By far the best Mexican Food place in Santee. There Salsa and Chips are the bomb!! One of the reason why I go here. Great service and and nice atmosphere for the kids.. read more

We used to frequent their restaurant in San Marcos until they closed. Since we were in Santee we thought we'd see how this place compared to what we remembered. Kind of disappointed. Salsa and chips were still great. We ordered the Taco and Relleno combo. Taco's were great as we remembered, however the Relleno's had more egg batter than pepper. It seemed as though they were pre-made. it was a definite disappointment. Service was so-so for not being that busy. When we finished the waiter dropped off the bill and left. Other parties in the restaurant had their waiter take the bill up to the cashier. We ended up having to go up to the cashier as the waiters were hanging out talking with the cashier. Needless to say, we won't be returning here. We'll try the main store in La Mesa the next time we're out in east county. read more

Sorry....the food was mediocre at best. I prefer either Miguel's Cocina, Casa De Pico or El Torito for this type of food. However we had no problems with the service. read more

Visited on a Saturday night about 7:00; thought it would be crazy busy but we were seated right away and lots of empty tables. I ordered the Huevos Rancheros which were great! My date ordered a chicken taco, rice and beans which he polished off. All of the waiters and bussers were very friendly and attentive and we also had the mariachi sing us La Bamba. I've eaten at the El Cajon restaurant many times but I prefer the food at Santee. You also get the standard chips and salsa but as an extra touch a little bean dip. I need to go back and try the margaritas! read more

Meh- the food here is super greasy and doesn't have much flavor to it. Overpriced for the quality of food. The atmosphere is not much to write home about, sticky tables and crowded. The only reason this place does such great business is that it's the only sit down Mexican restaurant with margaritas in Santee. Santee is full of old white folks who love margaritas, so there you go. Go to casa de pico instead. read more

Absolutely love this place! My favorite is their Carne Asada plate. My hubby and I love this place for authentic Mexican food. They've got some great Margaritas too! Always fast, friendly service... I recommend it to anyone who loves Mexican food..... read more

Food taste good but service is terrible! I have been coming here I would say once every 3 months for the last 2 years and today was my last. I ordered the carne asada nachos and for just nachos which I would have been ok with if he just remade them instead I got told I ordered nachos not carne asada nachos which clearly on the menu it says carne asada nachos. We needed our check split and it was like pulling teeth. The guy was just so rude! I will never be back! read more

I used to go here when I was a kid growing up in santee and I have good memories. I went back recently and it's a different vibe... mostly because it is way too bright! It was seriously hurting my eyes. It used to be a dimly lit place with traditional music, and lighting especially can affect the whole mood of a place for me. Idk, the food was alright but the service was so-so (they never brought our waters). Seriously, turn off those godawful overhead lights and the atmosphere will improve tremendously. read more

Came here for Albondiga soup, was really good. Friendly staff and very nice, we will come back for sure.

One of if not the best-rated restaurants in Santee on Yelp, I was shocked at how much of a throwback to yellow-cheese-and-bean Mexican this was. I thought those were killed off in the 90's, but this fossil retains that and more. Not terrible, but I expect more from Mexican these days. A rare clank from Yelp. read more

I am giving 2 stars because i didn't actually eat the food, do can't say if it was good or not. The salsa was extremely salty and the margarita i ordered was supposed to be a frozen mango but was watery with large chunks of ice that wouldn't go through the straw. My boyfriend had a regular margarita that was very salty also. We told a member of the staff we did not want them and did not bother to order any food. The waiter was not the most friendly and i watched him seat a group next to us by tossing their menus in a stack on the table and walk away...which is what we did... read more

I would have once upon a time given this place 4 or 5 stars because it used to be very good. The past few times that I went was average food, but to expensive to be average food. Then the last time we went here my daughter says "oh they recycle their chips & salsa here" and I thought that she was being paranoid until I read other reviews saying the same thing. THAT IS SOOOOO GROSS!!! We found a soggy chip in the salsa and a wet chip in the bowl. I try to be a rational woman saying that maybe they dripped the salsa over the chips by mistake or a chip fell in the salsa on its way out to us. I cant get it out of my mind enough to ever eat here again ohh barf! read more

