After a long day exploring Balboa park we went to The Market Place for a bite to eat...to our disappointment even though their Open sign was on their doors were locked.But little did we know that it was to our great luck because our next stop was at Barrio Star. We decided to give this a try as it was nearby and we had a coupon for chips and guac...hey why not.It's a nice spot with a bar for people to eat at the counter and watch TV as well as a fairly large sit down area and live music also entertained us halfway through our early dinner.Well the chips and guac were gigantic. I started laughing when the server came out with the bowl huge. To be honest I think I like the chips at Jimmy Carters (just down the road) more than here but my GF preferred these...they are both great.GF wasn't as hungry as me so she got the Grande Quesadilla off the Starters section of the menu and I ordered the Chile Relleno.The Grande Quesadilla was also HUGE, and yes, it says Grande but it's in the appetizer section so we figured it wouldn't be that big. We were wrong...it was a giant quesadilla that I equated to the Costco Cheese pizza equivalent of cheese in it. It was simply one of the better quesadilla we have had.The Chile Relleno was very different from what I am familiar with. I'm used to the pepper having a nice egg coating on it but this one was served just plain but I have to say that I actually really enjoyed it. While not my favorite I liked that the poblano flavor really stood out more since it was drowned out by the coating. I would definitely enjoy this from time to time to change up the version I'm used to.Service was fast and friendly and I really enjoyed the vibe of the place even though I usually don't like bar/restaurants, I think dining early really helped in that regard as I usually don't like noisy establishments.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Peyton Bechhold
Very good, my partner has a lab onion intolerance and the staff were very friendly and accommodating around that!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kate
Food was great but they got my order wrong. Didn’t seem to care or listen to us when we ordered
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Tania
Food was delicious!! Margarita was my fav part!! Presentation on point and taste on food and drink was perfect!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Margherita, Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Chile Relleno, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Barrio Bowl
Genea
It was just ok.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Shrimp Tacos, Soychorizo Tacos, Potato Tacos, Salsa
Rodney Beaulieu
The Brazilian Bowl was disappointing. While the chopped chicken, salsa and kale were fine, the rice was an amorphous clump of overcooked whatever. Don't look for fine cuisine here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 3
David Staggs
Great lunch spot! Taco trio, surf & turf bowl and the margaritas are all amazing. All the ingredients are very fresh and the tortillas are not pressed or cooked until you order your meal. Go here on a date or business lunch. Can't lose either way.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Carnitas Tacos, Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Shrimp Tacos, Barrio Bowl, Salsa
Ricardo S
We had lunch. They offered to sit outside on a very tight anf ugly table, so we ate inside. It took forever to order. After 30' of waiting we oredered some nachos < not free> to realize our food was coming 1 minute after that. They were out of lemonade, and no empanadas. Pozole bowl was tasty but portion was small, with just a couple of pieces of shreded chicken. There was a hair in my quedasillas. It ook 20' to replace. Servers were not friendly and prices a little too high. I won't come back.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
Liang-Kai Chu
Chips are available for a cost. Tips options are high. But their tocos are great and luxurious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Joniene Swick
Chili relleno did not have eggServed on a huge plate of rice.Overall fun atmosphere..but it was a date. The wait we added everything at the table with machine and then announced 100 dollar total for 2 people. I could see my date annoyed. What happened to putting the check on the table? It was tacky.
Barrio Star...more like Barrio 2 star ✨. Overpriced. Empanadas was yummy. Pozole tasted like cabbage sink water ? . The birria waz gud. The drinks while overpriced we're still halfway decent.
César Naranjo
Simply bad Mexican. Come here for live music and not the food.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Carissa Kullman
Great beer selection and yummy food. Loved the servers and service!! Very quaint inside.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Preacher's KIDS
Soul music in the background, Spanish cuisine on the table.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Final Fantasy Moogle
Waitress with pink hair was hovering over me while I was paying to see how much I would tip. It was super uncomfortable. After paying, she grabbed the card reader out of my hand and walked off without saying anything. I did tip too. Super rude and unwelcoming service.They charge a 4% surcharge and don’t show you your itemized bill.The food was not good. It is way over priced and low quality. They gave me the worst hot sauce I’ve ever tasted. It was a brown sludge and looked like… something else. I will never come back to this place! I regret coming here.
