Juanitas Taco Shop.

Went on the recommendation of a friend. However, he always went after surfing and we went closer to closing around 9pm. The carnitas burrito was VERY dry. The Chicken burrito was decent but not spectacular. The carne asada was also just average. The woman at the counter was not very happy. The seating area was typical for a hole in the wall place. It was clean. Maybe we hit it at a bad time.

AMAZING! DELICIOUS! I get the fish taco almost every time, or street tacos, which iare freaking n g fabulous! My husband is a forever fan of carniasada burrito ( see pic) . 1000 percent yes! Compliments to the chef!

Best burritos is town! Local friends all agree to this fact! Green and red sauce for all tables and outdoor seating is available.

Visited here with a dear friend 9 years ago and he is no longer with us so we just relived memories. It was so delicious just as we remember. The neighborhood is so lucky to have Juanita’s!!

I make great carnitas. Juanita's is better. While all the sucker tourists wait in line at the Taco Stand, you can go here. Great prices, great food. If they only had beer, I would never leave......

Our favorite taco shop for 33 years. ... best flying saucer there is. Unbelievably consistent and always delicious 😋

If they offered me a Juanita’s branded credit card, I’d have $500 on 1.5% cash back. Best taco shop around and I’m dying on this hill. I’ve tried just about everything on the menu. Found the best bang for buck is to get the Surf & Turf burrito with a kids bean & cheese burrito for the little one. Staff is always friendly and quick with service. Highly recommend to all those passing through.

This place has some of the best Carnitas tacos hands down. My wife and I are from Los Angeles and know a thing or two about great tacos. We had was the standard Carnitas tacos and a Machaca burrito with the delicious salsa they serve to compliment the meal. The location is small but it’s big on tasty food. This is one of our definite stops on our way to Baja California.

Delicious Mexican food so close to the beach that you can also taste the ocean. Discovered this spot because it's walking distance from where we stay when in town and just a few blocks from the ocean. Love taking our food to the beach and enjoying it while listening to crashing waves. My order is always some crispy chicken tacos that are filled to the rim and even stay crispy until getting devoured at the beach. Rice and beans are great too and don't forget some of their delicious and spicy salsa to basically put all over everything. Service is friendly and fast. Indoor and outdoor seating available. I'll be back to try a breakfast burrito next time.

Had to try this staple Leucadia Mexican spot! I've heard the locals rave about it, and flavor wise I really enjoyed my cali burrito with rice and beans. I am biased and usually judge Mexican joints based on their rice and beans, which definitely satisfied my craving for them. I liked that the burrito opted for cream cheese instead of sour cream - same flavor, better burrito consistency. I was a little disappointed in the high prices given that it's a mostly take-out spot, but that's the world we're living in I guess... prime real estate and ingredients come with a cost! Alternatively, I'm happy to spend my money on a local business, especially a classic 101 Leucadia spot.

If not paying attention you'll drive right past Juanita's on the 101. A small taco shop serving up delicious tacos. This was some of the better carne asada tacos we've had. The carnitas was good as well. I had a surf and turf burrito to round it out which was a great mesh of flavors and the right amount of spice. I definitely recommend and it provides a good value for a meal.

Embarrassing to admit that after decades, I finally pulled into Juanita's and had a meal. Then I came back a couple times more. That this small taco stop on the 101 is so quintessentially Old Guard Leucadia--an honest-to-goodness hometown institution--compounds my crime. And in principle, I like everything about the place. The family working there, the spartan quality of its establishment, the controlled menu, the friendly and expedited service: everything about JTC feels right. The prices are perhaps a bit high, but not so much so that I found myself objecting. But that said, it didn't greatly impress. I have now had an opportunity to try several dishes here and they just don't quite add up. The food is well prepared and cooked with a fair degree of skill. No objections there. But the actual materials used are where this small taqueria falls short. The meat is gristly, and both taste and texture leave something to be desired. The cheese seemed to be of a coarser quality. Lastly, the various sauces available in their small fridge also seemed to be made of cheap ingredients. I hate to land so hard on a local fave. It wasn't that I have not enjoyed my meals. But if the owners hadn't skimped on quality, Juanita's would be 5 stars in my book and arguably the best spot in town. As it is, it's an OK place for a carb load after a night of drinking or a surfing sesh. 3.5 stars.

