50 Best Mexican Restaurants in San Francisco

“The legendary San Francisco institution featured by Anthony Bourdain, Guy Fieri, and more does not disappoint people!! The carne asada burrito (get it el dorado style) is a must: no rice, just juicy meat, beans, salsa, and cheese, with a crispy, golden tortilla. The line moves fast, so don’t bother phoning in an order bc it won’t really save you that much time. Cash only but I saw they had some sort of card reader now.“

“Visiting San Francisco all the way from Texas and we 100% recommend this family friendly restaurant. The food was authentic and delicious. We left no crumbs. The customer service was also amazing. Muchas gracias por todo! Volveremos muy pronto!“

“One of the best dining experiences we’ve had.

Californios is a Michelin two star restaurant well deserving of this recognition.
I wouldn’t change any part of their course menu and was blown away at the experience offered here.“

“Great food and the best margaritas.“

“Great tasty stop at the end of the day. Love the friendly staff“

“We went last night on 10/10/2024. Claudia was our waitress. She did a wonderful job,and her customer service was excellent. We had one issue with a plate. She and the manager took care of it. It wasn't big, but I appreciate them listening. The restaurant has a great atmosphere for a couples outing or dinner. They strive to have good dishes“

“Best Fajitas!! This has been our spot for 10 years and we love their food. Location is Oakland Park, FL.“

“Incredibly delicious food, great vibe, friendly staff.“

“best tacos 🌮🇮🇹🐍🦅 in San Francisco 🚩🏟📍49ers 🏈 maybe 🤷 😂24th street 💘“

“I love it when a first try of something new to me is a sensational first impression as well! friendly staff and great food! I'll be back for sure!“

“I recommend the “Tinga” tacos or sopes 👍🏼“

“Taqueria Cancun is Mission burrito territory, no apologies, no shortcuts. You walk in, order, and they hand you something heavy enough to double as a weapon. One bite and you know you’re in the right place—juicy meat, beans and rice glued together with just enough grease, salsa hitting you like a squeeze of lime to the jaw.

The chips aren’t some bagged afterthought—they’re nixtamal corn, fried hard, shattering with every bite. The salsa’s bright and mean, the kind that wakes up your tongue and makes you dive back in before you’ve even swallowed.

It’s the kind of food that doesn’t care who you are or where you came from—just that you’re hungry and you’re smart enough to eat it while it’s hot.“

“very yummy halal mexican food, had the fajita, nachos, quesabirria, chicken and birria tacos.
was absolutely delicious, so happy to be able to have delicious food available as halal !! huge shoutout to the restaurant for that. great if you love cheesy things like the family i was with!!

Dietary restrictions: serves all halal meat“

“I love otra and it’s a great option for gluten free folks! The waitress was knowledgeable about celiac, cross contamination, and which dishes to avoid. Most of the menu is already gf, but some dishes are thickened with flour (queso, enchiladas) and there is no dedicated fryer (so the chips are not gf). Anything that comes with chips can be subbed for unfried corn tortillas.“

“Great place great food. Love it“

“Been going there since the 70’s We loved their fresh made tortillas and masa for tamales. I did notice today the tortillas weren’t the same. I pray the masa hasn’t changed when we make our Xmas tamales. For the past 27 years I drive from Antioch to San Francisco for our masa.🙏🏽🙏🏽❤️“

“An incredible gem of the city. It doesn’t matter what you pick from the menu, everything is thoughtfully prepared and delicious. The black bean and cheese pupusas are a favorite. It is absurd that this place doesn’t have closer to 5/5 star rating. An amazing place.“

“Incredible food & wonderful staff!“

“Delicious & friendly staff“

“Great spot at tunnel tops… good atmosphere, good to grab a drink and get some good Mexican food. I enjoyed the mole, my partner had the Tinga but would say it was ok nothing exceptional about it.

Looked like that had a good happy hour so might try it out the next time for some of cocktails.“

“Awesome food! Would go back again!“

“Absolutely amazing experience love their happy hour specialty craft cocktails, the mango margarita w/ spicy rum salt was Top three margaritas all time !!“

“Empezando por el excelente servicio, te hacen sentir bienvenido 😊, la espera de la comida es muy poca y la comida deliciosa, muy buen lugar para comer 🙂 Gracias.“

“What a fantastically amazing dinner we had while celebrating our 35th anniversary of being together.

The staff were kind, courteous and attentive. We had a reservation for a table but upon arrival decided we would prefer to sit at the bar. Our hostess said that would be no problem and we were welcome to choose any seat we wanted in the restaurant.

