Damian's

This place was located next to the hotel I was staying at. So, I decided to give it a try. Friendly staff and prompt service. Complimentary chips, salsa, and some bean dip. Bean dip was very tasty, but the salsa served with the chips was straight canned tomatoes with no pick or flavor other than tomato. I asked for something spicier with my meal. Which was much better. I had the carnitas plate. Carnitas were plentiful and pretty decent. The rice and beans were pretty average. I had a beer and they have happy hour from 3-9pm everyday. Overall, it was a good experience, and I would visit it again if I'm ever in town and want something close to the hotel.

I had such a great experience at Damian’s Mexican Restaurant in Modesto! I ordered the mixed fajitas with chicken, beef, and shrimp, and they were absolutely delicious, packed with flavor and came with all the fixings. My fiancé had the chile relleno, and it was so good! The green sauce that came with it was incredible, honestly, I could probably drink it on its own. To top it all off, I had a margarita that was perfect. On top of the amazing food and drinks, the customer service was outstanding, super friendly and attentive. Overall, everything was amazing. Great food, great service, and definitely worth recommending. We’ll for sure be coming back!

Finally tried this place. Wife and I shared an order of fajitas. I had a Modelo Chelada. Everything was great including the service. There could have been more meat than veggies though. Otherwise, it was a pretty good experience. We also had the fried ice cream! Delicious!!

Loved this little gem. I had the combo #2 and my honey had the chicken enchiladas. The chile relleno had cheese inside and salsa verde on the outside and we both loved that one. The house chips come in corn and flour flavor which was a nice unexpected twist of variety along with red salsa and bean sauce for dipping. Everything was yummy and enough for tomorrow's lunch. We also shared a house happy hour margarita which was potent enough for us both. They have a great selection of items. Everyone was nice and parking was easy. Loved the decor--it reminded me of the San Antonio Missions. Will be back with friends. Great value!

Just a quick pass through Modesto to grab some tacos from Damian's Mexican Restaurant, then it'll be off to Rock Canyon to see the widow Wilhelmina Huntchbacker about selling some of her husband's vintage Bulltaco and Maico motocross dirt bikes, there must be about 50 of them, and most were never used! All those bikes ..in perfect condition, and all I could think about were the tacos from Damian's and that Amazing salsa! 5 stars ☆☆☆☆☆

The food was pretty good, chicken needed a bit more seasoning but overall i would go back. I love the look of the place, makes you feel like you are in Mexico 😁oh and I got the enchiladas.

This place has been my family’s go-to Mexican place for over 6 years now. Their happy hour specials are awesome- drinks are strong, beer ice cold (I’m talking ice crystals on the top- so delicious on a hot day), and their free beans and chips (also comes with salsa) are my kids absolute favorite. We pull into the driveway and my 4 year old says “oh yeah baby I love this place” 😂. They have a decent size fish tank by the bar that entertains my kids (4 and 6) until the food comes. These are things that people don’t mention in reviews, but it’s so important for my little young family that my kids also are so excited to come here. We love their fajitas, la parillada is enough for the 4 of us, also love the Al pastor tacos and the pollo or camarones a la diabla. Haven’t had a bad dish yet.

Great Mexican food. We had 6 people all ordered different dishes and everyone enjoyed their meal. Laid back atmosphere, good service, reasonably priced.

The food was amazing. They are wheelchair accessible which was a major bonus for my husband and I. The molcajete diabla was the best we've had by far. Shrimp/chicken/asada/ and nopales with green onions! Then the cheese was the incredible like that. The sauce was enjoyable. Just YUM! Perfectly balanced with sweet to spicy. We also got the you pick 3 with a taquito/sope/chile rellano which was really good not overly battered. The fish tank smell was a bit overwhelming when you walk in but that's is what happens with a saltwater tank. Which was why we got rid of ours. (I noticed the other reviews referring to this) with that said ,It definitely adds to the atmosphere which mimics you being on a beach. It's very clean and comfortable with A lot of character inside. Definitely will be back and worth the 35 minute drive.

It makes me sad that this restaurant has only 3 stars. But if I'm being honest I think I understand. It takes upkeep to make a place great. When it starts to get run down it's a downward spiral. I was there a few days ago and it had been a few months and the smell from the bathroom has gotten worse. The food is still very good. The salsa has changed, but it's good. Maybe a cheaper source. I'm giving 3 stars because of the food and great service. And because I think they can still pull it out of the dive. Please put some money into the upkeep worn carpet, smelly bathrooms and fix some of the booth seats. The staff even seemed worried because they aren't busy like they used to be.

