3 am, and average tacos at best IMO. Tacos run like $4.XX which is some of the most expensive I have had. The size is a little larger than your average truck. Location: It is what you expect from a mexican taco shop, no frills hard tables and chairs filling the room with smoke coming from the grills cooking what we all love TACOS. Everyone here just got done partying or working the night shift. The hours are really good. Arrived after 2am cause I wanted a guarantee for tacos and was curious. Luckily this one in chula vista is open super late and Never gets the crazy lines. I'm talking about those Vegas and Gaslamp lines that go around the block. If it is your first time it is a little confusing: tray tables "meat" street tacos. Walk up to a window serving what they have on the menu right above it and order. Each window serves something different like Asada or Al Pastor etc. Then you pay at the cashier AFTER showing her everything you ordered. You can grab drinks from them too. THE TACOS: My first bit and well, I felt a little disappointed. Not sure I was expecting them to be the best tacos I can find across the border or what. I ordered Carne Asada and Al Palstor (trompo/Adobada) with everything and somehow it lacked FLAVOR. The salsa was creamy but the meat had no seasoning. The Asada quesadilla, the cheese was the heavy lifter in this combinations. I expected a flour quesadilla but it was 2 corn tortillas making a quesadilla (much like a mullita from my neck of the woods). Overall: The tacos left a lot to be desired. However the fact that they are open after 2 till like 3am AND there was no line gives this place an Average score for me. In my opinion, some of the best tacos these days come from trucks and stands, but nowadays even those close at midnight leaving chains a...

Tacos El Gordo is a SoCal legend. Friends and acquaintances for years have been telling me it's the best taco stand around. I tried it once a few years ago while on a business trip. This time, while vacationing for the weekend on Coronado, we made a trip to the taco joint and I filled up.

I ordered 5 carne asada tacos and two quesadillas . The tacos were very good and the quesadillas were basically the same except for a layer of melted cheese and a crisp hard taco on top. The carne asada was juicy and flavorful. The guacamole was generously added along with a helping of pico de gallo in the fresca style. All food is made in authentic Mexican style and ingredients.

After ordering and getting your food you proceed to the checkout and pay. Then you can get your drinks at the fountains of purchased. Getting a table required diligence and my wife ran the restaurant asking tables who was going to be leaving next. She secured a table but the whole place was so crowded and loud it was hard to image eating here without multiple people to order and get a table.

The food was great but the time and energy to order and find somewhere to sit was exhausting.

When we arrived the massive line was extending our the door. Unbeknownst to us, there was actually 4 different lines. The one we happened to be in was the Carne Asada line, which was fine. I would have also liked the spicy pork but that was another line and you could change lines once you were queued up without a considerable loss in time. As it was, it took 20 minutes to get to the order stage. The gentlemen cooking carne asada took my order though he spoke very broken English and I could barely be assured he took my...