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    Surfin' Chicken Grill

    4.2 (240 reviews)
    InexpensiveMexican, Barbeque, Seafood
    Open 10:00 am - 5:00 pm

    Order Surfin' Chicken Grill Takeout or Delivery

    Surfin' Chicken Grill Photos

    Business Info

    SURFIN' CHICKEN GRILL ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

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    BEST CHICKEN AROUND TOWN! I had the Carne Asada and 1/2 Chicken plate, and I couldn't get enough of it! The chicken was juicy and made a great combo with rice and beans. Portions are BIG and definitely worth your Dollar! HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT TO ANYONE IN THE AREA.

    Surfing' Chicken.
    Kyle F.

    I wanted to love this place. Tucked into a sun-faded strip mall off the 5, somewhere between the forgotten promise of Southern California and the smell of old brake pads, sits Surfin' Chicken--a place that whispers "family-owned" and "hard-earned" the moment you step in. The sign out front is probably older than some of the customers. The inside? Sparse. Worn. A little sad. But I don't judge a burrito by the furniture. My colleague, bless his smug burrito-wielding soul, walked into the office earlier holding what smelled like Mexico wrapped in foil. Grilled chicken, peppers, spices--before he even cracked the seal, it punched the air like a mariachi band on a mission. I was sold. I needed that burrito like a man crawling through the desert needs water. So I drove. Past five other burrito joints I already know and trust. Why? Because hope is a hell of a drug. At the counter, a woman chopped chicken with surgical precision, mixing it with beans, peppers, cilantro--doing the work. I watched as the tortilla betrayed her with a crack. And instead of mailing it in and wrapping the damage in foil, she tossed it, fired up a new one, and rebuilt the thing from scratch. That's not fast food. That's pride. Thirteen bucks out the door. Pricey, but that's the world we live in now. I took it back to the office like it was the Holy Grail. And then I bit into it. And nothing happened. No explosion of flavor. No punch of spice. No joy. It was as if someone had gone to the trouble of making a burrito, then removed all evidence of seasoning and soul before serving it. It wasn't bad. But that was the problem. It wasn't anything. There are few culinary sins greater than blandness--especially when all signs pointed to greatness. I wanted to give this place five stars. I wanted to be its champion. But food is about memory, about moment--and this one left me with nothing. Three stars. One for the effort. One for the tortilla re-do. And one for the ghost of a burrito that might've been.

    Asada Quesadilla

    came in on my 30 min lunch, Karen was kind enough to take my order also made the food and did not disappoint !

    Half Chicken Plate with added small side of pinto beans
    lisa j.

    I was looking for a quick bite before going to the San Clemente outlets and saw Surfin' Chicken Grill on Yelp. What a great recommendation for lunch. It is less than a 5 min drive from the outlets and close to the freeway. Nice size parking lot, dining space inside and outside the restaurant. It is a small shop inside a dying strip mall, but don't let that dissuade you from going. I got the half chicken and a small side of pinto beans. The total was about $14. The fresh roasted chicken, they drizzle a yummy garlic sauce on chicken before serving, came with 4 corn tortillas, a tiny cup of salsa (could have used more, but they charge for extra), some lettuce and guacamole. Chicken was flavorful though the breast meat was a little dry so the garlic drizzle and salsa helped a lot in the tacos I made. Will come again when I return to the area.

    Salmon plate
    Vince A.

    First of all, the food and selection of food here is actually really good. I had a fish burrito and the family got chicken and salmon. Everything was delicious! For my first visit here ever, service was slow (very slow). I'm only giving a higher rating because I enjoyed the food. When we got here it was almost noon and the employee informed us that there was a delay on the chicken being ready. It ended up taking 30 minutes for our orders to get to us either way without chicken items. Maybe this was a bad day for the store, but some lady who ordered after me kept asking the staff about her order. Yikes. Luckily for them, we're patient people. I wouldn't definitely come back because of the food, but if the service is always slow like today I will let you guys know.

    Surfin Chicken Burrito

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    Chicken is perfectly cooked. The portions are good size quintessential rotisserie chicken with all the sauces. Tasty.

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    4 months ago

    Had the chicken bowl for the first time. Great presentation, and high quality chicken. I loved it!

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    6 months ago

    My favorite chicken place. Super affordable. Sweet workers. Always feel great after. 10/10

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    7 months ago

    We loved our experience!! The food was absolutely delicious! So fresh and flavorful. 100% would recommend

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    1 year ago

    The food was excellent easy to get to during lunch hour. Everyone was there was friendly and their lunch special was amazing.

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    2 years ago

    Oh Yes. Very Excited. Food very good. So happy. Service. Ambiance. Right. After Big day.

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    Brussels Bistro

    4.4
    (484 reviews)
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    Second visit at Brussels Bistro and both times were solid. Perfect spot if you're looking for a…read moregood list of Belgian beers, both bottled and on tap. Food is also great. It's tough to find good mussels with a very of sauce options but they've got that covered for you here. First visit, I had the White Beer sauce and that was fantastic. It was just the right amount of beer to not be overpowering. Second visit, I had the Garlic and Crème and wow - if you like garlic, this is an excellent choice. Creamy, garlicky, but again not overpowering. My toddler had the chicken breast plate and luckily it was a hit for her (of course the fries more than anything else). The chicken breast was moist and tender, so that made this an easy choice. Brussels Bistro is now becoming a must visit when in San Clemente - can't wait to go back!

    Came on a weekend afternoon. Was able to find street parking a block away pretty quickly. Street…read moreparking was not metered and free on Avenida Del Mar. Place was not busy when we arrived. They had a few tables. They originally wanted to seat us inside, but we requested the open window seat. Our waiter tried to sell us wine when we sat down. We ordered the Creamy Chicken with Ratatouille for $29 and Steak Frites with red wine sauce for $34. The Creamy Chicken was really good and fun to eat with the puff pastry. The Ratatouille was alright, we were not a fan. We got the Steak Frites medium and felt like it should've tasted better. We did appreciate that we did taste the red wine. The Belgians fries were hot and crispy. They were quite generous with the salt. The decor was nice. The food was descent. The kept refilling our water without us asking which was nice. We did not like that the waiters kept rushing us to leave at the end when there were plenty of open tables. The place was packed by dinner time when we returned to the area.

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    Inside decor
    Inside decor
    Lettuce wrapped burger
    Lettuce wrapped burger
    Inside

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    Inside

    Surfin' Chicken Grill - mexican - Updated July 2026

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