The decor here is to die for. Love it. Food is really on point. Enchiladas are amazing. Will be coming back.

This place is TERRIBLE!!! The meat tastes like it's been cooked and reheated for over a week! The service is Mediocre, and the salsa is actually ceviche tomato sauce. Expensive and definitely NOT WORTH IT!! Save your money and go across the street .Jack In The Box Tacos are better than this place!

Food was good service was ok. Just ok. I have a petpeeve when your main course comes out and you're still working on your appetizers. Second, petpeeve, everyone's food should come out at once and not one at a time. That's just me and my opinion. It's a place we have been going to on and off for a long time. We also got the coconut shrimp served on a bed of lettuce, which was actually a whole salad. The shrimp was good, and we split the salad amongst us.

Finally tried this place. Hard to want to try a place that people review bomb negatively for no reason. Wife and I shared an order of fajitas. I had a Modelo Chelada. Everything was great including the service. There could have been more meat than veggies though. Otherwise, it was a pretty good experience. We also had the fried ice cream! Delicious!! I'd give it 4 stars but giving it 5 because people are ridiculously critical.

Not the best, but it was alright. I had two steak tacos and two chicken tacos. Not too much flavor in the chicken or home made hot sauce I was given. Rice, beans and table salsa was good.

Had dinner here while in town for work. It was near our hotel and seemed like a safe choice. We were pleasantly surprised to see on the specials board that a pitcher of margaritas was only $15.95 so we knew we were in the right place as soon as we walked in. My spouse got the massive burrito supreme with carnitas and green chile and he somehow managed to finish it. This thing was huge, and he said it was delicious. I had a one item combo with a beef enchilada. I had asked for shredded beef and what came was more like carne asada (definitely not ground beef) but I wasn't charged any extra so I just felt like I got upgraded. The enchilada sauce was some of the best I've ever tasted and I would have a hard time ordering anything without it if I ever get the chance to go back. I also appreciate that they serve a small bowl of beans with your chips and salsa because bean dip is always nice. The margaritas were a bit sweet but they were priced well and the pitcher made for about 5.5 drinks all together. If I'm ever in Modesto again, I would be happy to come back to this place. Also, I didn't get food pictures because I was starving and it was delicious, so it was gone before I even thought about pictures. The service was also prompt and friendly, considering we were in at 8pm on a Wednesday night. Basically, a 5 star experience all around.

Absolutely delicious food, delicious piña colada, very nice staff and extremely beautiful rustic vintage inside decor. The songs they were playing were the best part! Made me feel like i was in mi mexico querido

Very nice place the food however didn't meet expectations and we never went back but everyone has a different taste in food I prefer Mexican authentic food this is mextex white wash

Hands down best Mexican restaurant in Modesto great ambiance excellent service good drinks and excellent service. Doesn't get any better

Food and service was great! Wonderful homemade chips and salsa! Chile Verde tender and spicy. Don't understand why people rave about it and then give it 4 stars. Just mean. Great, authentic Mexican food! Generous portions & reasonably priced!

This place is a huge disappointment. The service is not that of a vibrant bar and Mexican cantina. The food was slow and not worth the wait. They said they were having trouble with the tortillas in my taco but they appear to be commercially made. Zero sign of a home made tortilla. Not sure where they ran into trouble. The margarita was a weak commercially mixed drink without thought or care. Took seconds to appear without any shaking that I could observe. Also be aware you are paying their credit card processing fees. 3% they add at the end for using a card. Over all the experience was underwhelming and not worthy of tossing your money at. I wanted to like this place but it's lacking in too many areas

Always great food and good service. Really enjoyed the shrimp fajitas, delicious! Partner had the taco Vallarta grande. Huge taco full of shrimp and other goodies in a super crispy shell. Been here many times, even had birthday parties here, and have never been disappointed.

First, I want to say the food and service I've always enjoyed. With that being said I cannot get over the disgusting sewer smell when you first walk in and/or if your sitting close enough to the entrance. It's disgusting! My husband drug me out there this evening but the smell was overtaking. We had to walk out.