After a long day exploring Balboa park we went to The Market Place for a bite to eat...to our disappointment even though their Open sign was on their doors were locked.But little did we know that it was to our great luck because our next stop was at Barrio Star. We decided to give this a try as it was nearby and we had a coupon for chips and guac...hey why not.It's a nice spot with a bar for people to eat at the counter and watch TV as well as a fairly large sit down area and live music also entertained us halfway through our early dinner.Well the chips and guac were gigantic. I started laughing when the server came out with the bowl huge. To be honest I think I like the chips at Jimmy Carters (just down the road) more than here but my GF preferred these...they are both great.GF wasn't as hungry as me so she got the Grande Quesadilla off the Starters section of the menu and I ordered the Chile Relleno.The Grande Quesadilla was also HUGE, and yes, it says Grande but it's in the appetizer section so we figured it wouldn't be that big. We were wrong...it was a giant quesadilla that I equated to the Costco Cheese pizza equivalent of cheese in it. It was simply one of the better quesadilla we have had.The Chile Relleno was very different from what I am familiar with. I'm used to the pepper having a nice egg coating on it but this one was served just plain but I have to say that I actually really enjoyed it. While not my favorite I liked that the poblano flavor really stood out more since it was drowned out by the coating. I would definitely enjoy this from time to time to change up the version I'm used to.Service was fast and friendly and I really enjoyed the vibe of the place even though I usually don't like bar/restaurants, I think dining early really helped in that regard as I usually don't like noisy establishments.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very good, my partner has a lab onion intolerance and the staff were very friendly and accommodating around that!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food was great but they got my order wrong. Didn’t seem to care or listen to us when we ordered
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Food was delicious!! Margarita was my fav part!! Presentation on point and taste on food and drink was perfect!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Margherita, Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Chile Relleno, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Barrio Bowl
It was just ok.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Shrimp Tacos, Soychorizo Tacos, Potato Tacos, Salsa
The Brazilian Bowl was disappointing. While the chopped chicken, salsa and kale were fine, the rice was an amorphous clump of overcooked whatever. Don't look for fine cuisine here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 3
Great lunch spot! Taco trio, surf & turf bowl and the margaritas are all amazing. All the ingredients are very fresh and the tortillas are not pressed or cooked until you order your meal. Go here on a date or business lunch. Can't lose either way.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Carnitas Tacos, Barrio Guacamole and Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips, Homemade Chips and Salsa, Shrimp Tacos, Barrio Bowl, Salsa
We had lunch. They offered to sit outside on a very tight anf ugly table, so we ate inside. It took forever to order. After 30' of waiting we oredered some nachos < not free> to realize our food was coming 1 minute after that. They were out of lemonade, and no empanadas. Pozole bowl was tasty but portion was small, with just a couple of pieces of shreded chicken. There was a hair in my quedasillas. It ook 20' to replace. Servers were not friendly and prices a little too high. I won't come back.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
Chips are available for a cost. Tips options are high. But their tocos are great and luxurious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Chili relleno did not have eggServed on a huge plate of rice.Overall fun atmosphere..but it was a date. The wait we added everything at the table with machine and then announced 100 dollar total for 2 people. I could see my date annoyed. What happened to putting the check on the table? It was tacky.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Barrio Star...more like Barrio 2 star ✨. Overpriced. Empanadas was yummy. Pozole tasted like cabbage sink water ? . The birria waz gud. The drinks while overpriced we're still halfway decent.
Simply bad Mexican. Come here for live music and not the food.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Great beer selection and yummy food. Loved the servers and service!! Very quaint inside.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Soul music in the background, Spanish cuisine on the table.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Waitress with pink hair was hovering over me while I was paying to see how much I would tip. It was super uncomfortable. After paying, she grabbed the card reader out of my hand and walked off without saying anything. I did tip too. Super rude and unwelcoming service.They charge a 4% surcharge and don’t show you your itemized bill.The food was not good. It is way over priced and low quality. They gave me the worst hot sauce I’ve ever tasted. It was a brown sludge and looked like… something else. I will never come back to this place! I regret coming here.
Service: 1