ive been eating at Tenampa for 20 plus years. Food is always excellent and consistent. Everyone is so nice. Always and enjoyable experience read more

So good ! And I enjoyed the service from the server . I like fresh food and this hit the spot read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Very fresh - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

We stumbled across this place and were pleasantly surprised. The owners were extremely nice and the food was delicious. I highly recommend the creamy chipolte sauce on whatever you order. My only suggestion is they should offer a spicer salsa with the chips when you first sit down. I will definitely be back! read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Chimichanga and Enchilada Combo with the creamy chipolte sauce, absolutely delicious! - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

The food is phenomenal! The waitress was so kind, and the decor was so festive and fun. But the food is just the absolute best part, it is truly great. read more

Ordered through grubhub and food was great. Not many food delivery options in the area. Great that I am able to order through delivery service. Price and portion size were good. Many menu options and choice of proteins. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - #2 Burrito and Quesadilla Combo - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

This restaurant didn't deliver all of order, owner stated they don't have a driver and Didn't refund us at all!!! Grub hub was also awful Will never use this service again I would give a zero if Possible read more

I've been eating here for a long time. I was so heartbroken when the Brick location closed years ago, but it hasn't stopped me from going out of my way to get great Mexican at this location. It is definitely worth the extra effort because I haven't been able to find a local place to beat it. I Always order the enchiladas tricolor, enchiladas suizas, and the choriqueso. Salsa and rice and beans are tasty as well. read more

Worst Mexican food I've ever had. These people love spinach, There is spinach stuffed every where. The red sauce on the burrito buena vida is disgusting. Inside I found hardly any meat just tons of spinach. The quesadilla was also disgusting, overfilled with spinach and mushrooms, hardly no meat. Never again! read more

As good as it gets. Real authentic food with perfect portions. Waitstaff was great, and the food was brought out with perfect timing. Could not recommend this place enough. Skip the fast food/chain restaurants, try Tenampa! We'll be back!! read more

When we got there, there was just one table occupied. We weren't sure if THIS was the dinner rush, or perhaps we were just early. I've always passed by on my way to or from Lakewood, never really paying attention to any of the businesses in this strip mall. Came across it when I did an engine search for mexican fare in the neighborhood. I perused over the menu on their website and found they serve chile relleno! Brought a smile to my face, for I haven't had one of them in years, ever since I moved from California! My mind was set, I needed to come here to try it out! We were able to pick out any seat we wanted to seeing how they were so busy and all. Our waitress was fast and friendly. I really could have gone for a nice frosty margarita from the tiki bar they had in the corner, but unfortunately no liquor is served on the premises, so a cold unsweetened iced tea is what I opted for. Chips and salsa were brought over alongside our drinks. Although I must say, the chips seemed a bit stale, but that didn't stop me from chowin down on them, because their salsa was down right "bangin" for being pretty simple. I do agree with one of the other reviews, they should have that bottled if they make it themselves. For appetizers we ordered the "CHORIQUESO" - grilled mexican sausage with sliced pepper and onions with melty Monterey Jack cheese ($10.95) and the "ESPINACAS CON QUESO" - fresh spinach with cheese, garlic lemon & butter ($8.95), both presented on an iron skillet and served with warm tortillas. The spinach was good, but just a tad bit too much lemon. The choriqueso was excellent, I would have liked for peppers and onion and just a little less cheese. All the same it did hit the spot. I ordered the #1 combinacion: Chile Relleno y Enchilada ($16.95) with a medium heat sauce. It was a red sauce, but totally different from the kind of red sauce I was used to. It had just enough heat and spice to it, just a pinch too much salt for my taste. He had the Enchiladas Tricolor ($13.95) which was topped with a green tomatillo sauce, a creamy jalapeno sauce and a red tomato sauce. I think he liked it... he ate it all. LOL. Something I did take note on, is that MOST mexican restaurants load your plate up with their rice & beans to make it look like you have a huge plate of food, while the actual entree you ordered is teeny. You eat it only hoping you filled yourself up with the chips and salsa earlier. Anyhow, 2 cheesy thumbs up for them not doing so here. Have any of you tried the red and/or green bottled hot sauces that are on the table? I did glopped a little of it on my enchilada, even though I asked for the medium heat red sauce I really didn't need any more heat but had to try it out. Quite good really. At this point my mouth was burning up and my iced tea was gone, so as soon as she made her way back to our table to see how everything was, I quickly asked her for another refill to put the fire out :] Overall.. Likes: They have Chile Relleno on the menu! Fast & friendly service. Prices. Decor. Portions Food was great! Dislikes: No bar No music playing (it was turned on about 5 minutes before we were about to leave) No booths How awesome would it be if you had a mariachi band playing on the weekends and some cazadores shots being passed around? I'll definately be back :] read more

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This place is funny, it is either jam packed or a ghost town. There is never enough servers in the place and the service reflects it. If I were to rate this place solely based on food it would be 5 stars for sure, but the service and prices knock it down to a 3 star joint. The food is amazing and will probably be the only reason you end up coming back to this place. The service is nonexistent and the prices are high for basic Mexican food. Its a BYOB! read more