We had the food catered and it was so good!!! my moms celebration of life was a success and everyone was asking where the food was from. Get ready to take orders! Thank you for preparing the food and having everything ready. Much appreciated. Diane B- Modesto

Good service. I'm of Mexican ancestry and I can honestly say the food was authentic and delicious. Salsa good and spicy. Red enchilada sauce taste like home made. My husband and I stopped in town and were glad we tried Damian. If in the area again will definitely drop by again.

To start with the pros: very nice service and the margaritas were great. Unfortunately, everything on the menu is cooked in lard, including the chips and tortillas. I am a vegetarian, and our waitress said everything on the vegetarian menu is also cooked with lard. This should certainly be written on the menu. It is extremely unfortunate to think people with religious food restrictions have eaten here and been unaware of everything being made with pork products. Please, please indicate this on the menu.

Delicious food. Margaritas, Micheladas and more. I enjoy their chips specially the flour ones. My favorite entré is Tampico Shrimp but i always order them well cooked. They are always social and efficient. My husband and I go there often. Inside the restaurant always clean, they do take reservations for large parties I recommend call at least an hour in advance because there are certain hours it gets busy specially during dinner on Friday's and Saturdays. Hope this helps

Let me just start off by saying I absolutely adore Damien's. I've been going here since I was a kid. The restaurant truly is beautifully done. The service is spot on and everyone is warm and welcoming. The food is very reasonably priced and delicious. The only negative thing I could say is the salt water fish tank at the entrance that used to once be beautiful badly needs to be cleaned and maintained. It stinks, bad. I feel bad for the fishies :'(

Worst chicken taco's I had in my life ( no exaggeration ) .. it's like the shredded chicken was old ,dry ,super dry . The taco's were smothered in cheap sour cream which still didn't help with the dryness of chicken taco's How can you mess up chicken taco's ? YIKES .. I DO NOT RECOMMEND!

This place really stinks as I mean odor such a sewer gas and it is very over powering to say the least. Food quality has been going down hill the last few times here and last night it was simply not good at all. I travel for work and stay nearby, but will not being going into this location ever again. Please find the cause of that smell and get it fixed.

Enchiladas de mole are so good! Chips salsa and beans always on point. The server is always attentive and friendly. I love the ambiance it's always nice to be in there.

I really like this restaurant. So I'm hoping the owner does not take this as somebody grinding an ax. I had lunch here about a month ago and the Carnitas was spectacular. I ordered off the lunch menu, and the portions were so large it easily could've been a lunch for two. Scale of 1 to 10--solid 9 So now I am back for dinner. I was just going to go with the Carnitas again, but I decided to explore. The three item combo plate looked good. Chili Colorado, Chile Verde and a Chile Relleno. Scale of 1-10 a solid 1. I was horrified to taste the disparity between my Carnitas lunch and this dinner. I mean the meat was tender, but this was possibly the most saltiest dish I have ever tried. I'm quite sure if I would have eaten everything on that plate, I would've consumed 10,000 mg's of salt or more. I am a cook, as well as someone that pays major attention to salt. This was inaccusable. Owners, please listen. Please take control of this, and stop killing people with criminal amounts of salt. I literally took the chunks of meat out of the sauce and wiped them off so there was no sauce. That meat was still so salty I couldn't believe it. You have a good restaurant, you have nice people, looks like you have a good local following. Stop harming their health. As I sit and think about that dish, I know for a fact a weeks worth of salt was in that one dish. Now I think you have a responsibility to assess this, and put some limits on it. I can make anything on the Mexican menu, and I don't need all that salt to do it. If I would have eaten my dinner, I would have had to go to the ER. Wish I was kidding. In the case of the Chile Relleno, I don't know what you're doing wrong, but I suspect it was the green sauce. You're also not supposed to taste so much green vegetable in this dish. The chili is supposed to be cooked to the point where it doesn't taste like raw food. Will I be back? Depends. Are you willing to admit that you need to stop being the PF Changs of Mexican food. Change your ways or add a low salt menu and yes, I would love to come back.

Just found this restaurant randomly, but wow we were so impressed!! So authentic, full of flavor, and absolutely delicious! Everything we had to eat was amazing! The restaurant is really cute, clean, great portions & fair prices too.

We love Damian Restaurant! Great value for super yummy food! The happy hour margaritas have enticed us to come for dinner many times! We are new to Modesto and finding Damian's so quickly has been great! The Molcajete lava bowl is our favorite! Savory protein in a sauce that you want to drink, all mixed with veggies, rice, beans and tortillas with a little sour cream and pico - it's craveworthy! Service is always really friendly and fast. The staff also follows all Covid guidelines and we feel safe dining in, where we sometimes don't in other places. We will continue to come to Damian Restaurant!

