Saw the #1 ranking in Yelp and stopped in to eat for the first time. A bit out of the way in a strip mall. We were seated within a few minutes. Staff were very friendly and the atmosphere was lively. Started with the free tortilla chips and salsa. Salsa was served warm with very good flavor and a little kick to it. Ordered the Guacamole as well. Was very good with a blend of avocado, veggies and lime juice. I ordered the Buena Vida Pack, a delicious sampler. I finished every bite. My companion ordered the Governador Tacos and really enjoyed it. Total bill for two with beverage was ~$40. Be advised that they do not have alcoholic beverages. I definitely recommend. read more

Pro #1: Meat is sooooooo tender. I wish it had more seasoning ... even if it was salt nonetheless it was good! Con #1: This restaurant is not environmentally conscious. Other than the meal, everything is served on styrofoam, utensils are plastic and cups are bad fast food plastic qualify. Con # 2: I asked the waitress if they had unsweet tea and pink packet sweetener. I asked about the pink packets 3 times and she said yes. She came back with yellow packets. I asked if they had pink packets and she said no. No to her. Con # 3: There are no free refills. I ordered two unsweet teas and the girl brought me two unsweet teas with yellow packets. So I asked for a sweet teas. They charged me for three Aqua Frescas. Charged $15. Hell no. Meh. Pass on a second visit. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - More styrofoam and plastic than meat. Meat was good though as you can tell. - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

See all

Another recent discovery here in Mission, TX. This small restaurant is off the main road in a strip mall and seats maybe 40-50 people. The menu is simple but offers some variety. We were served a small plate with warm, crisp tortilla chips that were sprinkled with a seasoned powder (not Tajin) that was pretty salty. I shook off the powder as it made them too salty, even for my tastes. The greenish salsa was also a little salty but VERY TASTY and had a little kick. From where we were seated I observed the cook blackening the tomatillos on a grill in the kitchen. These were the backbone of this salsa. If it weren't quite so salty I'd be raving about them. I ordered a platter with three main items - Lonches, Sincronizada and Street tacos. All three items must be filled with the same protein, so I chose Birria. Other choices include pollo, bistek, trompo and fajita. The birria was nice and juicy and well seasoned. The Lonches were larger pieces of bread than I'm accustomed to finding, especially in Progresso, where they are quite popular. They were also toasted it seemed instead of being soft and pillowy. The street tacos were excellent with toppings of red onion and cilantro. The Sincronizada was something I'd never eaten before and was a smaller version of the one they serve as a main course. It was not the traditional dish which comes with slices of ham, but it was pretty good filled with birria. Charro beans were also served if I remember correctly. I ate one of the lonches, one of the tacos (the other I gave to my son) and the Sincronizada and was stuffed; leftovers for a later meal. The wife ordered the full version of a Sincronizada filled with pollo (chicken) and wasn't able to even finish half of it. It was huge! They brought us two bottles of salsa - a green salsa and a reddish/orange salsa. Both were pretty hot by my standards and the reddish one would absolutely hurt you if you added too much. So... a word to the wise... caution advised. They were quite tasty. All in all we will come back. I particularly want to try out some of their other proteins and their fajitas. read more

This place is AMAZING! The food is delicious and the service was excellent!!! If you're looking for a new spot in the Mission area, give em a try. They won't disappoint. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

Super fresh Mexican food with excellent flavor and spice without relying on excess salt or fat to hide low quality ingredients. Good selection of food items from tortas to tacos to plates with a varied selection of protein options, including vegetarian/vegan. Note that if you ask for water they give you bottled, but you can ask for tap, which tastes fine and is served with refreshing and juicy key limes. Really enjoyed the food here. Service was kind and attentive too. read more

See all

The food is excellent, with fresh salsa. It's definitely my preferred place for a light Mexican lunch or dinner when in Mission or McAllen.

