Los Panchos Mexican Grill & Seafood — Restaurant in Escondido

Came here on a Tuesday because I was in the area earlier that day and the food smelled good when I walked passed. Boy was I wrong.. when we walked in we were told it would be able a 10 minute wait so my wife and I just stood off to the side where there were two other groups waiting. Then those groups were seated so it was just my wife and I in the waiting area. A couple with their baby walked in and the hostess told them to wait outside which I thought was very wrong since they had the child and it was a cold night, and yet she didn't tell us to wait outside. I thought that was completely unfair..

The inside is gorgeous with artwork of Freda Khalo that was stunning. They also had a cute light sign outside the bathrooms but when i used the bathroom oh my gosh it smelled like a porta potty.. just disgusting..

One of the servers brought us a basket of chips and salsa which were just okay. I ordered the menudo that came with a plate of cilantro, onions, oregano and chilis. My wife ordered a fish taco, a birria taco and two carne aside tacos. We expected them to be good since they were advertised for taco Tueaday and they were not. The fish taco is bland, had a weird taste from the batter and had a sauce in it that was honestly gross.. the birria was dry and the carne asada was just okay.. the corn tortillas the tacos were made with were made like they could care less! With a dry flour crust and yet some how densely doughy.. they got soggy right away. I was served corn tortillas with the menudo and those were better quality, we ended up moving taco meat to those tortillas. Absolutely disappointing..

My wife also ordered a nopal smoothie that we patiently waited for. Towards the end of our meal we had to stop our server and ask for it again. By the look on his face I could see he didnt put that order in. We finally got the Nopal smoothie and it was very fresh. Our server was a older man who had this attitude like we were bothering him when we asked for anything.. he appeared to deepen his voice every time he spoke and he would check on every table around us and not stop at our table.. He came off arrogant and really made us uncomfortable to ask for any service.

Over all I think this place was probably good but quality control had gone down or they've gotten careless or maybe we visited on a bad day, or we weren't their ideal costumers.. but I won't be back. The food was pitiful.. I feel sad for wasting my time and money.. two stars for the...

Been here a few times already and am very pleased on every visit.

Except for holidays, we never had to wait to be seated. The waiting staff has always been very nice and the food has always been delicious. If you are not sure what to eat, the staff has always been very helpful.

The price of an entree may be considered high if your expecting to pay fast food prices but I think they are on par for a restaurant especially when you see the portion sizes you receive. Expect to pay between $10 to $20 for your average entree at Los Pancho's.

We have tried quite a few Mexican food restaurants in the Escondido area until finally landing at Los Pancho's. Unfortunately all the other restaurants were either too bland, not a sit down restaurant (fast food), or more of a bar atmosphere (not something I would consider a family restaurant). Although some other Mexican restaurants in the Escondido are very good, my family and I are pleased to have found Los Pancho's.

As far as food, I highly recommend the molcajete. It has a little of everything in it... Actually it has a lot of everything. I would suggest sharing one with your spouse, date, or kids. It comes with not one but two pieces of the following; carne asada, Pollo asado, cheese, chorizo, nopales, shrimp, and hot peppers all in a nice red sauce along with rice, beans, guacamole and your choice of tortillas. Even sharing with my son, I still have to bring some home.

The shrimp cocktail, enchiladas suizas, and chimichangas have been tasty. And if your kids are a bit picky, you can't go wrong with the fiesta platter. Cheese quesadilla, rolled tacos, bean burritos and some chicken wings... I know, kind of odd to see at a Mexican restaurant but they are actually pretty good. Too much for both my kids but enough if you have a big enough family that wants to share a good...

So my wife and I have been coming here since they opened, you must understand this building has been a host to a number of businesses/restaurants and all but los panchos failed.

So you can imagine the excitement and expectations going in. At the beginning ALL items we had were well crafted, seasoned and beautifully plated. Since the pandemic and Togo only its been different and honestly hard to rate, but the other night I didn't feel like I got my monies worth, the vuelve a la vida was small and somewhat bland, my wife asked for cheese with the enchiladas Suizas and I think they misread the ticket and made it plain with no sauce and un melted cheese, when all I asked for was cheese not chicken.

To top off the experience my wife had an issue with them in the past, her boss often has catering delivery to her dealership from them, and to make up for a prior credit card issue they gave her a $10 gift card that didn't work when I tried used it that unfortunate night.

Overall I think I'll wait until things go back to normal again before I visit them. It's not fair to rate on Togo only, I'll give them a proper review when I go sit and dine, but I also think it's essential to know when things aren't OK in all areas of...