When we lived in San Diego this was the #1 spot! Down for a visit and we HAD to stop in. The carnitas are on point, and everything else is good as hell too. Can't miss with the carne aside burrito and when in Cali you have to get the California burrito because no where else does it right. read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant is a hidden gem that delivers quality, flavor, and heart. Run by a warm and welcoming family--Robert, Mehri, and their son Adonis Bahrami--this spot stands out for its fresh ingredients and homemade feel. Robert is very friendly and he even offered us free chips. The love they put into every dish is evident, making it far from your typical fast-food Mexican joint. Favorites include the Fish Burrito, Surf and Turf burrito, fish tacos, and the chicken enchiladas, which are generously filled and packed with flavor. The fish burrito (made with tilapia) is light and fresh, and the option to choose grilled or breaded fish is a rare treat. The crispy tortilla and bold flavors elevate the experience. Service is impressively fast--orders are often ready well before the estimated time--and the prices are very reasonable. The restaurant is clean, well-decorated, and has a friendly, community vibe where regulars are remembered and warmly greeted. Whether dining in or ordering delivery, Ray's offers a consistently delightful experience. The horchata is a great add-on, and the atmosphere makes you want to return again and again. We will come here soon again with my whole family. read more

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I've been here twice. Both times extremely great experience. I bring my family here and they absolutely love it. The breakfast burrito is amazing. Enchiladas were great and even after we insisted, he didnt let us pay for my 3 year olds taco. Amazing experience. If you want good food with ACTUAL customer service that's good. Come here. I'm always hoping my family's in the mood for this place after church. 10/10 hands down. The food is always top notch. I can't say enough good things about the owner and this establishment. read more

Ordered the abongdigas soup Togo and it was a solid choice. The guy was super nice and gave me a complimentary soda for the long wait. read more

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I love Ray's, and we can't get enough! The $19.99 carnitas family meal is serious bang for your buck. The rolled tacos are fresh, crispy, meaty, and delicious every time. And the carne asada fries, don't even get me started. While they aren't the biggest carne asada fries, they stuff the box box to the brim, and they DO NOT skimp on the carne. I'd love for them to add a third, extra spicy salsa, but maybe that's just me. Don't sleep on this little taco shop next to a Laundromat. Enjoy my friends! read more

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Ordered for pick up and they finish in a timely manner. Always kind. Ordered the pozoles twice and I really like it. Can't even remember the item I've ordered because I like their pozoles. Enough for two people but I'm greedy; all mine. read more

I ordered today for catering and I would highly recommend it- you'll never disappoint!! I talked to Robert, he was happy to explain the menu, helped with suggestions and offered some treat for testing. I wish took a pic of the fish tacos, they were so good!! Will definitely use them for business again. read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - Rice, Beans, taquitos or flautas, tortillas, fajitas and more. - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

Carne asada fries were very delicious!! Def recommend, I would post a picture but I demolished the plate

I been coming here for years hands down best tilapia plate. Bobby and his family are great i recommend one hundred percent read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - Best tilapia plate in san diego - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

First thing you will love is the owner. He is such a lovely and kind man. Then you'll get your food and fall even more in love with this place. Great tortillas, quality ingredients, and amazing flavor! We will be returning for sure! read more

Breakfast burrito with potato, rice, beans, eggs, cheese. Eggs cooked perfectly. The beans are packed with flavor, and I'm hesitant to add beans to breakfast burrito, but I trusted the chef. The rice through me off, but worked well and added that extra starch flavor. Red salsa is mild-hot and compliments burrito. read more

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Just an okay place. Not amazing, but not bad either. I got the Quesadilla with carne asada. The meat was really good and they gave me a lot, but they skimped out on the amount of cheese inside. Kinda weird considering most places do the opposite. The overcooked my tortilla too because parts of it were really hard and inedible. What I didn't like was the guacamole. It was just avocado and I could tell by the taste that it wasn't very fresh. I hate getting nonfresh ingredients especially when I'm paying extra for it. The salsa also wasn't my favorite. Even if I'm in the area, I probably wouldn't come back here. It's a decent place, but nothing that made me go "wow!" Although the food as leftovers wasn't bad. read more

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If I could do negative stats, I would. Taco Bell is more authentic than this place. I have never had worst Mexican food. I was craving some beef tamales and I got some store bought, frozen, ground beef tamales. Covered in cheese and canned enchilada sauce. What?! A, no where in the menu does it say it's going to be drenched in this sauce. B, if I wanted frozen tamales I could have gone to 7/11. C, I also ordered a chile relleno meal with rice and beans. No rice and beans were in my order. The chile relleno was also covered in cheese and that canned enchilada sauce. Not a Chile relleno. Who made these recipes and called Mexican food? Do not go here, go literally anywhere else. read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - Chile relleno - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