Went on a date to check this place out finally, the margaritas taste like purée with no sour mix no wonder they're 3 dollars My girls fajitas were unseasoned, and the peppers were just put on the skillet hardly cooked at all Coconut shrimp is too oily Mole was bland, enchilada tortilla was burnt, and shredded chicken inside was hard and old

I love the garlic shrimp is why they got 3 stars. Some of the food needs to get better. The prices went up, so...we rarely go now.

Should have went to El Capitan, lesson learned. You want good hot food El Capitan is located on Carpenter rd, they don't need a fancy place just good cooks that take pride in their work.

My son & I have dined at Damian's a few times now and each time the food has been excellent & plentiful, and the service is really good & friendly. I like the decor, because each booth is a little different. If you like traditional Mexican food - this is a great place. The only negative is that the parking lot is quite small & is sometimes difficult to navigate. BTW...They also have some amazing desserts!

Husband and I absolutely loved this restaurant and wll go there again in the near future. The service was excellent, atmosphere was amazing and the food was fantastic.

Thank you to a nice local in the neighborhood that referred me to this place. This place has a huge variety of dishes on their menu to choose from.. I had the Texas taco plate w/ rice and beans for $9 and I couldn't believe the plate when it arrived at the table. Portions was huge for the price! Cocktails are good too.. Mango margarita I had during the happy hour which is daily from 3pm-8pm

We were in town for a concert and our motel suggested Damian's which was just a short walk away. We were seated promptly by a very friendly hostess. Nice decor. Their beer tap was down so they were having their margarita's priced for happy hour. The chips and salsa were homemade and the entree portions huge. We took a lot with us to save for our trip home. Prices were very reasonable and service efficient (important since we had a concert to get to). Very close to the freeway for travelers and ample parking. Thank you to the Damian staff for a very nice meal and dining experience.

I absolutely love this place! Diablo chicken. Molcajete my favorite there! But the service is always slow. Idk why!! It has been my entire life. I just wish the service was better. My husband will not go with me because of service issues! But food is fantastic

Damian Restaurant is not great, do not recommend. We went for a birthday with a party of eight. Only one person's food was enjoyable, the rest were borderline inedible. The chips were stale, the beans were hard and salty, the rice was freezing cold, the asada was charred like charcoal, and the chicken was rubbery and dry. The front of house staff was all nice and attentive, however when we brought our concerns and dissatisfaction they offered no resolutions. I don't know if it was an off-day, but it definitely dampened the birthday mood and we will not be returning.

One of our favorite Mexican restaurants. The staff is pleasant and the food is delicious.

If I can't say anything nice... I don't say anything at all. Bean dip was good, but practically starved to death waiting for anything and everything.... water, cocktail, napkins , utensil, food... asked too many times & kept reminding them... I just ended up going to the waitress station to get what I needed myself.., whew! I hear taco place next door is good. Cheaper for sure...

This place has a problem with hospitality with most of the waitresses. Every time I've come it's been the same thing. The other thing is that the food has the taste omg , you can tell it's got great flavor but sometimes they don't add what's needs to be added for example the nachos hardly had cheese so I had them send back. And guess what the waitressing had an attitude because I wanted what I paid for . I don't think I'll be coming back . Don't waste your time.

Used to LOVE this place, now it is like they don't even care. Quality has diminished in just the nachos. Unmelted cheese, poor quality, service? What's that? Not to be found.

The fajitas are amazing. Customer service was quick and nice! And the atmosphere was lovely:) definitely coming back

We stopped in unplanned after visiting a friend in town. It's truly authentic and takes you back to a special time. The ambiance is superb. The food is delicious and diverse. The portions are large. You're going to be filled. Stop in. You won't be disappointed.

The place was decent, I had the breaded shrimp with rice and beans and I tasted more breading than shrimp and not enough beans. It's my personal preference but 6 shrimps maybe isn't enough when shown as a seafood dish.

Pretty good Mexican food combo, I got the one with taco chili relleno and tostada, but I should have gotten the one that included green sauce the beans were good and that's always a good sign. the Highlight for me was the fact that the taco show was not a soft taco and not a crisp Taco it was just in between and just right.