Excellent! Had the pork belly tacos. Amazingly good! Generous slabs of pork belly on blue corn tortillas, with caramelized onions and a fruity sauce. I'll be back to try other things. The tortilla chips were great, and came with warm tomatillo salsa. Both things were a big hit at our table. Great service, and my tab was $14.07 before tip. For a meal that filled me up completely. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Pork Belly Taco (close up) - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

See all

Food service and ambiance are awesome. Owner even came out to greet us a talk a while. We will definitely be back many more times. read more

cannot think of one negative comment. friendly & attentive service. we ordered street tacos, a torta & a birria taco: very generous portions, all perfectly seasoned & quite delicious. their salsas, pico & guacamole are all scrumptious too. overall A+ + experience. read more

We really wanted to like it, but the food was not the best and everything was salty. The biggest disappointment was that everything was served in disposable plates and plastic ustensils. The smell inside the restaurant was not pleasant and the layout and decor was a bit weird for the type of food. Will not be going back. read more

Great service and hospitable, food and salsa was great. Staff was excellent and we will very much return next time we in the valley!!!!

Wow!! Such good food! And the service was wonderful. I got the street tacos with chicken and birria. Perfect size woth leftovers for my smaller appetite. But I gotta tell you, after tasting the bistec sincronizada my husband ordered, I am going back for one of those! The chips and salsa even had their own unique flavoring twist. The prices for the amount of food were really reasonable. Definitely adding this to our must visit list!! read more

Food was delicious and the service was very friendly! Visiting for work and was glad I tried this place. Plan to go back next time I'm in town. read more

The absolute best tacos in town!! Don't miss the Govenador tacos and Pork Belly tacos. Once you have their tacos you will be hard pressed to find a better one! The staff is so friendly and super clean every time we have been there. If you haven't tried you won't be sorry. It's worth a drive if you're a ways away from them. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Govenador tacos w garlic sauce - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

See all

Good tacos fajitas and shrimp meat was tender and flavorful would order again not too crowded

Fantastic food, very unique combinations of flavors, excellent service, the decor is just fine. Highly recommended read more

excellent food, service and atmosphere. We will definitely be returning. The Lonches were delicious. read more

Good service, good food. Menu is limited but most everything is good. The only thing I didn't like was the panchos

The food and service were excellent! The Home made salsa and chips are good. My favorite was the governador tacos which have fajita, grilled shrimp, melted cheese, avocado and a delicious garlic sauce. The owner was very attentive even with a lot of traffic. Will definitely try again. read more

See all

We visited the Buena Visa restaurant because friends highly recommended it. We were amazed by the service we received!!!!! The owner made sure we knew that breakfast service would be ending soon, but would be happy to accommodate us. We had planned on having lunch. We were served taco chips that were hand made with a salt and lime seasoning along with homemade salsa. It was delicious! The menu has a lot of choices and prices were very reasonable. My husband loves enchiladas but didn't see them on the menu, he was told, no problem!! And told the chef that an order would be coming. They were delicious! I ordered their baked potato with meat, cheese, sour cream. The potato was very moist and toppings were delicious! Our friends ordered lonches. They enjoyed them as well and said they were delicious. After we were finished eating, the owner told us that everything is home made and he appreciated our business, chatting with us for a while. It was a great experience and we will be back! Highly recommended! read more

See all

We saw this place on TikTok and knew we had to make the trip to try it! It was amazing. The food was bomb! All the staff were friendly and great workers. The owner had great communicate and was very observant. I couldn't help but see what a bad ass the bus man was! As soon as any parties left the table he immediately got to cleaning up the area. I hope he gets the recognition he deserves as well as all the other staff members. Will be back when we can. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

The Food is great & fresh! And service was very friendly and nice. I'll definitely will come back to this place as a go to restaurant whenever I'm in town! read more

Food was excellent! We had a large group of 20 and the service was top notch! We will certainly come back again!