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I wish I could share the excitement in my husband face overtime we agree to come here. Its ran by the sweetest couple, that put so much love into every dish and It's definitely not your typical fast food Mexican restaurant. You get good quality and freshness of every ingredient. We always get the surf and turf burrito, and tacos. This time we tried the chicken enchilada with had so much flavor and filled with lots of chicken. The restaurant is also super clean and decorated well. I love everything about this place. Thank you Rays for the best food. read more

The food is good! It's tasty full of flavor. Just yummy. They have really good churros too

Great food! I ordered a #5 Beef burrito-just well-seasoned shredded beef in a soft, warm flour tortilla. Beef taco-all of the right ingredients. Rice-oh my, I could eat this all day. Beans-flavorful. I really enjoyed this. Reducing calories it was atypical of me to go out for Mexican food, but so glad I chose Ray's. Try the green salsa! Parking lot. Indoor seating. Delivery for orders of $20. read more

I'm from Austin, where we do breakfast tacos, so I'm skeptical about breakfast burritos. We ordered 5 of them from Ray's, and I'm not sure I can ever look at our puny breakfast tacos again the same way. Carry-out was super fast with fantastic friendly service. The bag felt like a 25 pound kettleball that nearly pulled my arm out of socket, and I realized this was going to be too much food. The burritos here are massive. Like, split a couple for a family of five, massive. Even better, they are shockingly delicious. Tortillas are flawless, and every bite tastes incredible. Our breakfast burritos ended up being breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the day. Ray's served up some of the best food we had on our entire trip to San Diego, and it was definitely the best value. Absolutely highest recommendation, and I can't wait to come back some day. read more

This is the best Mexican in San Diego. Homemade food with flavors like no where else. Very casual dining and the owners always take care of their customers. I love the vibes and the plants! If you are looking for a new taco shop - look no further. Get their surf and turf burrito. It is the best. Next time I want to try the carnitas special! read more

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The food is delicious. Truly authentic Mexican. The vibe is peaceful. The owner is such a Goodman I've seen him feed the homeless numerous times. I love this place. read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - #3 cheese enchiladas chicken taco combo. - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

Mom and pop vibe, very humble... but the food was tasty, very inexpensive, and the mom and pop in question were really friendly and made me feel welcome there. It's one of those places that could pop up on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives... as a dive... but in the best possible way. read more

I walked four blocks further than usual in my NP neighborhood to try this place bc I was disappointed with the Mexican food closest to me. I will now be returning every time. The food was delicious. The salsas were so good! I usually prefer red salsa but wow their green salsa was excellent. But what synched my loyalty was the kindness of the owner and you can tell their business model is of good old fashioned love for food and community. ALSO, they have fresh soups DAILY!! Yasss read more

Stopped by at Ray's for take out, the place is centrally located and at a very fair price for San Diego. The food was ready by the time I got there. There's a small parking lot in the plaza. The carne asada nachos were loaded, they add both nacho cheese and shredded cheese and a good amount of asada. They are $10.99 and were very good, would definitely come back for these. The shrimp enchiladas were really good too, the food tasted very similar to Colima's. They also add a good amount of shrimp and they were $12.50. I would definitely come back here. read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - Carne Asada Nachos - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

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I can't say enough good things about this restaurant and the family that owns it. I've been coming here for nearly 20 years. I don't live in the area but I still make the drive from time to time because the food is delicious! Went in today and me and the owner chatted while my order was being made. He always asks how my daughter is seeing as I went there originally when I was pregnant lol. We talked about how much the world had changed since Covid for everyone, how expensive things were and how tight money was lately. Well when it came time to pay he REFUSED to let me do so! He has such a big heart and really cares about his customers. Little acts of kindness like this help restore my faith in humanity. Thank you!! read more

My Machaca burrito was scrambled eggs tossed on top of shredded beef; no onions, no bell peppers.

Great burritos got a carne asada one with red sauce and it was delicious! Good portion size and price. Staff was friendly too and restaurant is casual and clean. read more

Ray's is awesome and really inexpensive. I love the veggie supreme burrito! We often grab something to go and take it to Pure Project a couple doors down. read more

Came here for a late night California burrito, and it did not disappointed. This is a good Mexican spot located in North park, near some of the breweries and attractions on the Northern end of the neighborhood. We ordered a California burrito and it was pretty decent. Came with everything that we expected and was a pretty decent size. For $8.99, it was good value for late Sunday night. They have some cool artwork around the inside! Go check them out. read more

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I've gone twice to Ray's. Food has been a 7/10 at best. But it levels up... The food not stellar, but not terrible. It will hit the spot and then some. When you order their fries, they do mix the cheese with the fries and not JUST on top. That's quality prep right there. Ambiance is also average. Nothing stands out. What stands out above all that makes this restaurant is the service. Owners and workers are unbelievably friendly. Owner was just so pleased that I gave them tip that he offered more food. There's a smile that's sincere in each time I've gone. I think that's why the food just hits a 11/10 read more

