50 Best Mexican Restaurants near Aptos

“My husband and I decided to check out the restaurant for lunch and it exceeded our expectations. We order the empanadas as a starter and they were absolutely delicious. The tocos we ordered were so yummy. They had such flavor, texture had depth. The wait staff were wonderful; professional, responsive, and always attending to our needs. We can't wait to return.“

“Been enjoying Manuels since 1966. Love the red snapper, the salad, flautas with guacamole...great food always! Hopefully coming to dinner tonight! ♥️“

“This was a great find! I loved the courtyard in the back. I had the veggie burrito without dairy (vegan). The fajita style veggies, black beans, ride and guacamole wrapped up in a grilled spinach tortilla was super fresh and tasty. I’ll be back!“

“⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We stopped by Taqueria Los Pericos in Aptos for lunch on Sunday, and it was fantastic! I had a burrito, and my partner got the fresh tostada, and both were absolutely delicious. You could tell the ingredients were super fresh.
The service was great, too—everyone was very helpful and friendly. On top of the delicious food, the prices were just right. We left full, happy, and already planning our next visit. Highly recommend this spot!“

“I’ve been eating at Gordos for 22 plus years now. Favorite taqueria of all time. Always recommend it to friends, only leaving this review because the burrito I had last night was literally the most perfect burrito they’ve ever made for me. It blew my mind. I’ve literally ordered the same thing for 22 years almost weekly 😂 love this place. Thank you Gordos!“

“great service! delicious, authentic Oaxacan food. We will go back!“

“the best place for a full meal. all home made . I follow them from Salinas to Watsonville. to me they are the best.“

“EVERYTHING was amazing. can't get enough of this place . the warm bean dip and salsa is wonderful. the micheladas were super yummy. EVERYTHING WAS so yum.y and flavorful. best food ever“

“I was coming down from San Francisco back to LA and stopped by to this place. Very colorful with art painted on the walls inside. Food was fantastic 10/10. After ordering I didn't have much interaction with staff but at the time of ordering my food the cashier/waitress seems pretty nice. They have a huge menu, so I'm sure there is plenty to try.
1.ordered fish taco 🌮...it's a very big tacowith double tortilla. If you're not a big rate this one taco should be enough (Forgot to take picture 😞).
2. I also ordered, a plate that came with 🐔 🥩 🍤🍚🫘. Huge plate enough to feed 2 people. I'm a fat ass so I ate it all 😆.
3. They have free unlimited self serve tortilla chips with a salsa bar you can have while you wait for your food.
4. They do have a wet bar. I had a beer 🍺 (it was a hot day 🥵)
5. Restroom was clean. Only one toilet 🚻.
6. Free agua Fresca refills. You refill it yourself.
If I'm ever up there again I'm Santa Cruz again I'm coming to this place again. Not sure why I didn't pictures.🤷🏽‍♂️“

“Great service! Delicious food!“

“so delicious! everything we got was amazing especially the Quesabirria Tacos with consome!“

“their meats are out of this world good. some of the best I've been going to tons of taquerias for years. tacos are legit. burritos are huge and balanced perfectly. my new spot! ORALÉ !!!!“

“I ordered two crispy carne asada tacos rice and beans. It was really good and put together well. The crane asada was tender and of course it was all delicious. I go often and I do recommend Salsas to fam and friends. Five Star every time I go.“

“the Salmon Tacos are to die for!!! I've been enjoying them for 18 years.“

“great tasting food it was a packed little place with people waiting outside to be seated“

“The best Taqueria in town! Definitely overall service and the food 20/10 ! The team is beyond the amazing. The ambiance is chill and good for family too! This is one of my fav. Un taco crispy al pastor con aguacate y no habichuelas ! Enjoy! Thanks Guys“

“We had such excellent service and an amazing lunch . Home made corn tortillas and menudo and pazole. First class meal and experience all the way around . I have lived in this area for 20 years and have frequented many mexican restaurants and taquerias and this restaurant left us wanting to try more!! We will be back !“

“I had a fantastic experience using Mr Ralph Carico Services when exploring investment options.The professionalism and knowledge of the team gave me great confidence I can wholeheartedly recommend him without reservation, Mr Ralph Carico“

“This was honestly the best food truck food I have ever had. I eat healthy all week, but I know when I go to a brewery on a weekend, I’m gonna have to make some compromises! No compromises had to be made for this food, as they had tons of healthy options! But healthy doesn’t always mean delicious, but this place was truly some of the most delicious food I had ever had at a brewery! (Humble Sea beer garden on the Santa Cruz wharf) I'll search out this food truck anytime I'm back in the Santa Cruz area.