If you ask me some of my favorite foods, I'll be hard pressed to give you types after one and two because in my book German and Mexican are all I need to get me through life. I enjoy bringing my cousins from German to great Mexican places since authentic Mexican food is a rare treat back in Germany and the bland Spanish food they get can't even touch what I experience. So, when you live in the land of great Mexican selection, you become picky and that is exactly what I am with the delights of Mexico. I can name off a few places that I absolutely love for Mexican food in a 100 mile radius of Central Valley and Damian's is on that list. I discovered it with a friend one day when he treated me to lunch. I ordered light, at least that's what I thought, but I was stuffed by the time I was done licking the plate clean. Those fajitas rocked! I quickly took note of the place and its location because, Jose, I was bringing the family back to this hot enchilada! Sure enough, my purple Birkenstock walked through the very same doors only a week later with my wife and three kids. We were quickly seated even though it was busy. Shortly after, our order was taken and - oh! - those yummy chips and salsa were dropped onto our table. I love salsa, the real stuff, not something with onions and tomatoes in it so white people can claim to like salsa, but something with a bit of kick in it. I prefer really hot, but this stuff is very good and more spicy than say, table pepper. :) We all had chicken enchiladas. Easy staple order. We all went with the green sauce to the waitresses surprise. She said it was unusual for young kids (my kids are 3, 6, and 8) to eat the green sauce. But Germans have a call to spicy food - horseradish and curry ketchup anyone? - and our kids have had flaming food since they could say "quesadilla". :) Not only could our kids stomach the snappy green sauce, I had to remind them not to lick their plate as it was rude. The best part of our experience wasn't that we all loved the food and that we were stuffed and had left-overs to remind us of our wonderful lunch their later. No, the best part was how inexpensive the bill was. While my 3 year-old shared with us, the rest of us all ordered a plate of food and we still got out of there for less than $30. Not a bad deal for a great plate of Mexican. Fletch, I'm for ever indebted to you for this place.

My traveling partner enjoyed Damian's so much after our first dinner there that he persuaded me to eat dinner there again... the next two nights in a row. Now, I am not a fan of 2nd day leftovers, so I'm definitely not loving the idea of eating out at the same 'decent' restaurant three nights in a row! But... 1) $2.99 frozen margaritas every (week?) night til 8pm. Good ones too, packing a whollop of booze. I usually prefer mine on the rocks, but $2.99! 2) A ton of shrimp options. They serve their large shrimp split and grilled with a variety of sauces. Some even come in combos, such as my 1st night choice of Res Tampiquena Combo - carne asada with green peppers, onions and tomatoes in a robust sauce with a side of garlic shrimp. Tasty! 3) Did I mention the margaritas for $2.99?? 4) Shrimp Nachos with green sauce! Everything we had was pretty damn good. Mix of corn and flour chips come out with the salsa. I would return again. Agree with Rachel S that parking in their small, enclosed lot can suck if you get there later than, say, 6pm.

We began our monthly Tuesday Dinner with Moms for 2013 at Damian's. Neither of us have been here before and we were immediately struck by the lovely atmosphere. The staff is friendly and accommodating as we needed to make sure one of our party to get to a chair using her walker. No problem! Once seated we were handed a menu with so many choices it was almost overwhelming! Chips, beans and salsa hit the table and our server seemed to know exactly when to come back to take our order. No waiting! I ordered the shrimp quesadilla (Mazatlan) with red sauce. Our food arrived quickly - hot! - and tasted GREAT! I will come back. It is my new favorite Mexican Restaurant in Modesto!

Stopped in for lunch on the way to Yosemite. First of all, the Bean "salsa" or bean dip for the chips was unusual and fabulous. I had beef enchildas with tomatillo sauce. Surprised that they used sliced carne asada. Just delicious. Wife had carne asada lunch plate. Well seasoned and very tasty. Glad we found Damians!

While I can't say the food here was amazing, the service was wonderful. I like the environment here. It's very casual and every now and then, the little puppets on the inside balcony start playing music and dancing around (and yes, I'm completely serious). The service is great. My cup was never empty for more than 2 minutes. Once my cup was empty, I was asked if I wanted another cup of water. And then 5 minutes later, a pitcher of water was brought to me. And they were like this with our tortilla chips too. No complaints here. My food was a little dry though (I got some sort of pork-beans-rice dish). However, I'm sure if I were to return, I would enjoy my food much more.

Great happy hour specials! Love the chips, salsa, and bean dip served. Good prices, friendly staff, quick service, and fun atmosphere. Would definitely recommend!