Very friendly and fast service. Easy parking in the lot out back and they have indoor as well as outdoor seating. Both the red and green salsa were tasty, the green is spicy. Prices are pretty high at almost $5 per taco and over $10 a burrito. The crispy tacos were not very good, though large in size the shell was stale and both the chicken and beef were not great and lacked flavor. The burritos are definitely the way to go here.

came here on a friends local recommendation. walked in and was greeted warmly by the owner. ordered two burritos - one shrimp one pollo asada. we were here on our way back from sdsu to bay area and wanted some fuel. the burritos were excellent - fresh ingredients, crunchy lettuce and tasty protein. The ambiance was a classic taco/burrito joint with lots of seating and cold water if you don't want to purchase drinks. i would highly recommend eating here and if they weee local i would be a regular.

I say that this place is kinda bad, when we went here the worker at the cashier was very rude and yelled at my friend when we asked for a fork! The food tasted like nothing and the quesadilla tasted a little like chemicals, and the salsa was watery, but the fry's were good. The sitting area was cool but the air conditioner had a bunch of weird stickers all over. When we sat down the tables were dirty! There were boogers on the walls and food on the eating surface. Also, when my friend asked for a drink refill she said we had to pay extra and then just took her cup very impolitely and gave us the drink without asking us if we wanted to pay or not.So there are a lot of reasons why i wouldn't recommend this place. my favorite part out of this whole experience was definitely the taco on a fishing pole. Overall the whole experience was horrible. I would NOT recommend EVER going here

We stopped by on the way to Del Mar for some breakfast burritos; burritos didn't disappoint! The cashier behind the counter was great and gave us extra salad on our way out. Super cute side room with an ocean mural as well. I knocked off one star because I picked up an Al Pastor taco to try with the burrito, but the meat was a little dry. Pretty sure it was meat from the day before, since we came in around 10. Not bad, just definitely not as great as the burritos.

Tried the carne asada and carnitas tacos here. The tacos were pretty big, which was nice, but overall it was just okay. The carne asada was good, and the carnitas were greasy. Nothing really stood out flavor-wise. On the plus side, service was quick, so it's an easy stop if you're hungry and in a rush

Wait, why did I wait so long to come to Juanitas?! Stopped in for a machaca breakfast burrito on a weekday and it was DELICIOUS. Plenty of machaca with great flavor, the tortilla was the perfect texture, and yes it was super filling. Lots of locals say that Juanitas has the best burritos and I really can't argue with them!

This is a small, casual, local spot, that has been here for years. It's simple and basic Cal-Mex food. Service is friendly and accommodating. The red and green salsas add spicy punch to the food. Most people get food to go, so no shortage of seating. Parking in back is a plus for the location.

This taco shop came at the recommendation of a friend. We came to get takeout for lunch on a Tuesday and got four tacos and a burrito. The food was ready very quickly, within about 10 minutes. After getting our food, we took it home in to-go boxes. I had gotten two fish tacos without properly looking at the additions. When I tried it after getting home, I realized that they had a good deal of mayonnaise on them. I don't like mayonnaise and especially not on tacos, so this dampened my lunch experience that day. I tried one of my husband's meat tacos and his burrito and liked those a lot better. Overall, didn't think this was a bad place, but my food here was not to my preference.

This is OG Leucadia at its finest. Used to come here after a day of surfing and it never disappoints. Their carnitas are the thing to get - can't speak to anything else. If it says carnitas on the sign...you order THAT. Don't come here for a vegan tostada. My go to is a carnitas burrito with refried beans, sour cream and pico (I'm allergic to guacamole). It's usually the size of a baby's arm and just as juicy! It's a dive, to be sure. Small, a few tables, religious calendars for sale, a menu board from the 1970s. But you go there for the food, period. Pro tip - they have a small parking lot in back since parking on PCH is generally a challenge.

You know, this place has gone down I mean down. Service is horrible and the food is not fresh like it was before. You should pass.

Was a solid California for decent pricing. I would have had pick included in cali which is usual for me. Salsa was good. If in area again I would stop by and try other stuff.

Just picked up some breakfast from here this morning at 8:30am! We tried to call in our order, but the phone didn't pick up -- kind of strange because when we walked in it was empty. We ordered a Bean & Rice burrito and a Bacon/Egg/Cheese/Potato burrito. The price was fair for the breakfast burrito, but a nearly $9 bean & rice burrito was pretty ridiculous-- especially considering how small it ended up being. My boyfriend thoroughly enjoyed his breakfast burrito, and while my burrito tasted good, the beans and tortilla were a bit dry and I would have needed two to consider it a meal. The hot sauce was pretty good; 4/5. Service and wait time were just fine. If the bean & rice burrito was either half the price or double the size I would definitely be coming back.