Vegetarian options: Absolutely delicious!“

“muy rico todo los tamales son de primera Calidad y los tacos mas ricos que he comido gracias por su dedication a su labor.“

“The best taqueria in Santa Cruz!!! My family and I highly recommend this place❤“

“This food taco truck serves up a taco fiesta with excellent home made tacos, chips and more using abukea's (grandmas recipes). We tried delicious chicken tacos, fish tacos, crispy tacos, refried beans obviously slo cooked. And crispy flour tortilla chips. Excellent chunky guacamole
Great service and we enjoyed out meals with a guava Jarritos soda. We sat under an umbrella at an out door picnic table.
Accessible parking next to truck.“

“Delicious food, kind servers, true authentic Mexican food. No hassle, no frills - so far, I've had the Siete Mares and Pescado Fritos and both were the best I've tasted in all of Santa Cruz County. I got my order as To Go so the atmosphere I didn't really get into but there were people there enjoying their food and sports on TV. A nice surprise.“

“Great service, food and atmosphere“

“I ordered a smaller catering order for my husbands birthday and Taquizas Gabriel did not disappoint! He was happy to help and cater even for a smaller party (I ordered 2, 15 taco trays: 1 shrimp 1 pastor with chips/salsa/peppers/onions) which I was super grateful! The tacos were so fresh and so flavorful and the customer service was wonderful! Made it so easy for me for that day and I’m so grateful! If you need tacos for dinner tonight or for a party, I’d highly recommend getting them from here! My favorite tacos on this side of Santa Cruz/Capitola!“

“Flavorful authentic delicious mexican food and the vibe is great. Great waitresses.“

“The Service is great !!! Beef taco is wonderful :) Also they do an American breakfast if you desire.Everything iv had is really good !!!“

“Great chicken tacos 🌮 chips & salsa - the whole family enjoyed 👍🏼 Friendly service as well.“

“This was our first time there and the food was great and the atmosphere was great.. also had great service. We will be back again..“

“Chorizo Tacos were delicious $3 each. Such a steal! Love them.“

“I was just in the area and this was the top rated fast food place. I got a super burrito which was good for the most part but there were super salty bites, not sure maybe the beef was over seasoned. I would give them a 3.5 but rounded up to 4.“

“Delicious food Love eating here …“

“Chorizo Tacos were delicious $3 each. Such a steal! Love them.“

“Dropped in from San Diego ca food was great and definitely recommend to everyone“

“I used to eat here often in the 90s. On a recent return visit I was thrilled that the place was still run by the same wonderful family. The carnitas burrito is one of the best I've ever had.

Parking: Parking can be difficult at lunch time“

“On vacation from FL. We was craving Mexican food, our hotel suggested this place, and what a great place to eat! The food was authentic and it was a treat! Our server we met was Lilly was so nice it made the food that much better! Can't wait to go again before we leave the area. Keep up the great food and customer service!“

“Staff was super friendly and they truly cared about the customers. I had the fish taco and it was amazing“

“Staff was very friendly and I felt very at home. But most importantly the food is FIRE. Had to come back 4 times in one week. The Al pastor super burrito was the most phenomenal burrito I’ve ver had in my life, so flavorful. We also got the birra sliders and tacos, definitely the best tacos we had our time in Santa Cruz.“

“Little gem of a find... fish tacos were great. So was the super taco. Guacamole was fresh. Our server was the best! She was prompt, friendly and accommodating. We found a table tucked outside which was nice, but you're crowded with Zelda folks coming and going. Inside seating is fine, but you're on the beach - would be nice to have more outside seating.

Definitely coming back.“

“Los tacos de lengua mis favoritos con aguacate. Y mi coca cola mexicana,“

“I mean if you haven't tried this place where have you been hiding? This is like one of the two best Mexican restaurants well maybe three maybe four actually in town so if you don't want to break your wallet go down here and they give you your money's worth guaranteed there's one at the other end of town too.“

“This is a cozy cute place with delicious café de olla, and Mexican dishes, live music and kind owners, convenient location to have food before walking to the beach.“

“Been going there since the early 2020's and it's always has been good...
Good quality food, enough to fill your belly, and even with the plates, sometimes enough to even bring home, love it being close to walking distance, nice restaurant...“

“I love The Boardwalk. It's always a good time over there. Everything about a beach town is always fun. Such an amazing vibe everytime I go.“

“Loved this place when I lived in SC. After retiring I traveled the country for a few years and moved to SC from Tempe to be a surf bum for a year. The dude who runs this joint was always super cool and he always had 2 tacos and a beer ready. If, like me, you have your stuff stolen by the shrubbery living under the wharf (IYKYK), you can always get a hot, free side of beans and rice before they open at the walk-up window by saying ‘beans and rice for Jesus Christ’. 11/10 need to go back and hit the Lane.“

“This would be a five star review if La Misma were not operating in the old location of La Fuente Taqueria. Everything at La Misma is just fine but La Fuente was one of the highlights of visiting Watsonville for me. The food at La Misma is nothing special and my nostalgia is still hungry.“

“The food here is the best! It is authentic and delicious. Mari, the owner's mom makes us feel right at home. It's like going to your momma's house. We drove from San José to have lunch there yesterday, after a wonderful experience two weeks ago. Gloria Chacón“

“Really great spot to get burritos. Other than Taqueria Santa Cruz on Soquel and the Pericos downtown, both this spot and the new one in Aptos are pretty good.
I gave it a 4 star because the last 3 times I've gone, I've asked for my tortilla grilled and they haven't done it once yet after confirming they would.
Other than that, great quality since it seems Michoacan across the street has gone down in quality.“

“su atención al cliente y su rapidez para servir“