I love this place, the green shrimp enchiladas are my favorite, the rice is fluffy, the chips and salsa are always fresh, the staff are nice, the only bad thing is they only have one small bathroom, sometimes u have to wait. read more

La Morenita - Chips, bean dip and salsa - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

See all

Great Mexican food in the middle of nowhere! I found this place using my Yelp App while in Merced. The server was SUPER friendly. I didn't see burritos on their menu and asked is they had a "super burrito" she said we have a supreme burrito. Which it was explained they were more or less the same as a wet super burrito. After I ordered it she asked if I wanted the red or the green sauce, I asked her what the difference was and she explained the green sauce(using tomatillos) but she wasn't too sure what was in the red sauce, she offered me a sample, but I was pretty sure it was safe so I went with the red. The next thing you know there is a plate of nachos on the table, the server says "on the house", I felt pretty special :) Then 3 or 4 minutes later my food arrives. Super friendly, super fast,and everything was delicious. Definitely going back! read more

Good place to eat if your in town and want mexican food. The food was a average and portions were a little more than average. Small dining room and cramped seating. I will go back when I'm in town, but wouldn't make a special trip to town to eat there. read more

Wow, I don't know how anyone could give it 4 stars. Maybe if you stopped at the chips and free bean dip but the salsa is average and the "slaw" was old which should have told me something about what was to come. Going by the picture on the menu, I ordered the chili con. It was over cooked meat drowned in your basic salsa. The worst part was that the salsa had a funky sweet taste to it, which after some closer inspection, had tiny bubbles percolating throughout. In my experience, this indicates that it has spoiled. Unfortunately I had two bites before realizing this horror. I am eagerly awaiting the weight loss although I'm not too excited about the night in the bathroom or the head/body aches. If you are needing to drop a few pant sizes or make weight, by all means eat here. If you are looking for anything resembling good food, try anywhere else. read more

The food is good here and it's authentic. And when a native LA person can call a Nor Cal Mexican food restaurant authentic, you better believe it8^D...lol I was satisfied with the pick-up order I took home: I ordered the chicken sopes combination plate which included beans, rice, chips and salsa. It tasted fresh and the chicken was lean and tender. I could tell by the taste of the meat that it was seasoned before they added the ingredients to complete the sopes. With that said, the entire meal was flavorful. I would give the restaurant 1 more star if there was an extra cook working since there was only 1 behind the counter. After all, it was a Saturday afternoon, which is a busy time for most restaurants in general... It's probably the reason why I had to wait 20 min for my simple order. There were 2 tables full of people waiting for food at the same time. ((If you don't want to wait and still enjoy some authentic Mexican food, I would call in the order and pick it up.)) read more

Cute family run restaurant. Only go here if you're very hungry, portions are ridiculous. Not super tasty but cheap and a lot of it. read more

La Morenita - Burrito w/ salsa verde and guacamole added. Photo doesn't do its size justice - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

Went to this based on the Yelp reviews and we were not disappointed. For lunch they bring chips, cabbage salsa, red salsa and beans (the beans come out a little later so don't eat all your chips). Definitely really good food and way less Americanized than other places. The lunch prices were excellent! $8 for a taco, enchilada, rice and beans. The green sauce they put over the enchilada and inside my beef taco was amazing! The waitress recommended that sauce and I was very happy to take her recommendation. Good price and great food! Don't judge a book by its cover. If you can find this place hiding behind the DMV on a one way street then definitely go inside and try it out. Only reason it didn't get five stars is because I thought the Horchata was watery and not very good. But I'll just get root beer next time! :) read more

I've driven past this restaurant my entire life and have never stopped in to eat here. One night, a friend suggested that we come here for dinner since it was, in her words, 'the best restaurant in Merced'. I can see why. The food is so good here! I can't believe I have never been here before. The customer service is great, price is fair, and service is speedy. Our food came out about 5 minutes after we ordered. I got the chile relleno with green sauce and it was absolutely delicious and full of flavor. I didn't even need to add my normal amount of hot sauce to the food. If you're passing by Merced on 99, this place is a must. Especially since it's conveniently located off of the freeway. I will definitely be back. read more

La Morenita - Chile Relleno with green sauce - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

Complimentary Chips (not the dips its not pico de gallo, it hotsauce blend w/ cabbage slaw for tacos sides), rice and service ... so 3 stars The rest, we had Chilli Verde, the stuff taste store bought and looks like a lot of added seasoning to hide it. And the same thing for colorado sauce, overpower with cinnimon. My partner said the same thing and wouldn't recommend it. If you travel to Fresno to eat, visit "Castillos" than you would understand why this place was ..not worth it. read more