The bartender immediately asked us if we would like some water while we were looking over the menu. He brought two large glasses of ice water and to our surprise and delight it was cucumber water, my personal favorite.

There were so many interesting items on the menu we had a difficult time deciding what to order. Our bartender was able to offer us some of his favorites as well as some of the most popular items ordered by other guests. We ordered about half of his suggestions and were not disappointed by any of them.

Starting with our cocktails. I has a drink called Cara de Rosas. It was presented in a beautiful glass with a rose shaped ice cube. My husband enjoyed a gin and soda made with one of Hendrick's Neptune specialty gin he had not had before. My second drink was one of there speciality drinks called Leon y Sol. A deliciously light Tequila drink with round saffron ice cubes. The attention to detail on every level heightened our experience.

The entire top shelf of the bar was filled with Mezcal & the lower shelf was all Tequila. Plenty of choices.

Moving right along to our food selections. We decided to go the small plates route so we could try more items. Our first choice was chips, salsa & guacamole. I know that sounds boring but it wasn't. There were multiple choices of salsa, we chose the pomegranate one & guacamole as our second item. You were allowed to pick 2 to go with your chips from a list of several choices. The chips were different types, one was the standard tortilla chip & the other was listed as a lovash chip which had a tasty sprinkling of spices on it. Both were light & super crispy.

Next we had the pomegranate chicken wings. This was a much larger portion than we expected. It had 4 full wings. They were succulent & had a delicious sauce generously covering every wing not just the top ones. Plenty of pomegranate seeds were sprinkled on top. I would highly recommend ordering these, they were our favorite amongst everything we ordered.

Another must try item were the corn ribs. Small pieces of corn on the cob with the tiniest part of the cob attached so the corn held together. Once again seasoned perfectly and a sauce to add on top that made this dish irresistible!

On the recommendation of our bartender we tried the fish tacos and the filet mignon tacos. The fish was light and fluffy, it melted in your mouth. The filet was amazing. Tender and juicy. You could defitely tell it was a filet cut you were having. Each order had 2 tacos which made sharing perfect.

My husband had never had bone marrow so we gave that a try. It was served with a pomegranate chutney and seeded bread. The combination was outstanding.

The only item we had that wasn't beyond spectacular was the dessert. We ordered the churros. Crunchy on the outside & creamy on the inside. Too much cinnamon sugar coating for my taste & served with a very heavy chocolate sauce that overwhelmed the taste of the churros. This dish would have been better with a light powered sugar dusting, which would have melted onto the hot churros, and served with a thick Mexican hot chocolate to dip them in.

There was a long banquet that ran the length of the main dining area with several very small & short cocktail sized tables with round, short, stool like chairs that had barely any back on them. Taller patrons would find this seating to be a challenge.

We will definitely be back. Great place to bring friends.“

“While visiting San Francisco’s Presidio National Park and the nearby Walt Disney Family Museum on August 11 2023, we came upon several food trucks parked up, one of which was El Fuego Authentic Mexican. It had the longest line of them all so we figured the food must be good. The delicious smell also was a big draw! We joined the long line and waited patiently for 15 minutes to be served. As we neared the truck, a lady crossed out the fish tacos on the menu - they must have been popular. We had to quickly rethink what we’d like to order. We went for the following (to share): 🌮 Combo de Lux 🥤 Mexican Coca-Cola (500ml in glass bottles) x 2 The Combo de Lux consisted of: Soft taco x 1 Mulita (sandwich taco) x 1 Quesabirria x 1 Consommé (broth) Pots of mild and spicy salsa We were given a pager so we would know when to return to the hatch. It was an exciting 10 minute wait while the tasty delights were freshly prepared inside the food truck. We took our food over to some large plastic rocking chairs on the Main Parade Lawn (opposite the Walt Disney Family Museum) and tucked in without delay. The food was incredible: full of birria-style beef, cheesy, spicy, tasty, juicy. We had to take great care when eating it, as it was a breezy day and we didn’t want to make a mess. The consommé was new to us. We didn’t dip the quesabirria into the broth - we drank it! The flavors were very rich, with a little spicy kick. El Fuego really was a good choice and just what we needed for lunch having walked many miles around San Francisco. These were our first authentic tacos in California and the benchmark has now been set very high!“

