Lilly's Taqueria — Restaurant in Santa Barbara

Lilly's is Santa Barbara's down-and-dirty taqueria based on what I saw! Unlike others, it is bare bones: cash only, open kitchen, not all that clean, a limited and messy condiment bar with just red salsa, green salsa, raddish, onions, and cilantro. The menu is also limited to tacos, although there are some interesting meat options along with a rotating special. I remember the main options being chicken, roast pork, spicy pork, ground beef, beef, tongue, beef cheek, orejas (ears), ojos (eyes!), and maybe a few others. The one special I saw was tripe. So yea, you can get some out there stuff for $1.60 a taco which is great if you just want to try a bunch of things. Kind of like I did. Over my time here I tried the cheeks, spicy pork, tongue, chicken, and eyes. No you didn't read that last one wrong. The normal stuff I tried wasn't very remarkable. The spicy pork name can be misleading as it really isn't spicy, it just means that it had been marinated. The weird stuff is where it is at though. The cheek taco was awesome as the meat was very tender and flavorful. The tongue was great too; a lot of people get turned off by tongue, but you should try it first before you knock it! The eyes were cool to try for some cheap, but really unnecessary. Their flavor was actually good, but their slimy, soft texture is something I can't forget even though I kind of want to. I did finish that taco though, for the record. The tortillas were nothing special, but you don't come to Lilly's for something gourmet. You come here because it's right off State St., it's cheap,...

I had four cabeza tacos with everything radishes, onion and cilantro, salsa verde, lime. Q u a l i t y tacos right here I regret that I didnt order more, and that I didnt order the grilled onion ($1 extra). the meat has the perfect texture and flavor!:) the salsa verde is spicy i would say mas o menos on a light to medium level i also noticed adobada is popular will try and update next time. Whether you take your order to go or eat at the location it is fun. The parking is packed though and I’ve never not had to wait in line but well worth the wait. They pack your onion/cilantro mix and salsas for you if its to go but you can also decorate your tacos yourself (for example getting a lime or two) polite employees could not have asked for a better taco experience! :D ps they take apple pay (there is a fee for ordering less than $5 but i cant imagine spending...

Just went back recently after some 5 years and tldr: still great!

Although my experience did have a negative in that the carne asada was a little drier than I preferred and definitely drier than I remember them in the past. So I was going to rate Lilly's at a 4 but then I realized you can get carne asada at 99% other Mexican joints right? It would be like rating a whiskey bar on the quality of their French fries honestly.

The ojo, lengua and labio is what I primarily came here for and if you weren't considering them I hope I change your mind. They were all perfectly juicy and uniquely flavorful. Each meat's textures also came through for a great mouth feel. I see Lilly's as a place specializing in getting the most out of these uncommonly used cuts of meat.To me this is why Lilly's is still one of my favorite restaurants 4 lyfe and will...