Love Celia's special quesadillas and refried beans. My #1 restaurant when I'm visiting my dad in the IV.

I didn't care for the food here the salsa was not good had a weird taste the enchilada sauce had some weird flavor too that i never tastes before the shredded beef taco was bland the only thing i liked was the beans the prices to me are a bit high but the service was good staff friendly restaurant clean and i know they have alot of good reviews but unfortunately i jjust didnt care for the food read more

Celia's Restaurant - Looks delish i know but .... - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

We are so glad we chose this restaurant for our stop along our drive from Arizona to San Diego. It a few miles from the freeway but don't let that keep you from visiting this hidden gem! Let's start with the service, AMAZING! All the staff was friendly and made us feel welcome from our first step in the door. Never have I had such an enthusiastic server who said we made excellent food choices. And prompt fresh hot food was served faster than most McDonald's! The salsa served with the chips was just the perfect amount of spice! You can see the fresh ingredients before you taste each one. The chips are thick and crisp, perfect for the beans when you get your meal. We chose the special quesadilla, it is crispy and unique in all the best ways. Full of flavor and great with the rellano sauce. We also had a tostada and a cheese enchilada that was out of this world full of cheesy goodness and a yummy sauce We didn't want to stop eating. But wait we also had the chili Colorado, Yummerific! Best I have had in a long time. The rice is the best, don't pass this place by, stop and enjoy some great Mexican cuisine! read more

Celia's Restaurant - Tostada and rice, so good! - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

See all

Celia's is our Number 1 Stop any time we come remotely near El Centro. The picture is of the Special Quesadilla which is a flaky pastry-like fried quesadilla...and one of the highlights. I did not think to take a picture of the tacos I ate earlier in the day (yes, we ate there for lunch and went back for dinner...it is that good). The tacos were fried to the medium level which is perfect and had the leanest most tender shredded beef. I order tacos almost every time I come here. The rice and beans...excellent! And I love the guac! And, even better, the people working there are so kind and gracious...it's truly been a lovely experience every time. I just wish they were a little closer to where I live so I could eat there all the time. read more

Celia's Restaurant - Special Quesadilla. - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

Decided to try something new this weekend as tired of Las Palmitas and needed to find new Mexican food place. Celia's truly yummy Mexican food. I can usually tell the quality of Mexican food by taste of their chips & salsa. Their salsa so tasty and chips as well. I ordered the sopes and oh my so yummy! Try it out! read more

We arrived to this establishment since we always hear rave reviews. We sat ourselves down and they brought us menus. The menu looked like it had been written by a child. There were so many words misspelled both in English and Spanish. We thought it was amusing. They brought us our drinks along with chips and salsa. The salsa was HORRIBLE! I pictured someone dropping a whole can of salt in the salsa. I mean this thing had so much salt! What we're they thinking? I don't suffer from high blood pressure, but you bet I get a headache if I consume anything that is high in sodium. Even though I only tasted it (and almost spit it out) I ended up with a horrible headache less than an hour after we left Celia's. We ordered and that is when we heard the noise you really don't want to hear in a so called "authentic Mexican food" establishment...yes, a MICROWAVE! We were already dreading our decision but decided to still give them a chance. (There is more to this later, upon further investigation). The food arrived and it looked like the food you come to expect in such establishments. I ordered chile's rellenos. I took a bite and was pleased with the initial flavors, the breading on the Chile was fluffy as it should be and the salsa that went on top of it was also good. Then I took 2 more bites and I realized I had yet to have any Chile! Chiles rellenos call for a particular Chile (poblano), what did they use? Chile California (or Anaheim chile) which is very thin. So the whole plate was nothing but breading! I was so upset! They were about 4 inches long and 1 inch thick. So pathetic! We were not pleased with our food needless to say, then the check came and we see it is $38! Yikes! We have never paid so much for MICROWAVED food! So we go to pay and I use the time to see what their kitchen looks like (there is an open "window" where you can see the stoves and such) and again, not a big shock that nothing was turned on or being cooked, even though there were people waiting for their food! As we drive home it hits us, yet another reason we should not go to this restaurant ever again...we BOTH got sick to our stomachs! We had lovely plans for the evening and they were ruined! We instead had to run home and be sick for the rest of the night. In conclusion, it is safe to say we will NEVER go to this establishment. Ever! Between being sick to my stomach and having a horrible headache (due to the salt content in the food) and our plans being ruined (because we got so sick)...we will NEVER go there! You shouldn't either. Oh and let's not forget, it is microwaved food! read more

Celia's Restaurant - This is how much breading there was after I ate some, but not all...and still! Look how much there was left over! Way too much! - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

Fresh, warm flour tortillas. Beans and rice remind me of home. The food was great. I love finding mom and pop restaurants doing it right.