To think we weren't going to eat here because there weren't many reviews! Now we know the 5 stars ain't no lie! The best pork belly taco I've ever eaten. Birria taco with consume was awesome. You know it's good when you want to drink the consume! Hubby had the shrimp and steak tacos and flavor was bomb! Not to mention the chips and green salsa! Had to get refills on that! Everything was soooo gooood! read more

Great food! Pork belly tacos are delicious got some sweet heat to them! Fajitas are average but the papas asada was great. Nice little restaurant and great staff too! read more

See all

Great food. Great service. Really like this place. Prices are good. What more country you ask for. Fajitas are delicious. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - The salsa and chips are really, really good! Best salsa in the world! - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

Only great things to share about this locally owned restaurant. The menu has plenty to choose from and the service is excellent. Our family lunch of 7 ordered, a carne asada torta, carne asada tacos, birria tacos, and tacos de trompo as well as a fajita botana for 2. Everyone enjoyed their selections, the botana was on point, the fajita and the chicken were so good, not overcooked or over seasoned. The ambiance is intimate and it got a little loud when it filled up but that is to be expected and doesn't distract from the experience. read more

I had the sampler and it was amazing!! The steak used was flavorful and juicy, and all the ingredients that they used looked and tasted fresh!! I will be returning!! read more

Best Pulpo Tacos. Excellent service. Clean and casual vibe. Delicious agua Frescas and perfect house made salsas

Stopped in here for Lunch today and it was amazing. Atmosphere was nice owner was amazing as was the food. Highly recommend you guys go show this locally owned business some 956 Love. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Bistec and Trompo Street Tacos Amazing 5/5 - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

See all

We found this place by accident as we were looking for sushi, but the sushi place ended up being in a flea market like outlet with a food court. I really wanted Mexican food and I ended up getting the torta with carne asada. The fries was great and the sandwich was awesome too. It has beans, lettuce, avocado and beef. The beef was juicy and really good. If I am ever in town, I would come back here, but for me to come to McAllen, there has to be something special for me to come back as it is 8 hours away. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - the menu - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

See all

Espectacular! Este lugar se gana las 5 estrellas. Los lonches estaban deliciosos. El bolillo y las tortillas de maíz y de harina hechas a mano estaban fuera de este mundo. Y las carnes, suaves y bien sazonadas. Este lugar lo recomiendo al cien ! read more

See all

Octopus Tacos are king they are great! This is the restaurant that loves to come ok Small owner operated read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Octopus Taco - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas

We saw this place in TikTok and looked delish. We tried the street tacos, loaded potato and the Buena vida pack. The food was extremely delish! Will come back soon! Authentic and made fresh for sure!!! read more

The sincronizadas were excellent ! We had one with beef fajitas and one with beef steak. They had live music and BYOB. Place is super clean and atmosphere if perfect! Thanks, JJ Juarez read more

The food & service here are amazing!! We had the special smoked birria & the Texas style gonernador tacos! Relaxed ambiance with comfortable chairs! read more

Six of us came to this restaurant to celebrate a birthday on a Tuesday evening. All six meals were exceptional and the owner came out and spoke with us. Most of the recipes are his own creations. They are all cooked fresh, so it may take some time. Be sure to try the sincronizada and leave room for the strawberry filled churro's! read more

Food was delicious Service was very friendly and attentive cute place very homey...would highly recommend...Good price

The start from finish was great. Handmade chips and salsa is simple but delicious. I have the governors tacos 10/10 experience

Place looks very nice with their rustic tables, modern chairs and color tones were very classy. We started with their chicharrón appetizer with fajita and it was on point. Their pulpo al pastor tacos did not disappoint with their handmade tortillas de maíz. My husband ordered the Fish Tacos, my daughter the Birria Tacos and my son got the Street Tacos. We absolutely loved everything we ordered and tried eachothers food. Everything was fresh and made to order. Owner was very attentive and appreciates any feedback given. We would definitely be going back soon to try their lonches and pork belly tacos. read more

Buena Vida Mexican Cuisine - Pulpo al Pastor Tacos (order of 3) - Mexican Near Me - Mission, Texas