I've been coming to Ray's Mexican Restaurant since 2017 and it never disappoints! Everything I've eaten here is phenomenal -- the chilaquiles verdes are packed with flavor, the rice tastes so authentic, the rolled tacos amazing and the caldo de pollo hits the spot. Ray himself is truly a ray of positive energy; it's always a pleasure to see him and feel so welcomed. This place is consistently amazing and one of my favorite spots in town! read more

Service was INCREDIBLE! Employees were so sweet and caring, made dietary accommodations and gave great recommendations as well! Food was amazing, had the Carne Asada, Garlic Shrimp, and Tilapia. Definitely going to come back! Restaurant felt very homey and welcoming as well. read more

My partner and I loved finding Ray's! We've been searching for a spot that has bean, rice and cheese burritos and immediately found our go to spot here! We've experienced really great customer service each time we've come in, and the food is great. As I mentioned, we were looking for a bean, rice and cheese burrito since it's not a common combination we've found since moving to San Diego. The burrito size is generous and it's ratio throughout the burrito was awesome (all of the ingredients were evenly distributed and there was a good amount of cheese to hold everything together!). The flavors of the beans and rice are great, as well as their tortillas, not to mention their salsas are delicious and a great compliment to the food. The parking lot is shared with multiple businesses, so parking can be a little hit or miss, but there's usually street parking close by. Ray's is a must try if you're in the area and looking for a great dining experience! read more

What wonderful service and delicious food. Very fresh, crispy and flavorful. Two types of salsa and did I say the owners are so nice. Yes their are other places for tacos but it should also include the vibe and service. 5 stars Ray. Thank you so much read more

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My Aunt and Uncle took me and my cousin here today for lunch and we had a spectacular experience. We tried the rolled tacos - one each chicken, beef and potato. I have never had a potato taco before, and I'm here to say I can't wait to go back. These would also make great appetizers. The chips and guac were also fresh and tasty. And the enchiladas were amazing. We had some churro's for dessert which were just exceptional. Light, fluffy and not greasy in the least with a huge helping of delicious cinnamon sugar. This place is very low key, but clean, friendly, awesome service and a casual spot for lunch or an amazing business for catering. We are so lucky that my Aunt and Uncle introduced this gem to us. Clearly this will be a family favorite for years to come!!! read more

I came here for the Surf and Turf Burrito and Fish Tacos. Reasonably priced food at Rays, and the burritos and fish tacos are out of this world. Nice clean restaurant with nice employees. Tacos and food is so good here, you just want to float in space lol. read more

Stopped in while doing laundry next door. Great little hole in the wall. The owner was working the counter super friendly. Ordered the rolled tacos and they were better than some other places I've been to. I asked for the hottest salsa and he gave me The habanero salsa..... it did not disappoint. I will defiantly be back to try some other items on the menu. read more

Meh. We stopped by on two separate occasions, because we were doing laundry next door and needed quick and cheap sustenance. I would not describe our first visit as "quick". We ordered two Carne Asada burritos with sour cream and waited 45 minutes for them to come out. There was a lady there complaining that she'd been waiting over an hour for her fish tacos order (side note - I would've just gotten a refund and left at that point...unless it was like a vendetta for her at that point.) The burrito was decent - they didn't skimp on the meat or the sour cream (always an extra cost). But, I couldn't get past the 45 minute wait for two burritos. And not even an apology or free drink for the wait, either! And and! Groups that came in after us (and after the poor fish taco lady) ordered, ate, cleaned up and left in the time that it took for us to get our meal. We'd agreed to forgo Ray's in the future, but none of the other options tickled our fancy on the next laundry visit, so into Ray's we went once again. This time, the wait to pick up wasn't terrible, it was the wait to pay. It doesn't seem like they can get that part figured out. On this trip, I ordered the rolled tacos, and my husband went with the carne asada burrito again. The tacos were not good. The meat tasted almost spongy - and had that same consistency - and not even the cheese and guacamole could help it be better. So again, after that trip, we've declared: never again. read more

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Yo this spot hit the spot. The burrito was the right level of naughtiness without being too greasy, flavors superb and with the red sauce? You betta stop. Pretty cute on the inside too. Will def be going back read more

Ray's Mexican Restaurant - Carne asada burrito - Mexican Near Me - San Diego, California

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Ok listen this place has the BEST potato rolled tacos!!! I think it's the tortillas they use-- so crispy and fresh. I didn't love the black beans in the vegetarian burrito that I got last time. This time I tried the refried beans (they said they have no lard) and they were pretty good. If I get a burrito next time I will definitely get the refried beans over the black. But again, the rolled tacos are a MUST! read more

Love coming here, especially when I go to Pure Project down the street, because the food is delicious. Tons of menu options, including plenty of vegetarian options. The red hot sauce has a nice kick to it and pairs really well with the burritos. The service is fast, and the people that run it are very kind and friendly. There are also a few tables inside if you want to dine in, which is nice. read more

I had the Carnitas Special last week and what an experience! It was like a theme park for my mouth. The quantity and quality of the meal was more than I could have asked for. Everything tasted well seasoned and fresh, especially the pork. Not only do I recommend this spot, but I will be a repeat customer! read more