I have tried almost every taco shop in Encinitas and this takes the prize. All the food is cooked perfect and the staff is great. You can also purchase their tamales, shells, chips, and salsas! I would recommend the chorizo & egg burrito and have them add cheese, refried beans and potatoes. You won't be disappointed. read more

For years, we've been buying their salsa at La Costa Farms. I wish we would have come to their restaurant earlier! I had the chile verde and a taco, and had to bring half of it home, there was so much. My wife had carne asada tacos and loved them. The prices are great, too. This is not somewhere you go for the decor or to get a good margarita. But if you want some genuinely good Mexican food, without all the tourist trimmings, this is the place for you. read more

Try the chicken burrito and add guac... Simply incredible!

Hands down best carne asada burritos. Their carne asada is amazing and flavorful, unlike many taco shops whose tastes like nothing. The staff is really friendly and the salsa bar has a great selection, and they have BEER! Prices are amazing too, my same burrito (california add sour cream and bacon- it's amazing trust me) costs 3$ more in Oceanside where I live and doesn't even come close to being as tasty as El Nopalito's. I love how they throw chips in the bag for to go too, I'm usually grabbing food here on my way home after a long day and it's nice to have a snack for in the car :) next time I go in I'm gonna pick up some tamales to bring home too. Keep it up! read more

This is a great mexican place. Their tamales are incredible. Their salsa is incredible. Their food is excellent. Anytime you have more mexican clients in the store vs. Americans you know it's authentic. The chicharones are the best. The birria en consome is my favorite. read more

Comparing el pueblo (next exit south) and el nap- el nap carne asada was very tasty like the reviews said. And their al pastor was amazing. However, the chile relleno burrito at el pueblo is WAY better, so is the green salsa, and pretty much all the salsa at el pueb is better. The only rival is maybe the el nap pico and possibly their carrots- but I don't think they run through carrots as fast as el pueblo so possibly quality had to be sacrificed. El nap could also use some work on the burrito wrap- mine fell apart every time. Overall, just go to el pueblo. A little more expensive but worth it. read more

Shhh! Don't tell anyone but this is the best Mexican place in North County! It doesn't get more authentic than this. Not only do they have a restaurant that serves amazing fresh Mexican, but they also have a deli where you can buy their homemade chips, salsa, guac, variety of meats, rice and beans, and even huge pieces of chicharron. Excellent friendly service and food, I hope this place will always be here. read more

Great food, low key atmosphere you expect from a taco shop. the guy behind the counter with the rad neck-tat was super helpful. I didn't know until it was too late but they server beer(a welcome accompaniment to any carnitas plate). Everything was super fresh and obviously made to order. Really great salsa bar. This is by far the best carne Assad in north county. read more

Delicious! The carne asada in the burrito was delicious and plentiful! The cheese enchilada and chile relleno was so good, very authentic. Service was good and fast. Their chips are the real deal read more

Ok I just don't get it. This place was totally mediocre. Hubs and I both got the combo #4 plate which comes with 1 beef tamale, 1 chicken enchilada, refried beans, and rice. We also got an order of chips and guacamole. Nothing was super flavorful or tasty. The tamale was too thick and the filling was not good. The enchilada was lacking flavor. The guacamole was decent but frankly my husband makes better guacamole thanks to our friends recipe from El Salvador. It's definitely a hole in the wall type of place. It was a bit dirty, had Spanish boxing on tv, and poor customer service (you order at the register and they bring the food to you.) The cashier forget about our order of chips and guacamole so I had to ask for it and it took him about 10 minutes to remember to bring us our drinks. While I still haven't found a Mexican place that knocks my socks off yet, there are definitely better places than this. Thank goodness we had a groupon for $20 worth of food which only cost me $10...I wouldn't have wanted to pay any more than that for this meal. read more

Sorry Yelpers... That's what makes the world go round...different strokes I guess. Not sure who wrote the reviews, but we were extremely disappointed. This is a hole in the wall, but that's ok if the food is good. Food was poor and tasted like it was full of lard. If you are into fresh healthy Mexican food, this is not for you. read more

We had our Christmas party catered by El Nopalito; they delivered a full taco bar (for 30 people!) directly to our house and the ordering process was very streamlined and exceptional. The food was a hit at the party and we will definitely be using them for future "large" events at our house. read more

Chips and salsa are the best i've had..... gotta have it. The sonora style has the most heat and its great. if your in the mood for some good chips and salsa go now and enjoy read more

Some of the best tacos shop Mexican food in all san Diego. Pastor is super authentic

You could pass right by and not notice this place, but you must have heard about it from time to time. They've been here forever. They do sell fresh (REALLY fresh) meats and I always stock their condiments ( salsas and guacamole) in my house. If you want to make great Mexican meals at home, you can buy all the groceries like tortillas, rice, beans etc. here also. Yes 5 stars! read more

Heard good things so I stopped here for lunch today. Prices were decent- got a Carne Asada burrito with chips for $5 and change. When it came out, it was almost room temperature. weird. Also, the portion size was on the small side, and the carne asada was severely under seasoned. The chips had no flavor, and the tortilla was bad- surprising especially considering they make their own. Overall disappointed. I wanted to like this place, but I won't be coming back. read more

The roasted Salsa is the best salsa in the world. seriously . My family drinks it. we have a rule in the house to never buy less then two containers when we go to the store . read more

Super fantastic Wednesday Taco Night...I know, I know, that is not a thing, but it should be at El Nopalito! Every night is taco night when your crunchy chicken tacos are sooo good Of course we must get our usual chips, salsa, guacamole and tamales to accompany Outstanding service. Thank you, guys! read more

Sonora salsa is my fav! El nop chips and salsa are a must at our house for taco Tuesday! read more

So happy that I found El Nopalito last week. Its carne asada burrito is hands-down the best one I've had in recent memory. Damn dat picante salsa lives up to its name son! read more

Did not think it was as good as others on yelp stated. It's actually very below average for an authentic place.