Well heck. We have always loved this place. Service was great. Food was not good. We stop here traveling to Reno area. My guess is a different owner or cook. One star for service only. Maybe it was a bad day, as this was a place we always stopped at when we were in this area off the 99. read more

it's been years since my last visit.. today i enjoyed lunch with my beautiful mother. she ordered a chili relleno ala cart..i had a carna asada taco and grilled chicken enchilada with 1/2 green sauce 1/2 red sauce (i do those kids of gigs) anyway the food was and is DELICIOUS‼i had forgotten how delicious the food is here..give it a shot you won't be disappointed have an amazing day read more

Hole in the wall by the freeway. Lots of parking. Friendly staff. Outdoors and indoors seating. Fair prices. Didn't like that they fry their taco shells. Super yummy rice and beans. Cash and card accepted. read more

La Morenita - Chicken tacos with rice and beans. They fry their taco shells. - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

See all

Leticia and the staff were wonderful. Very welcoming and full of smiles! Guacamole dip, pork tamales, and crispy tacos were all delicious! Plus their chips are bomb! Thank you!! read more

Such a great experience, and the food was amazing. We had the wet carne asada burrito and the torta. SO BOMB. Highly recommend Young Vero with the amazing service though. We will be coming back. read more

If I could give this place zero stars I would. First off we ordered the supreme burritos. We were expecting your regular burritos with some lettuce, tomato and cheese inside. NOPE!! Just rice, beans and Carne asada inside. What a joke! I Should have ordered just that. The burrito tasted so bland. No flavor. Good thing I ordered the red salsa on the side that they usually put on top. It's really nasty! They give chips and salsa on the side. Let's just say that was my meal instead. Even the sauce was as horrid. Their cabbage salsa has no flavor. My mom makes it better!! From now on I know where to Stick with and that EL ASADERO!! I would Much rather drive to the other side of town to get a very delicious burrito than to have just a shitty one. Never coming here again. Waste of time. read more

My family is Mexican and we are from SD. We all know how hard it is sometimes to get some good Mexican food. We found this place on Google Maps and we knew that it was probably another American place with a Mexican label slapped on it. Thank god this was not the case. It wasn't like a taco place in Tijuana or SD, but for the area it's in, it's actually pretty good. The only complaint I would made would be the size of the chimichangas I ordered, but I was full from my breakfast so the small chimichangas were okay, Definitely coming back next time I'm in the area. read more

I did not like the nachos here. Dry beans! When I let the waitress know, she got upset! Like she took it personal. Hello! I'm an unhappy customer. Make it right. No she was rude and I heard her complaining in the back to another person. I was NOT rude but I asked her to fix it. When she came back I asked her if she was mad? She says "well yeah cause I have to throw that away and make a whole new one." Whaaat? Yeah- she got NO tip and only gets one star cause Yelp made me do it. Very disappointed in this place. Never again. read more

This place has undergone many renovations and passed through many owners over the years, but despite that; they still somehow manage to churn out some of the best Mexican food in all of Merced County. The waitresses are really nice here and easy to talk to in both English and Spanish and always provide outstanding customer service in a timely manner. All of the food is good here, but I'd have to say that the Albondigas(Meatball Soup) and the Fajitas are far superior to anything else that they make or sell. read more

La Morenita - Menudo - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

Great service and food. The dark salsa is a hit for me and tortilla was served warm #cheers $3.50 Corona read more

La Morenita - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

See all

One of my favorite Mexican places to go to. I love the cabbage salsa. I can't think of a time I've ever been disappointed.

If you want truly authentic mexican food artfully prepared this is the best. Tereso the Chef is the master.Veronica is very nice and also Cristina is too. This is not a upscale restaurant but a truly hidden gem. We can't wait to come back again and again. read more

Be warned, this is technically authentic, but the worst I've ever had. I had high hopes because of the reviews, but honestly the more I think about it, I think that it's mainly from people that have never had good authentic Mexican food. read more

I just love their shrimp cocktail. It is made in a large goblet with chopped avocados, cucumbers, onions in a tomato, clam, lime spicy juice. The shrimp are large, plentiful, crisp not soft & soggy. With a Margarita and this you almost do not need a main entree. Very good. My one reason to return to Merced!! Owned by the same owners of Florencio's but more of a small hole in the wall. I like La Morenita much better than Florencio's. When I brought my team to Florencio's we waited forever for everything. The staff ran around like they were disorganized. read more