“I Love Purple Burritos!!!“

“Absolutely the best tacos I've ever bought. Carnitas all the way.“

“We get takeout from here for dinner once a week. Our order is usually ready in 10 minutes. Great tacos and burritos. The Paplote sauce is hit or miss, but when it's good it's good. There is no place to sit down inside, so there really isn't atmosphere.“

“Great food, good service, and a wonderful overall experience.“

“This place is fantastic!! I’ve ate a million burritos in the Mission, tried damn near every spot… but man that carne asada burrito I had last week might take the crown… that first bite I think I made an audible moan, ohhh lawddd 😤🤣“

“The food was delicious and fresh.“

“The most scenic place to get your Filipino fusion food! They have multiple outlets in the City, but this one has the best views. They're in the back of the Ferry Building and have outdoor seating specifically for their restaurant. Kick back and enjoy a sisig burrito while checking out the Bay and ferries.

I always go for the sisig bowls which are super filling. My husband tried the Longanisa Chopped Cheese which came in a hoagie-like roll. It paired well with the Engkanto Beer. Service is quick, and they'll call your name so make sure to grab a prime seat on the Pier.“

“I always have an amazing experience in the wheels on this so nice and friendly. This is my favorite Mexican place. I love how they greet you with a warm welcome and they’re always ready to place you in a seat.“

“Pan dulce never disappoints here. They got niño envuelto, conchas, empanadas, cuernitos, etc. All of them are really good.

Tried breakfast for the first time today but have been buying their pan dulce and tamales for a while now. Tamales are also good. They got Mexican and Salvadorean ones.

As for the food, I tried their chilaquiles and they were really good. The salsa was nos spicy so you need to ask them for a side of hot salsa. The tortilla chips are nice and crispy, not soggy. You can taste the freshness of the refried beans and the Mexican rice.

Their tacos were really good too.
Don’t forget to get some chicharrón to go before you leave the place.“

“Likely the best value in the FiDi for a quick breakfast. I got the Huevos Rancheros ($8.95) add Bacon (+$3). I ordered it through Toast and picked it up. My coffee was made fresh when I got there so it would still be HOT!

The Huevos were delicious! Two eggs, both red and green salsa (one on each), black beans, and a bit of cheese. It was the perfect amount and was delicious. A hint of spice from the salsas, the eggs were well seasoned and the tortillas still crispy.

I'll be swinging by here more often than my usual bagel place in the future!“

“Great comfort food and staff is exceptional“

“Food was Delicious. Staff was very friendly. The restaurant was very clean. Food was all fresh. I absolutely recommend them! We will be back.“

“I visited Bonita Taqueria and ordered the Mexican street tacos, which come as a set of three – I chose the chicken option. They were very tasty, with fresh ingredients and perfectly warm, soft tortillas.

The staff was super friendly and welcoming, and the atmosphere had a great Latin vibe. It felt relaxed and comfortable – a really pleasant experience overall.

Highly recommend if you’re in the Chestnut Street area and craving authentic, flavorful tacos in a laid-back setting!“

“All of their food is delicious🔥🤤😋“

“best tacos 🌮🇮🇹🐍🦅 in San Francisco 🚩🏟📍49ers 🏈 maybe 🤷 😂24th street 💘“

“Very friendly staff and great service! It’s honestly impressive watching the crew work so efficiently, all the way from the register to the prep line.

Had a chicken Burrito Super. Great, hearty burrito with good flavor and solid portion size. The whole menu looks awesome and we were almost sad that we weren’t sticking around town to try the other items. Definitely check is out for some tasty Mexican eats.“

“Muy acogedor el lugar, perfecto para un almuerzo en familia.“

“Great food. Really authentic!“

“Food was Delicious. Staff was very friendly. The restaurant was very clean. Food was all fresh. I absolutely recommend them! We will be back.“

“food is delicious staff very polite“

“My new favorite place. The food the service and the drinks ALL in point.“

“Amazing food! The Quesabirria are AMAZING! 😋“

“Agua Fresca was delicious! food was so good, service was fast and accommodating. Atmosphere was well done. Great job Merkado SF. #GOGIANTS!!“

“Really delicious! I got the surfer mermaid zapato which is a burrito but toasted crusts kinda like a panini. The habanero sauce (added after) was great and not spicy. Will definitely be coming back!

There’s an entire vegetarian menu page! No protein option, but still good.

Vegetarian options: Burritos, nachos, tacos, and sides!

Dietary restrictions: There’s an entire vegetarian menu page! No protein option, but still good.

Kid-friendliness: Ample seating. Bit dark and loud inside.“