One of the best carne asada burritos I've ever had. Rich in flavor-- not too dry. I would recommend this place to all.

Most amazing smokey chipotle salsa you will ever enjoy. The fire roasted tomato is fantastic as well. Sometimes, just a bag of their chips and one these salsas is all you need for dinner. If you do want more, the tamales are fantastic...If you go to their neighboring market, you can get 'em frozen and then make them at home. Yum! It's easy. It's delicious. read more

This review is based on a single product at the market (never tried the restaurant or anything else at the market except the chips, which are pretty good): chipotle salsa. FREAKISHLY GOOD! I swear there must be some addictive substance in there that's not advertised on the label. I can't get enough. I buy two tubs at a time because one tub never survives a single evening. Try it. You'll agree. Like the Men's Wearhouse guy, I guarantee it! read more

Their roasted salsa is the best kept secret in San Diego. For a long time, only their market, Seaside Market in Encinitas and some stores in South Bay carried it. Now it's available in some Vons stores around Carmel Valley. There's no other salsa like it. It's even superior to the now defunct Hotcha salsa. They've recently started making ceviche. Now I have to drive up there again for my El Nopalito fix. If you're going to the market just for the ceviche, call first. Ask when they made it too. They don't make it on a regular basis and it and it's best to get it fresh. They told me it only stays fresh for about 3 days. But it's the bomb and worth the drive! If it's raining, they don't make the ceviche, so go on a sunny day! read more

Amazing place if your looking for your spices. They make fresh tortillas (corn and flour). You can watch them make them right there. They are located where the 7/11 is right off of the freeway. read more

I finally got to hit this place up a few weeks back and I had a good experience. The people there were super nice and we were in and out of there relatively quickly (despite a decent size crowd for 9pm on a Tuesday). Per usual I measure the food on the quality of their California burrito... The burrito was good, the meat was better than most places in SD (decent cut of beef). Their guac which I got on the side was also solid. I will likely be back. read more

My friend and I ate here twice in as many weeks, and I have to say, the food was really good. They have a hot table with all types of dishes ready to serve as a combo. The staff were great in pointing out all the items and recommending a few things that I could try out. Great lunch spot - I'll visit often. read more

Didnt see what was so good about this place. Maybe i didnt order the right thing. Had some cheese enchiladas and were average.

I've been coming to El nopalito for years and years. The food is fantastic especially the chips salsa and guacamole. You also can't beat the butcher shop with all the great assortment read more

Wonderful! Very best carnitas burrito!! We also really enjoyed the polla asada and carne asada we grilled up from their fresh meat counter. And their guacamole - yum!!! read more

Not super impressed. I have shopped at the little store before. Never eaten in the restaurant. Again...not impressed. I only had the Carne Asada Burrito...but is was very fatty and over salty. The salsa bar was a mess and quite nasty. There was a girl in there playing with a kitten at her table next to me and I thought that was pretty nasty. Overall...I was not really feeling it. for the area...there is hands down way better Mexican food at Tony's Jacal! read more

Consistently great place to pick up tamales, carne asada, tortillas, guac, chips and salsa. Also love their breakfast burritos, not as giant or as greasy as most taquerias and the peppers add a lot of flavor. I do feel like prices have increased, but quality is good. read more

One of the better taco shops I've eaten at in San Diego. The carne asada burrito was great, as was the homemade salsa and guacamole. Yum!

Every time I come to this place not only am I full each time I'm always pleased with the food. Good tasting and the portions are good. Their salsa is always a good addition to any plate you decided to get at this place. Definitely one of my favorite Mexican food places. read more

Carne Asada burrito was pretty good. Tortilla chips made from scratch. Wide selection of tasty salsas.

This time, I ordered and got the carnitas plate. It's okay. Low on flavor. The guacamole is over salted. The beams are good but blasé. There is no heat to the"hot" sauces. I prefer Citizen. read more

We ended up stopping here on the way to LA. Not a pretty restaurant by any means but the food is great. I ordered a carne aside burrito. The meat was delicious and the portions are a good size. My friend got the chicken enchiladas... They were fabulous. I'm looking forward to going back soon. read more

It's probably the best mexican food you can get in north county. They definitely make awesome salsa here, which all my friends love and are crazy for too. We sometimes argue who discovered the salsa first. Every time we have a get together, there are several of us who bring the same salsa from Nopalito. Good. More for me. read more

So I stopped by on the way up to watch the NFL playoff's (as you already know this is my stop to buy the meat that we grill before the games) but this time we headed to the taco shop where I saw everybody getting the already made hot food that was sitting in their little food bar thingy...anyhow...I saw some barbacoa and some fried carnitas and had to try it, boy was I glad I did. this was as good as it gets, this is how places like Juanbertos, Alberto's, Filiberto's , AdAlbertos and the rest of those 24 taco shops should taste. This place has alot of variety to offer...it's nothing fancy inside but's it's all authentic...go see for yourself, you won't regret it. (they even give you samples of whatever you want to try) read more