Love this place. Great food for years. My grandma's favorite restaurant then, and ours now when we are in town.

What a great little local restaurant. I read all the reviews here on Yelp and decided to give Celias a try. I'm glad I did! The restaurant was a couple miles off the freeway and after a mile I almost turned around. I'm glad I didn't! (See what I did there?) lol This local Mexican-American restaurant is a cosy little spot that would easily fit a big family for any after party and according to some of the reviews is a local favorite spot to go for food. The prices are fair for the food but I think they are a little high for the drinks and dessert. The food I ordered was great! I had the Chilaquiles ($9) with coffee ($3) and they were right on the money. It was a perfect sized order; not too big and not too small. The plate came with two eggs (I had mine over medium) and some homemade refried beans (they tasted fresh and not from a can). They were not very spicy but I added a spoonful of the red salsa that came with the chips and that made them taste even better! I was about to pay and leave when I saw someone had ordered a banuelo (I think that is how it is spelled). A Banuelo ($5) is a fried flour tortilla with maple syrup, cinnamon, and sugar on top. That was also really good. I had to stop after a few bites because it was super sweet. Next time I would ask for the syrup on the side. I order an apple juice to go (Minute Maid bottle $3) and was on my way. All in all I would recommend this place for something different than the chains that surround this family friendly restaurant. The food is good and the atmosphere is homey. Thumbs up from this guy. Lol read more

See all

Wow!! Was suggested to go here from someone who grew up in El Centro. The food is phenomenal and Ceci our waitress was so sweet and brought us a sample of cactus since we had never tried it. It was delicious and I am glad to have come here to try something unique to me. We got the huevos ranchero & a carne asada dish. Oh the cheese empanada was also delicious. I have to come back before I leave El Centro. I want to try everything on the menu. Lol read more

See all

Best Mexican food I've had in El Centro in a month. The salsa is fire, roasted chilies, and amazing.

Highly DISAPPOINTING! Service excellent. Wait time short. Food taste bland, very unauthentic tasting. I had a simple chili relleno. It arrived looking small and flat on the plate. The pepper used appeared to be a anaheim, a skinny pepper. It was mostly the egg breading with a bland, salty taste. I couldn't even taste the pepper itself. This tasted nothing like the delicious, pastilla pepper that is usually filled with cheese and sometimes other fillings, before being breaded and fried that I make at home it enjoy at other authentic Mexican restaurants. I wouldn't eat there again based on that one dish. If you can't make a decent chili relleno, you can't cook for me. Skip this place for authentic taste; it's a complete waste of money for the non-authentic food taste. read more

Celia's Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

This was my first time at Celia's, I have to say it was so delicious. The salsa was soooooo good and the chips I had the Special Dinner Carne Asada plate and my husband had the Chili Rellenos. Yummy, so tasty. Also the beers were nice and cold, that is always a plus! We will be making this one of our favorite places to eat from now on. I highly recommend this wonderful restaurant read more

I have to say for the valley, this place was alright. There are many competitors for Mexican restaurants, but this one might be at the bottom. It has an old diner feel as you walk in with the vivid pink tables. The beans were great with their touch of cheese on top. I felt like the chorizo omelette was just missing something as it almost felt flavorless. The server was very quick and attentive when I needed napkins and more water. Overall, it's a good place to try out, but not on a regular. read more

Celia's Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

See all

Celia's is not just about the food. It's about the community. I know I'm home when I see the sign.

If you are in El Centro looking for an excellent Mexican food meal - Celia's can't be beat. We drive 20 miles out of the way twice in a long weekend to eat here & well worth it. Special quesadilla is a nice treat but everything I've tried has been excellent with a wonderful family atmosphere & great service. You leave feeling happy you went here and with the impression that they were happy you came no matter how busy. read more

Enchiladas were decent but the chile verde was dry and bland. The best part of my meal was the chips and salsa. read more

