El Torito - La Mesa

Review summary

1. j

   john

   San Diego

   3 reviews

   1.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 4

   1. Received chips and salsa 15 minutes after placing appetizer and dinner order 2. Drinks came out but forgot my water. I had to ask 3 times and waited 15 minutes to get it 3. Received kids size soups for dinner 20 minutes later 4. appetizer corn, guacamole and chips, and flautas came out. The flautas were supposed to be without sour cream and had to be sent back to kitchen. The flautas came out 10 minutes late 5 The dinners then came out 45 minutes after ordering. We ordered the fajitas and bean burrito with no cheese. 1 fajita dinner only had 1/2 cup of beans. We asked why only a 1/2 cup and we were told they ran out and was then asked if we wanted refried beans instead and told them no. We told them no and 10 minutes they brought out refried beans. I just gave my beans to my wife and ate her refried bean. We also did not receive our flour and corn tortillas when the dinner were brought out . We had to ask twice and by the time they came out our fajitas were cold. 4. My daughter requested her dinner bean burrito without cheese and they had to take back and remake . This was the worst valentines 15 year anniversary dinner We have ever had . We have been here for dinner many times and this is by far the worst experience we have ever had. I normally tip over 20% but not this time John Candelaria
   

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2. E

   Emily

   San Diego

   2 reviews

   3.0

   2 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 2

   We had reservations on Valentines Day. We expecting service would be spotty and slow, but it was below par for a busy day.
   

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3. L

   Linda

   VIP

   San Diego

   32 reviews

   3.0

   32 reviews

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 2

   Dined at the La Mesa restaurant. Service was prompt. Fajita combo was a big disappointment. Beef was tough. Vegetables were too pepper hot to eat. Chicken enchilada sauce was blah. Cesare salad was quite good, as was the flan dessert. Had to wear jackets as really cold indoors.
   

   El Torito - La MesaResponded 3 days ago

   Linda, thank you for telling us about your recent experience and Thank You for your honest feedback. I'm so sorry we let you down and hope to get the chance to serve you again soon so we can regain your confidence in our restaurant again.
   

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4. C

   Catherine

   San Diego

   9 reviews

   3.0

   9 reviews

   Dined on February 7, 2025

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 4

   Our server is amazing! Food is just okay for me, taste not as I expected compared to other Mexican restaurants.
   

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5. b

   bryan

   VIP

   San Diego

   80 reviews

   3.0

   80 reviews

   Dined on February 1, 2025

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   We were greater at our table in a timely fashion and gave our food order right away. “To be fair, I don’t believe the restaurant had enough servers to give guests the service that was needed.” Our server was polite and welcoming. Our food came out quickly which was 2 Fajita entrees, but it was only served with 4 flour tortillas. When the server dropped off more chips and salsa from our prior request, he dropped it off without asking how our food tasted and walked away fast. Had he asked, we would have requested Salt & Pepper shakers (which weren’t on any of the tables); more flour tortillas; and napkins. After we used up the 4 tortillas, I kept looking for our server but we hadn’t seen him for about 10 minutes. We had to flag down the hostess to get our Salt/Pepper Shakers, napkins and tortillas which she got for us. The server never asked how our food was. Everything tasted great except for the rice which was cold so I just made room on the fajita skillet to heat up the rice. The next time we saw our server was about 10-15 minutes after we finished our entrees to ask about dessert choices in which we just asked for the check. It was an odd experience but they were very busy and I noticed only 3 maybe 4 servers for the whole restaurant.
   

   El Torito - La MesaResponded on February 1, 2025

   Bryan! ,Thank you for telling us about your recent experience and Thank You for your honest feedback. I'm so sorry we let you down and hope to get the chance to serve you again soon so we can regain your confidence in our restaurant again.
   

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6. L

   Luis

   San Diego

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on January 29, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Our server Gilberto always does a fabulous job serving my group and I
   

   El Torito - La MesaResponded on February 1, 2025

   Luis!, Thank you so much for letting us know about your recent experience at El Torito - La Mesa, and for taking the time to write such a kind review. I will personally thank Gilberto for making your visit a memorable one. we hope to see you again soon!!
   

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7. c

   cristina

   San Diego

   2 reviews

   5.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on January 12, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Great service good food. Always love coming to this place
   

   El Torito - La MesaResponded on January 14, 2025

   Hi Cristina, thank you so much for your 5 star review! We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback and we look forward to serving you again soon!
   

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8. W

   William

   VIP

   San Diego

   15 reviews

   5.0

   15 reviews

   Dined on January 12, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   On a date night with my wife enjoying our favorite drink and flaming fajitas. Steak was perfect, chicken was tender, shrimp was delicious. My wife enjoyed the veggies of onions bell peppers and potatoes. Beans were delicious
   

   El Torito - La MesaResponded on January 13, 2025

   Hi William, I am glad you and your wife enjoyed dining in with us for your date night. We hope to see you again soon!
   

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9. D

   Dora

   San Diego

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined on January 6, 2025

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 4

   I understand that there were only a couple of waiters attending tables, but even though, our waiter was polite and tried his best to accommodate us, he never came back to check to see if we needed anything like filled water glasses or drinks throughout the whole lunch and some wanted refills on the soup, which they asked for but never got it. I was very disappointed with the whole lunch and treatment we received. Thank our waiter for trying but he needed help which he couldn't get since you didn't have enough staff. This was during lunch hour and I can't believe you didn't have enough staff to accommodate the patrons.
   

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10. J

    JOE

    San Diego

    3 reviews

    5.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on January 5, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    We love this Sunday brunch. They are no longer offering chips and salsa during brunch which seems strange. We will continue to go
    

    El Torito - La MesaResponded on January 12, 2025

    Hi Joe! Thank you so much for your 5 star review! We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback can't wait for you to join us again!
    

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