Rolbertos — Restaurant in San Diego

The largest Mexican restaurant chain in San Diego isn't Chipotle or Taco Bell, or even Rubio's; No, it's the collection of "X-berto's" enterprises, modeled after the original chain of Roberto's taco shop, founded in San Ysidro in 1964 by Roberto Robledo and his wife, Delores. As a fast food chain open late at night that focuses in stoner grub like burritos and smothered French fry concoctions, Roberto's remains a mega-hit.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Roberto's has been flattered by a myriad of copy-cats that have been spawned, many owned by extended family members of the founding Robledo family. Across San Diego County, we now have Alberto's, Gilberto's, Filiberto's, Adalberto's, Gualberto's, Loberto's, Juanberto's, Humberto's, Anaberto's and so many others. These shops are mostly the same, serving nearly identical offerings, usually cheap, somewhat dingy, yet relatively reliable.

You normally would not order tacos at one of these taco shops (it's just not their thing) but I'd ask you to consider the "Carnitas Taco" at the Rolberto's outpost in a Serra Mesa strip mall just off of the I-15. Upon receiving it, the first thing you'll notice is that it is almost too much taco, it's huge and unwieldy, with meat overflowing on both ends, everything covered in a mound of guacamole and some coarsely-chopped onions and tomatoes. Then you'll note that the double corn tortillas are floppy, most definitely pulled from a bag, and are of terrible quality, adding neither flavor or appropriate structure. But the carnitas themselves? Stellar. Rather than shredding the carnitas, they chop them into sizable chunks and re-fry them in their own grease on the grill, the net effect of which being wobbly pieces of pork flesh streaked with fat, their surface encrusted with seasoning and grit from the plancha, crispy and salty. When you bite in to it, you are provided with the best textural thrills one enjoys about bacon, but bigger and, dare I say, better.

"California Burritos" here are pretty much the same as you'll get at other "X-berto's." If you like that kind of thing, you probably won't be disappointed. I've also had Rolberto's "Breakfast Burrito with Ham, Egg, and Cheese," which is par for the course in the San Diego, quite ordinary. As with many breakfast burritos from "X-berto's," the scrambled eggs are cooked too long, but they give you a lot of food for a short...

I live close by, so if I want Mexican food the first 2 considerations are Taco Bell and Rolberto's. Look up the reviews for the Taco Bell across the street and you'll see it's a no brainer. For the price and type of restaurant, this place is really good. It's an in & out type of place. Go in, order your food, and walk out once you get your order. The quality, quantity, and price are on par, but exceed the Taco Bell across the street in every way. I normally order the Carne asada chimichanga combo. It's no different than anybody else's with a similar business model, but it's still warm when I get home to eat. With gas prices what they are today, why would I burn the extra fuel to go to a place further away for the same exact product? Point is, avoid Taco Bell across the street and go to Rolberto's.

*This review is not sponsored or paid for by the reviewed company. Even if they had paid me I likely would've ended up spending the money at this place for lunches and...

I've ordered a chorizo burrito here twice, both with casing left in it! The first time it happened, I had eaten half the burrito and saved the other half for later (not knowing there was casing in it). When I finally went to eat the other half, I bit into the casing (plastic) and was immediately grossed out and threw it away. By that point, I figured it was too late to call them and tell them about their mistake. So I didn't. This morning, a coworker and I decided to share a burrito for breakfast. Rolberto's is down the street from work, and she suggested chorizo, which I was willing to give another chance because how likely would they mess up again and leave a piece of casing in it? Apparently, very likely. Before she had even ordered the burrito this time, she told them about how I found the casing in my burrito last time and asked that they not leave any in it this time. They said there would be no plastic, but there it was....