Okay. I like Celia's. But if I'm honest, of the authentic Mexican restaurants in a border town, Celia's is the whitest Mexican restaurant. Most of the patrons are white farmers, and they all know the staff. This gets them good service. However, if you're like me- not a farmer, not Mexican, white, and an introvert- you'll probably get less quality service than others. At least this is what I've noticed for myself. I could be wrong. But my table seems to be forgotten quite often no matter how many times I've gone. Oh, and they are closed Mondays! The food is pretty good but like I said, it's pretty "watered down" as far as authentic Mexican food goes. I will say that I love their refried beans with queso fresco sprinkled on it more than any other beans in the valley. The ambience is cute, the waitresses wear like the off shoulders white blouses and the skirt with the brightly colored belt. It gives an old school Mexican ambience which is great! They have old paintings on the walls and in the back room. They have a huge mural on the front dining room wall. Love the building. Overall, I do like Celia's! I do, even though it doesn't really sound like it haha. But the food is good whether it's revolutionary or not, it tastes great. 4.5/5 read more

I'm completely baffled by all the positive reviews on this place. We had dinner there and the best way to describe it is scary and disgusting. The food was absolutely horrible. Hard to believe you could mess up a quesadilla. Sure the service was fine; the salsa pretty decent. But the food was disgusting, the prices high, and the restaurant itself is like an old converted Dennys. It's pretty obvious that the owners are out to extract every penny they can from the clients, without regard to any kind of decent food. Que verguenza! For anyone considering eating here, you might was well go to Taco Bell and save a few dollars. Their food is just as disgusting. read more

By Rick Barioni I have eaten at Mexican restaurants all over the South West, from San Diego; Arizona; Colorado; New Mexico; Texas & I could go on, but no reason...Celia's Restaurant is my FAVORITE. I travel all across the U.S. & have not found Mex. food this Good; the service & people make you feel like you are special, which leads me to The Special Ques...is a MUST! I still miss La Hacienda, but Celia's Rest. has helped me from withdrawals, those of you that grew up in the valley must remember La Hacienda. read more

Great quality food for a good price! Definitely recommend! Both plates were delicious! read more

Celia's Restaurant - Taco Plate - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

See all

Very good food at a very reasonable price. The free chips and salsa was decent chips, fantastic salsa. We wanted chicken in our burrito, even though it wasn't on the menu. The waitress told us no problem. It was a delicious shredded chicken in a red sauce with onions. I like salsa in my burritos so just spooned on some of the leftover from our chips and salsa. The chile relleno was good, but it's hard to mess up a chile relleno. The patio was nicely shaded late afternoon and they've added some popups for extra shade. We did sit for a long time after finishing with no one checking on us. My husband finally went in to pay and then asked me maybe we were supposed to pay inside? I don't know but we sat for a loooong time without seeing an employee. read more

Me and my 2 sons were in the area for the day and used Yelp to find this place. They were opposed to going here (pleas for Burger King went unanswered) but were quickly won over by the tasty quesadillas, guacamole and chips. Very fluffy rice, great shredded beef enchilada, and great taco were combined with an addictive salsa. The decor is low dollar but some interesting wall decor. The prices were fair, the food came out very fast, and the only complaint is that they needed another waitress during the busy lunch. Another bonus is that the local economy gets a little help by buying local. read more

We don't live near Celia's so when we come to Imperial Valley to visit, our first lunch or dinner outing is always to Celia's. Try the Quesadilla Especial and the Guacamole, the best, second to none. The guys like the Carnitas and Grandma always gets the Chile Relleno with extra sauce, of course! Celia has stayed true to her original La Hacienda roots and never disappoints. If you want authentic Mexican food, Celia's is the place to find it. read more

Celia's Restaurant - Celia's is the very very best! - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

The best Mexican food on the planet! Special quesdialla's are amazing. Gucamole wonderful. Machaca is my daughter's favorite. The staff still remembers me & I haven't lived in the area since 1996. I wish I could visit it more than twice a year! read more

If you enjoy the American style of Mexican food, this is the place to go. For authentic Mexican style food, there are other choices nearby. I don't like this place much. Of all the times I've been here, it has been because friends wanted to go. For authentic Mexican food there are greater places to choose from. The food is a bit pricey for the amount you are served and the taste it has. I also don't like that if you decide to split a plate of food, they will charge you extra. They do not want you to share your food and I think that is ridiculous. If you've paid for the plate of food, you should be able to do what you want with it. As for the service, unless you go with a group of 10 or more, they will forget you are there once you've been seated. In all of my experiences, they will seat you, take 10 minutes to get your drink order, come back with drinks to get your food order then I didn't see them until the food and bill were brought. For refills, I had to walk up to the counter to get it myself. read more

.50 for extra chips. Bean dip is basically a side order of beans with cheese sprinkled on top with chili powder? Save your $5.00 on that. Carne Asada salad, meat lacked flavor and left greasy film on tongue. Ceilia's really lost its touches. Hope they can bring it back read more

