10 Best Mexican Restaurants in Rancho Santa Margarita

“Wonderful experience at Carmelita’s Kitchen in Rancho Santa Margarita, I feel like we spent the day in Mexico having an authentic meal with a fantastic lake view. The food was delicious, the atmosphere was great, and the service really made our visit special.

A huge shout-out to our terrific waitress, Hannah. She was friendly, attentive, and made sure we had everything we needed throughout our meal. Jose, our server, was also fantastic—hardworking, courteous, and always right there when needed.

Great food is important and excellent service makes you want to come back. The Chef, Hannah, and Jose definitely did that for us. Thank you all for making our meal so enjoyable. We will definitely be back!“

“Great service and very clean“

“A wonderful evening at Todos Santos with my wife. We were greeted by Daniel the owner and chef extraordinare who took us to a very nice table in the outside patio. We started off with drinks which were made by one of our favorite bartenders Jaime! The other bartender of choice is Francisco who had the day off. Kenya was our waiter and was superb, very personable and professional. We each ordered the appetizer salad which were so good. We spoke with Daniel about the fresh fish and decided on the Sea Bass for my wife and I ordered the Salmon and lobster plate. These two dishes were amazing upon presentation and even tastier than they looked lol. I must say since we began dining at Todos Santos from when Daniel took over this place has blossomed this restaurant into the best Mexican cuisine in Orange County. With multiple awards to his credit Daniel has new menu items that he creates regularly and now opens after hours on Tuesdays and Fridays with a DJ and dance floor. On Saturday and Sunday the restaurant serves breakfast from 10 am to 2 pm and the dishes are delicious. Make a reservation and ask for Daniel. Let him know George sent you. Great place, great food and amazing people! Highly recommended“

“Our family loves Celinda’s. Most of all we love the food! They have the absolute best chile verde in the city, in the state, in the country! Just THE BEST! Our kids love the enchiladas! The owner/master chef always comes out to say “hi” and ask how the food is! He’s such a kind man, deserves every bit of praise for his absolutely great cooking and his personality and how he leads his business! Please visit and support this locally owned business it is worth every penny!“

“Wonderful authentic mexican food. Mama even came out from the kitchen and asked how we liked her chili Rellanos. Yeah, they are homemade, fluffy and delicious. Our Bible Study meets there every month to celebrate birthdays as we've gotten to know the staff and owners pretty well. Good people.“

“We ordered your carnitas tacos delivered a few days ago and they were the absolute best Carnitas I have ever had! And I make my own pretty good so it's tough to impress me 😄 They were 🔥 so delicious! with all of the nice crispy bits. And that cilantro dressing on them 😳 I could drink that. I'm already craving it again. Will definitely be ordering again, probably going to get that awesome 2lb meat deal you have next time. You guys rock!“

“Fresh & tasty Mex food Get a burrito made for you while you wait or take your meat home & bbq your own! And don’t forget the salsa!!“

“Amazing!! Service is really on point. Friendly staff that makes you feel welcome. I came for the breakfast burrito, and I found myself back the next day. Definitely, we'll be back to try some lunch. I've heard the chilaquiles are great and also the shrimp tacos.“

“Always have a good experience at this location. Jacob is super nice and always has a great attitude whenever I come in. He’s quick, helpful, and makes sure everything is right with my order. Definitely one of the employees that stands out and makes the experience better!“

“Went to this location last night food was on point and tasted well. I wanna take time to shoutout Raul who was working the later shift he was super friendly and nice to use when ordering even though we came in right before closing. I really appreciate how friendly he was and how welcomed he made me and my friends feel.“