Never, ever again! We didn't have a good experience here tonight. Long wait for our meals, cold food and no apology from our server or management. :-( My personal experience: I ordered flautas; they were hot on the outside and almost frozen on the inside! Yuck! Our waiter was syrupy sweet until I told him my food was cold - then all of the sudden he started acting like a jerk and treated me like I did something wrong. He didn't even offer to "fix" the situation and told me it'd be about 15 minutes before he could do anything about it when I asked if he could have the kitchen redo my order. By that time we had already waited almost an hour for our meals and I just wanted to get out of there! I've never sent a meal back and left an establishment before but I did on this occasion. read more

The food was ok. It took about half an hour to get it and we were stuck in the back corner like a forgotten kleenex. The waiter was inattentive to say the least. This place is now on my DNR list. If you want just "ok" mexican food with terrible service then I suggest you come here. read more

ate there a few times with my hubby who is Mexican and didn't like it....I thought it was ok - but now it's closed due to vermin infestation...as of 4-30-2014. It's family owned so I'm sure other locations may have the same issue. ver·min [vur-min] Show IPA noun, plural ver·min. noxious, objectionable, or disgusting animals collectively, especially those of small size that appear commonly and are difficult to control, as flies, lice, bedbugs, cockroaches, mice, and rats. read more

Went here recently with my 6 year old daughter. Male employees kept coming to our table to see her. That was ok at first, but it became inappropriate when one of the men kissed her on her forehead, then touched her face. Another man tried tickling her, touching her stomach. Another picked up her stuffed animals and hugged them to tease her. I'm sure they meant no harm or disrespect, but it made us all, especially her, very uncomfortable. I had to move her to the inside of the booth to keep her out of reach. I think they got the hint; we didn't know what else to do, having never been in that situation before I didn't know what to say. So a note to the management/owner, it's best not to touch people's children! read more

Just found this place a few weeks ago and came back for a second time. I'm a sucker for a good happy hour and I have found it at Marietas. I love the relaxed vibe. The salsa is good. The chips are good. The food is good. This place is for Mexican food lovers. I have grown up on Mexican food and find this place a solid place to enjoy the food I can eat everyday with pleasure. read more

I went to Marieta's for my sister-in-law's birthday last night. My brother made a reservation two days in advance. The tables were not ready when promised. The service was slow. My shrimp fajitas had shrimp that looked like they were previously canned or frozen. Their salsa was too mild for me. I'll take La Fachada in Barrio Logan anytime over this restaurant. read more

Meal after meal, this place takes care of it. I love the carnitas plate and the chips and salsa are great! The margaritas are a unique recipe and are excellent. read more

When I come to visit my sister, I like to come here. The food is delicious and comes out fast. The servers are very attentive and use a team approach to ensure everyone in the restaurant is taken care of. read more

I love this place. Probably my #1 choice for going out. Really. The service is always fantastic, its clean, and the food is A-mazing. You can't go wrong. read more

Went for happy hour but the only special was lime margaritas for 4.95. No food. Bartender was cranky. Our first and last visit. read more

alright...i enjoy this place greatly. however, i will only go there on sunday's for champagne brunch...as long as luis is my server. you are going to be feeling really toasty by the end of brunch...this guy is all about the refills. he's been working there for over ten years so he knows what he's doing and is fast and very friendly. if you're in a group of people getting your party on, he will probably fuck with you...when we took my mother-in-law there for the first time, luis ended up feeding her and making airplane noises. good times. their salsa is super tasty. they have a lot of vegetarian breakfast options which is lovely. the avocado omelette is scrumptious. i don't eat meat but my friends say that the machaca and the chorizo are also a good choice. try it out...have a drunken good time. read more

Great place! My family enjoys dining at Marieta's. When we arrive, we are always served warm chips and fabulous salsa. Sometimes the food takes awhile, however we always have a full basket of chips and yummy salsa to keep us happy, The margaritas are delicious (a lil on the strong side). My kids love their beans. The kids meals are a bit small, so I opt for a side of beans with tortillas and make my kiddos burritos for them. We will return in the future. read more

My family and I have been going to this location for 25+ years. Over the last year it has been fast declining. Our latest visit put me over the edge of never going back. It breaks my heart. The service, food quality, and overall experience fails revisiting. The margaritas lack in alcohol, the portions have been greatly reduced...They charged us for 4 extra cherry's in our granddaughters birthday Shirley Temple...really? I'm saddened that I have to write this review...Shame on you Marieta's :( read more