Look at the sign on the front of the restaurant. Big bold letters scream CARNITAS. Got it? Don't go and get the carne asada and then complain about it, that is not their specialty. The CARNITAS are terrific! Someone complained that the prices are high. A carnitas taco costs $5 but it's a meal (for a normal sized person) so I don't call that high at all. You want overpriced, go down the street to The Taco Stand where you have to wait in a long line to get a smaller serving. Get the carnitas taco or burrito. Best in North County. And no line.

this place is usually good. However, I got 2 al pastor tacos & there was a rock inside of it. When I took a bite I almost chipped 2 teeth. I have eaten here before & I ABSOLUTELY loved it. But this time I was very disappointed! please be better

Almost 9 bucks for a bean and cheese burrito that's so small. I won't be going back there.

I got the surf and turf burrito and it had about 5 shrimps in it and maybe some steak? I honestly couldn't tell because it was such poor quality meat. The burrito tasted like one of those microwaveable beef burritos. There was so much sauce in there you couldn't taste the meat. Nothing tasted fresh besides the limes they gave us. We also tried their enchilada and beef tacos. They were dry and flavorless. The service was mediocre at best. It was as if you were annoying them when you were trying to order. The prices on the board were not accurate as well. I had high expectations for this place but was severely let down.

I've been away, way too long. I don't even know what else they serve because their Carnitas is stll the best in San Diego, bar none. I won't wait so long before I visit again. If you live anywhere in San Diego County, Juanita's is well worth the drive...yum, yum, yum.

Maria is the best!! She's always very friendly and has great customer service. The food is always outstanding here when we go. Definite bang for your buck!

We were in Encinitas visiting for the day and are craving fish tacos! Found this place through Yelp which has quite a high rating but also mixed reviews. LOCATION: it's a small shop located on the main road but just a few blocks away from the beach. WHAT WE GOT: a fish taco, carnitas taco, and a California burrito The California burrito was huge and filling. The crema they use is more on the sweeter side that's why I think one of the reviewers here mistaken it for mayo. I'm personally not a fan of the kind of beef cut they use but it wasn't bad... not my favorite burrito in SD but also not the worst. The fish and carnitas tacos were also just okay. The batter on the fish is overwhelming to the palette. The carnitas is a little bit bland on the flavor. Overall just an okay experience.

So I actually googled to see if Juanita's changed owners. I have been going here since I was a kid (I'm almost 50 now). Not sure what has happened but the carne asada is not the same. I had the California burrito and I thought I was at Roberto's. Their carne asada use to be sooo flavorful and it just melted into your savoring mouth. Now it's just ok. I'm actually in disbelief and hoping it was just a bad day or they got a new chef. Juanita's, go back to your roots and we will keep coming! I don't mind the new high prices but make it worth it! Salsa is still hot and good! Until next time....

First time here. Cheese on my breakfast burrito wasn't melted. Tortilla wasn't warm. Overall was just a dry burrito. This place was a huge disappointment. Side note: AnyMexican spot that does automatically put onions and cilantro in their burritos is a huge red flag!

Sigh. All good things must come to an end. There are now far better taco places in the area.

I come here for the fish tacos. The fish is flaky, crispy, and fresh. The simple pico and lettuce on top is what complements the crispy fish so well. I get full off of just 2 tacos. Best to eat the fish tacos there and with the green sauce (my personal preference). They are limited on parking in the back but they also have street parking.

One of my favorite Mexican shops in Encinitas. Maybe my favorite. Not sure! When I lived in the area, this was a weekly go to! The carne asada is ridiculously good and so is the Al pastor. Worth checking out! Great stuff

the rolled tacos had ZERO meat all tortilla. They give u this big scoop of horrible liquidy guac.

Worst Mexican food ever. Restaurant is dirty, overpriced, and meat was gross. Would not recommend it.

Great authentic Mexican food. We've been coming here for decades. They have the best Mexican food. Fast and friendly service, the prices are fair. The food is fresh and delicious. The flying saucer has been a long time favorite. They also have the best California burritos around!

I've been coming here for over 15 years when I come into town. It's hands down the best authentic Mexican hole in the wall around. When I say hole in the wall , that means small hidden gem with low prices and quality authentic food. Must try. Don't forget to ask for the pickled carrots and onions.

All i can say is hole in the wall. That should explain the food very delish and I will drive down there from the OC just to get their carne asada burritos and I am not a burrito person at all. The taste is so good that my mouth will water just hearing Juanita's

Expensive burrito for such a small size. Californias used to be the best. Seems like they get smaller and smaller. Lady is always rude at the register.