Came here for a birthday lunch for the first time because of all the good reviews. Maybe it was an off day, but our experience was terrible. She had a chicken quesadilla and I had the chicken burrito supreme. Both dishes had chicken that tasted like it had been baked two days earlier and was sitting in the refrigerator as leftovers. Extremely dry with an unfresh taste. The Verde sauce was also unbelievably salty and bitter. Aside from the food, the benches outside were very uncomfortable. Our server took approximately 15 minutes to pick up a prominently displayed credit card for payment. Overall, not great. I felt like our time and money were wasted. You only get one chance to make a first impression. I'll stick with some of the more reliable places in town. read more

Simply delicious authentic Mexican food, friendly helpful service, and received a complementary nacho appetizer for being first timers and mentioning we found them on Yelp. We will definitely hit them up again on our way home from Yosemite. read more

La Morenita - Molcajete - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

First visit in years as the seats were horrific. Food is good, chili relleno very good, David likes avocado dip for than I do (too much lemon bite), horchata is delicious. My tongue was burning by the end of the meal but I darn near licked the plate. $22 bill. Closed. Sob. read more

One of the better places in Merced. Quiet and friendly. The outside doesn't compare to the inside! Free chips, beans, and cabbage salsa. I ordered a veggie burrito it was amazing. My husband ordered carne asada tacos and said the meat was really good! read more

La Morenita - Carne asada tacos - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

I've been coming to this place since I was 8 years old the food is always amazing and the service is beyond exceptional. The 25 years I've been coming here this very time I was served a tamale that was spoiled. I let the waiter know and he quickly discarded it and offered my something else. Although I really wanted a tamale I went with the soupe combo and it was phenomenal. I would have given 5 stars but the tamale was a big disappointment but over all of that I still recommend eating here you will not be disappointed. read more

See all

The food is the best I've had in any Mexican restaurant. I traveled to this place from Sacramento, a 90 minute drive. It was well worth it. First, I can't say enough good things about the staff. They are extremely friendly and they treat you like family. They explain the food down to the very detail if you have questions. Everything from the salsa to the deep fried ice cream is out of this world. I love the Molcajete. As another reviewer stated it was "out of sight". Please don't order a "Bean and Cheese Burrito" get something authentic and don't be scared because it will be delicious!!! read more

Good mix of seafood and mexican food. We had the shrimp fajitas which they had really good flavor. The shrimp cocktail was not amazing but decent. I would add some tapatio to bring the flavor out. read more

La Morenita - Shrimp cocktail - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

See all

Rice and beans are supposed to be the foundation of mexican food right? Maybe it salsa. Either way! Everything tasted super yummy and flavorful. Staff is friendly. Great location too! read more

Great food an excellent service. Steak ala Mexicana was the bomb.. great flavors wish I had taken a picture of my plate. Big portions for the price. read more

I love this place! I ate here once but almost walked away cause the place looks kinda scary. The waitresses were nice and very attentive to whatever you needed and the place was clean. My boyfriend got the chilaquiles and i had the molcaquete and i loved both dishes they have really great taste with a bit of spice to it! After that i was hooked i ate there like three times in a week but i had to stop cause i can only afford so much lol read more

La Morenita - Chilaquiles are the best! You guys have to try them! - Mexican Near Me - Merced, California

See all

I ordered a Chimichanga with guacamole and avocado slices. The rice and beans were pretty good, but the avocado had no flavor what so ever. It literally tasted like water, even my girlfriend didn't like it. And the guacamole that was on top of my chimichanga was already turning black, looked like it was from the night before. I ate here at 12 so I don't think it would turn black in 4 hours if it was from today. The appetizers were good too! Just fix your avocados because they ruined my plate, couldn't finish it. read more

This place is amazing. Their salsa is delicious as is their cabbage/jalapeño salsa. I basically get one of two dishes when I go, either the pollo a la parilla or the molcajete. Both of them are delicious! read more

Wow, such delicious rice and beans!! I had the chimichangas and they were so good, I'm totally satisfied, this place is delicious. I like the funny radio station that was on. read more

Amazing, hearty, delicious Mexican food. Next to the DMV. Just wonderful. I went here for breakfast with my mom and brother. I got the nopales with eggs, beans and rice. Very good. The burrito my brother had was good too. Cheap prices too only 30$ for 3 meals and 3 drinks. Would recommend. read more

The good was so good! Tastes so authentic which is what I look for at mexican joints. From outside it looks pretty sketch but once inside you are greeted with a friendly smile and great food. They have a good amount of variety and the food is tasty. The portions here are awesome and worth the price. Last time I went I got ceviche tostadas and they were to die for. Definitely a place to visit. read more

Best Mexican food by far in Merced! The service is great and omg the food is wonderful!

This is a nice family owned restaurant. They have good customer service, but the food is only okay.