Very good food and great service from a staff that really works hard and cares about their customers. The salsa is the best in town. They need a bigger restaurant. read more

It was clean and the staff was friendly. Their food was not very good. We ordered a fondue appetizer with chorizo and it looked like they took a chunk of cheese and microwaved it and threw chorizo on top. Their chips are salsa we're good though. read more

Just wanted to say a great Mexican restaurant to eat on of the best Mexican restaurants in santee the Chili Verde is off the walls we get two of them we come here ones a week great food and great people read more

I've been here a couple times now, each time I've been I've had a good experience, nothing spectacular, but good. Our most recent visit was on Cinco de Mayo, and as you would expect it was busy. The wait was longer than they stated, but again that was expected considering the day. Once we were seated we ordered our pitcher of margaritas, they were around $16 per pitcher, and were delicious. We had the enchilada suizas and they were really good too. I'll definitely be back for more! read more

One of my favorite Mexican restaurants around. Their salsa is incredible and the way reason I go back. This location has better service than others in san Diego and the staff are incredibly friendly and accomodating. The food is good, nothing to rave about but the chips/salsa make up for it! read more

Food was OK. Service was OK. Didn't have any weird problems with chips or salsa, all the ones we got were fresh and extremely hot fresh chips. Fajitas were good. Not my favorite but it's close and cheap. read more

I love Marieta's, the chips and salsa are free and the best I've ever had hands down. They make a great margarita, and everything on the menu is de-lish. Great selection, including a champagne brunch menu. Staff is fun and efficient. Ask for Luis! read more

We love this place! Close to home, great prices, SUPER service, food is perfect...can't say much else. It is "cozy" in that you will be sitting close to others, but it's pretty noisy so nobody pays attention to your conversations. So not the best for a romantic meal, but for fun, yes. We come for dinner and Sunday brunch. read more

Love this place. I don't know about any of the other locations but the Santee one is a family favorite. Never had a bad meal here. Service is fast and polite. I definitely recommend for a great sit down Mexican restaurant. Also the chips and salsa are practically a meal in them selves. read more

Food was really, really good. We didn't get there till like 8:15, so there were only a few people dining. Surprised that the service was slower than usual, and server didn't check on us and took awhile to bring our bill and cash us out. But food was worth the wait. read more

Been here two times and after tonights experience, it will be my last. Just really mediocre Mexican food. My friend had the barbacoa for $13.50. 50% of it was inedible due to the gristle and fat. I would have sent it back but the waiter never came back to check on us and my friend didn't want to complain. I had the arroz con pollo. DISGUSTING! If I had wanted stir-fried green bell peppers, onions, and a few chunks of dried out meat, I would have gone out for Chinese. Seriously, I thought arroz con pollo was yellow (with saffron)?!?!?!? I would have given 1-star but they were kind enough to take off 30% of the meal, so thanks. read more

We drive all the way from escondido to go to this restaurant. The service is always awesome and the food is arguably the best Mexican in San Diego. My husband and I have ate at a TON of Mexican restaurants and this is still out favorite. We are a little snobby when it comes to Mexican restaurants since we live in San Diego and there are so many so choose from. Even our almost 2 year old daughter approves of the food, and for all of us parents we know that's a miracle in itself! Lol we have been going for over 3 years and will continue to drive from North Escondido with out a doubt! read more

My son and I went there a few weeks ago. We loved that the chips were not only served with salsa, but also beans. That was a hit with my 13 year old. He said this is his new favorite restaurant based soley on that fact. read more

This place isn't fancy but its got a clean and comfortable interior and has a true old school Mexican restaurant feel. What really shines though is the food. Great chips and salsa (that is frequently refilled), good drinks and healthy portions of quality Mexican food served with a smile, at reasonable prices. You can't go wrong! read more

I grew up in this place all my life my god fathers part owner, ive always loved there food and service. Kinda went bad when my family moved from santee up to murrieta cause my father stopped being the best bartender in murrieta (jose who had worked for 13 plus years). i love this place so much it brings great old and new memories. i deffinatly take 45mins-1hr drive just to eat and have a good time there. :) my fave place to eat while im visiting dago!! read more