I was fortunate to try a machaca burrito at Juanita's 30 years ago...tried again yesterday. Just as fabulous!

Our meals had generous portions and good value. Very fresh ingredients. Friendly staff

Great food and staff is always very friendly. I never have a problem with my order and regularly come in every week.

Juanitas is that place you just have to keep coming back to. Despite there being so many other taco shops this is just the OG on the 101. I've been coming here since i was 14 (I'm 27) so yes I love Juanitas. I love that it's family owned and you can tell because the staff are so nice and always welcoming. I did want to show that they are following at COVID guidelines and it's a strict mask policy. I went with the rolled tacos per usual. Their rolled tacos are unmatched, no sour cream because i have self control(sometimes) i usually get 5 but i went with three because again self control. They taste just as they did 1: years ago and i hope they never change. I really miss sitting inside especially where the mural is in the back. But you can sit outside on the bench with is nice. I will be back because helloo ive been loyal for this long I always come back. Love you Juanitas.

Food is always good. We especially love the beef flour rolled tacos!! We crave them!! Haven't found anything that's comparable.

food isn't anything to write home about, but they got orange bang so that write there justifies 3 stars

Great spot for burritos! We were staying nearby in Carlsbad, when we woke up craving burritos for breakfast. A quick Yelp search led us to Juanitas and we were not disappointed. Tried the chorizo breakfast burrito and the California burrito. Both were bomb, and I loved that the chorizo wasn't overly greasy as it usually is when I seem to order it at other shops. This one is situated right off the 101 and has a small private parking lot in the back. They do take credit cards and I have to say the $6-$7 price tag for burritos makes this one very affordable. Be sure to double up on the salsas to go if you like pouring plenty of salsa on your burrito for each bite. Anyways, glad I got to make a stop here. I've yet to find anywhere in Chicago that comes close to what they serve here. 'Til next time, cheers!

I haven't been to this restaurant in over 30 years. I always get the fish tacos like I did the other night and it took me back to a great time in my life when I lived in Carlsbad. My friends got the Carnitas and the shrimp tacos also delicious and generous portions!

All good things come to an end, I suppose. The last time I was in town (2019), Juanita's was still retaining some of the glory that made it so great in the 90s. Back then, it was THE PLACE (besides Alberto's in Carlsbad) to get consistent Mexican food with quality preparation and ingredients. Fast forward to 2023... $11 for a chile relleno burrito? Did I step into some janky parallel universe when I got off the plane? $6 for three (3) rolled tacos with guacamole? Ouch. $14 for a combination plate with flavorless beans and room temperature rice? Yikes. I understand hyperinflation and high cost of business in a premium area these days, but... these prices are insane. My chile relleno burrito was tragically stuffed with a filler of pico de gallo and lettuce. The chile itself had a decent flavor, but was anemic in appearance, mostly for the lack of cheese filling, and any overall enjoyment was ruined by the constant cronching of working my way through endless bites of pico and lettuce. The rolled tacos were hot and crispy, but the flavor was bland. The entire time all I could think was, "These little SOBs were $2 each...Used to be like $3 for a plate of these..." I now understand why ordering this time around was so easy, compared to the last few times I was here and there was a line out the door and alongside the front of the building. I know you cannot live in the past, but its just sad to see a place like this go downhill and lose what made it so unique.

8.3/10. It kind of went downhill as of late which sucks, but it is still one of the best places in Encinitas

Everywhere else is trash. I said what I said. I don't know what's in their sauce but it's superior

I stopped by Juanita's for a quick lunch. They serve up all your favorite Cal-Mex dishes, at reasonable prices and with generous portions. I had a carne asada burrito and it was delicious.

Stopped here for burritos today. It is very close to lots of businesses. I ordered the Chile relleno based on someone's Yelp review. It was a great call! Nice and spicy, perfect ratio of cheese, and very fresh pico de gallo. My husband ordered a carne asada burrito and loved his too. He said there was a lot of meat for such a great price. We would definitely come back here. The staff was super hospitable and service was fast. We ate outside which was really enjoyable on this beautiful day. They have a small parking lot in back, which is a HUGE asset in this area and where there's slim pickings for street parking. A nice bonus is all the art on the walls inside the taco shop.

Best little taco shop. Carne asada street tacos are amazing. Kids love the bean and cheese burrito!

It's a typical family owned taco shop. The food is really good. The rolled tacos and quesadilla were delicious. The service is really good. The food came out in good time. The shop is no frills but that is okay. Many people do takeout (which I did) it's really needed to make the place fancy. The parking could be difficult especially during rush eating time.