Mike's Red Tacos — Restaurant in San Diego

Service was the absolute best I’ve received in a long time! The ppl working there were extremely friendly and helpful. But the food….BIG MISS. So I ordered the “combo #1” which is two birria tacos with cheese, chips, and a side of consume. I added another taco, because I thought it was a different type of birria taco (but it was the same exact taco). I also added a drink. All this came up to $21.59 with taxes and the military discount. I truly appreciate the military discount because it helps! The place had a nice amount of customers going and in and out so I was excited for the food. Unfortunately the outside seating only had one table that wasn’t in direct sunlight so I had to eat inside the restaurant Which was cold, but it was understandable due to the high temp outside.

Now let’s get to the food. They offered a great amount of sauces at the condiment bar. I tried 3 of them and all of them were good. Two were way too hot for me, but the signage did indicate that so I fumbled by thinking I could handle something that spicy. They all had a nice roasted flavor, but the chunky salsa was the one I could mostly eat. I like the horchata flavor they offer as I chose that as my drink. It was a premade version not fresh in house, but it was good. Sorry I don’t remember the brand, but it was good so no worries on that. We get to the chips, they were okay. Nothing to rave about. I appreciate them as an added side, but honestly nothing else to say about that. Now we get to the consume. It’s a no for me dog! Honestly the most boring, flavorless, unconventional consume I’ve ever had. No joke! It didn’t have any chunks of meat, WHICH THIS IS A FIRST. I thought all consume has the meat that falls at the bottom during the cooking process. It had a nice color to it, a robust scent, and not too greasy, but it missed on the flavor. It honestly just didn’t taste good. So with that being said, I just knew the tacos were going to be a bust. And they were. No flavor at all. I add the onions, cilantro, and the habanero sauce to the taco to boost it up and it was just not working. I’m sorry, this place was recommended to me, but the person recommended it by saying” it was close” not too far from base. They didn’t say the food was good, affordable, or anything else. Now it makes sense. The food is nothing to rave about. I give the food 0 stars, the atmosphere 1 star, and the customer service 5 stars. Due to the disappointment of the food, I couldn’t rate higher than a 2. Sorry Mike, whoever you are, I didn’t like the food at all. And your tacos aren’t red btw. That’s why I ordered the extra taco on the...

“The birria made me feel sick after and I was repeating it all throughout the day. I’m an actual Mexican from Southern San Diego and to be honest I was kinda of disappointed with my visit. I went on Tuesday (They have a free taco deal) and ordered a 2 taco (no cheese) combo and a drink which came at a steep 18$ total. Mind you this is after the deal so god knows how much the combo + taco would normally cost. The presentation was pretty and there is an abundant salsa bar so they get points for that, but the tortilla was cold and they were having trouble accommodating to when I asked for the tacos “dorados”. He looked at me like I was crazy and basically said that yeah they’d be extra crispy but like, I don’t want the tortilla hard I want the tacos dorados. Overall, it just seems like this isn’t the birria for real Mexicans this is for the white Clairmontians that are for some reason eating it up. The store is tiny and not uncomfortable to eat at, but not spacious enough for you to accommodate yourself properly. Any birria place elsewhere can probably cater you a much better tasting meal, but they are gonna be a good drive away. Even the consomé had a strong flavor, Yeah i literally forgot to mention but the birria tastes very condimented. The issue isn’t oh it’s got a lot of spices, it’s that they went heavy on the clove and that is like a classic birria maker mistake. They have white boys taking orders in the front that don’t even know what’s going on which is why despite not normally leaving bad reviews, I’m gonna have to issue this place a pass. It’s pretty, but the thing about tacos is that they don’t need to be pretty, but they need to be good if im going to be paying a premium. To anyone reading this, try them out once because it’s not like they’re disgusting or inedible, but please know and be aware that these tacos are NOT what birria normally looks like, tastes like, or is like so take everything with a...

Came here on a Sunday early afternoon and Mike's was BUSY!!!!! I now know to park and place an order online from my car because standing on line was super chaotic and unpleasant because the space is pretty small. I think there were a few larger groups with kids trying to fight for limited table space. I was constantly shifting around to accommodate the crowd around me as I stood in line. I wouldn't come here with intentions of getting a table--you might not. I ended up eating in my car.

I ordered two birria tacos (one with queso and one without), consome, guac and Jamaica (hibiscus) juice. The lady at the counter was super sweet, patient and friendly. Sometimes busy places can lack when it comes to customer service, but that wasn't the case here. She took my name and number down so that they could text me once my food was ready. This was super helpful as I was able to wait in my car rather than take up space in their already small & busy restaurant.

I had meant to order my tacos extra crispy, but forgot to. No need because these came out piping hot and super crisp. They were delicious. The meat was perfectly seasoned and the consome was flavorful without being salty. I wolfed them down and considered going back for more, not gonna lie.

My only complaint is that the Jamaica juice was nasty and artificially sweetened for sure. It wasn't at all authentic, not even a little bit. I'm half Guyanese so I have had my fair share of Jamaica juice (we call it sorrel)... this was SO BAD, I threw it away. Maybe the other agua frescas are better, but skip this one if you enjoy the real stuff.

The food was so good that I may consider ordering delivery when I can't get up there, even though that may mean a soggier, less crispy order. I will definitely be back here again, and I will recommend...