The special quesadillas are a local fav. but besides that you can really get everything else anywhere else... This place gets a lot of HYPE by people born and raised here but its really nothing to write home about when you have the real deal 15 across the border. read more

Come to El Centro to work a few times a year and couldn't find that restaurant that makes you feel at home.... This is the place... What lovely people and great food ... The beans are amazing and it's hard to find that... Had a #2 combo... I'll definitely be back read more

Celia's Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

This place is super good I had their Chile verde burrito it's out of this world good. read more

Celia's Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

The staff is extremely friendly here, the food comes out in good time, BUT the food is not authentic therefore you will see the 1% of the Caucasian business citizens of the valley eating their around noon....daily.... ALSO the first bowl of chips are free, after that it's 50 cents per extra one.NOT COOL CELIAS, NOT COOL...... the artwork is pretty entertaining while you wait. ( Look at the hand to body ratio) lolololololololololololololol read more

Felt like home cooked meals with a great service! We were seated right away, no wait, our food was out in less than 10mins as soon as we ordered. The free chips with salsa was something I wish we had here in San Diego, the ingredients in the salsa was smokey with lots of flavor! I had the chorizo omelet with the corn tortilla, OMG, it was bomb-diggitilicious!! If you happen ymto be around El Centro, try this place out. You won't be disappointed! read more

See all

This place is okay. It's like "home cooked" Mexican food. I've been to better places in San Diego. I had carne Assad's plate. It was like 2 stars.it didn't have no flavor (seasoning). Beans are like 3 stars. They were okay. A littler runny. Rice was okay. No flavor. Needed more tomato sauce or something. The "special quesadilla" was better. 4 stars for being crispy and plenty of cheese. Tamale was like 2 stars. Had enough pork in it, but pork needs more seasoning. Dough was dry. They add the enchilada sauce but it's not great. Flour Tortillas taste store bought, definitely not home made. I don't think we will come back. I guess this is the typical "good Mexican" food in the valley since everyone recommended this place. Lolita's & Karinas in San Diego blow this place away and those places get like 3 stars in San Diego. read more

The fish plate is amazing , I had it for dinner and it was better than I expected , very nice lemon flavor to the fish , I asked them for salad instead of rice and there was no problem , the mixed veggies had butter and they were oh so good!! I wanted something light to sit well in my stomach and boy did I make the right choice , I willl order it next time most definately. Water with squeezed lemon juice to make it less tappy. Divine! read more

Great customer service and food came fast. Chips and salsa were good. I had the combination #1 plate. Everything on the plate was great. This was exactly the quality of Mexican food I was looking for. read more

THIS my friends is valley Mexican food, what I was raised on. I'm currently living in Texas and Tex-Mex doesn't come anywhere close. It was so good to have REAL tacos and a carne asada burrito with guacamole. There's just something about the Valley carne asada marinade that isn't replicated anywhere else. I don't get the service complaints at all, I've been a bunch of times and the service is always great. I was back in town on family business and ate there two straight nights. Like the tortilla chips too, real thick, not like the thin Texas ones. I'll def be back next time I'm in the Valley. read more

Very friendly service! And the food was great. I would recommend the Special Quesadilla with chili verde. I also have to say that the house salsa is the best and rival your moms SALSA! this place was clean and I recommend it. read more

Celia's Restaurant - House Salsa and chips, gotta try the salsa!! (Nacho voice: it's the best!) - Mexican Near Me - El Centro, California

See all

The first thing I try at Mexican restaurants is ther huevos rancheros. It's my favorite dish, and I love tasting the different ways it's made. I started that tradition because of Celia's. They serve the best huevos rancheros in the Valley. They're the only place I've ever seen green ranchero sauce. The refried beans are delicious--good for take-out, too. We like to get the uncooked tortillas and take everything home to make bean burritos. Ridiculously good. And the iced tea is the bomb! I'm finicky about my tea. I don't like it watered down, and I want it to taste like it's been brewed. It's surprising how difficult it is to find good iced tea. Celia's has got excellent tea. My family's been eating here since they first opened a tiny storefront across from the El Centro Car Wash. We love that the servers know us and ask after our children, and we love that they expanded to accommodate more patrons. If you're looking for a place to drop in on your way through the Imperial Valley, this is a must-try. read more

Eat here because Marcos....the best waiter ever... Chilaquiles were awesome, also.... And good salsa.... I'll return to sample tacos... read more

Food is good, portions small & just way overpriced for what was ordered. Not returning.