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What a wonderful way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo! I don't usually celebrate the Mexican holiday, but I was in the mood to go to a local authentic Mexican restaurant. And I was blown away by everything! First off, the vibe in the place really sets the mood! The music in the background, the design of the whole restaurant makes me feel like I'm in Mexico! The employees were quick and hardworking, having me seated and satisfied right away! Unexpectedly, I was given a basket of freshly authentic cooked chips and salsa. This was a great little snack! You can totally tell the chips were freshly cooked, and it left a distinguishing flavor! They were not salted, and there was no need, because without salt it was way better. The salsa was so tasty, very little tomato chunks. This was a high score! So many varieties on the menu, but one thing in particular stood out to me. The Quesadilla Vallarta: A flour tortilla with cheese, shrimp, bacon, spinach, and tomatoes, served with rice and beans. This meal was excellent! Those rice and beans were an ideal side! There was melted Mexican cheese over the beans, and that just made it delightful! The cheese pull was incredible! Especially combined with the rice! It was also just a perfect amount, I couldn't ask for more or less. Now the quesadilla was delicious! The shrimp was crunchy, juicy, and seasoned to perfection. The tortilla was warm with a crisp on the end. The cheese was phenomenal! And as for the little bacon bits, spinach, and tomatoes, it all added up to such a unique flavor you never knew you needed! I can't get over the cheese pull! So good! Overall, this meal was flawless and a great Cinco de Mayo celebration! read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - a hand holding a tortilla - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

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Pretty good chips and salsa. My dinner was tasty I liked that there was 3 different types of enchiladas. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Cheese enchiladas - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

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This review is difficult for me to write, I normally find Tenampa to be excellent. Today, for the first time I ordered delivery thru Door Dash. I ordered a Cajun Steak Taco Salad and SPECIFIED if item not available, CALL ME. When I received the order it was Chicken NOT Cajun Steak and when I went to the Door Sash web site they offered me a $9.95 refund for an item that was $16.95 + 1.12 tax. I have rejected their offer and have demanded a full refund of $18.07, they are welcome to come pick up the item because it is not what I ordered and I will not eat it. I will review the response I receive from Door Dash and if it is unsatisfactory, it will be deleted from my contacts................Tenampa - GOOD, as of now Tenampa + Door Dash - BAD.............................T I have been contacted by Door Dash and they have issued a credit for $19.95, didn't get my Taco Salad but I have been compensated for the error.......................T read more

Do not ORDER food from here they didn't all the dinner owner was completely rude! Said they had no driver to deliver our paid for meal!'nGrub hub didn't help either read more

Decided to pick my order up. Everything was delicious and not to spicy just wish when I brought it home it was still hot. In the pictures there is tri color enchiladas, 3 hard shell tacos with chicken and steak and 2 trays of refried beans. They even gave chips with salsa. I will definitely be returning here. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - a variety of food - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

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Ordered the steak fajita- probably the easiest Mexican dish ever. Got strips of roast beef! Came with the onions and peppers no tomatoes like the menu stated and my side dish was beans, rice and sour cream- no pico or salsa or guacamole or lettuce. Had to spice up the dish with salt and pepper. I should have left when I sat down to a sticky table. My kid said his French fries were good. I would not consider this anything more that a quick joint to go to in a pinch. Definitely NOT authentic Mexican. read more

I came here with my Girlfriend for takeout. I ordered 2 things. I got a dish which on the menu was 12$ and her dish also was 12$ , These were the prices on the menu they showed us, but apparently they had an updated menu, which idk why they wouldn't give us that instead. We ended up paying $45 and change for tao items that were listed 12$ each I don't mind paying that but it just caught me so off guard. I was also very uncomfortable with the Manager/ owner,(i don't know who he was), he was just watching everyone eat from a really close distance. He didn't even say anything or welcome anyone walking in he was just standing there like a creep. This is the Toms River location btw. Will not be coming back. Just bad vibes. If you want a GOOD Mexican restaurant there are plenty other choices just don't choose this! read more

This is my favorite Mexican restaurant around, and I've never had a bad experience here. When I want typical Mexican food, I usually get the Tamale, Enchilada, Taco combo because I can never decide what to get - (fyi -their beef tacos are made with shredded beef, not ground beef...MmMmMm). Their chicken tortilla soup is the best around - I love the slices of fresh avocado in it. They have a really wide variety of Mexican dishes though - not just the typical taco, burrito, enchiladas, etc. They serve all kinds of dishes cooked Mexican style - steaks, shrimp, pastas etc. They always have interesting daily specials, too. As for ambiance, the restaurant is a little small but the decor is very pretty, and I've gone there many times when they have someone playing guitar and/or singing. It's not that the other Mexican restaurants in the area are bad (most are very good actually); it's just that this place is so good I rarely want to go anywhere else. read more

Having lived in Toms River for a while now I have finally begun to understand that strip malls sometimes house some of the best restaurants in the area.  Having read a lot of mixed reviews on Yelp about how Tenampa is pricey, we decided to check out their menu before we sat down to eat. Yes, Tenampa is little on the pricier side compared to the other Mexican restaurants in the area but if you can look past that you will absolutely love this place. Although family owned, Tenampa has more of a nicely decorated restaurant feel on the inside than your typical, quaint family owned joint. The interior walls are bright orange decorated with colorful sombreros. There are lots of table and the place is perfect for large groups. Tenampa is a BYOB. They have Margarita and Piña Colada mixes so you can complete your Mexican food experience with more than just wine. The chips and salsa for the table were standard but what I really loved were the bottles of hot sauces on the table to give the salsa the kick I felt it needed. I started with a bowl of chicken tortilla soup. The brothy soup was loaded with diced tender pieces of chicken and vegetables. For my entrée I got the soft chicken tacos. Boring, right? Wrong! What makes Tenampa's tacos awesome is that you can pick any of their 7 (yes,7) sauces with your entrée. I naturally went with the spiciest diabla sauce and loved it. If spicy is not your thing then I highly recommend the creamy chipotle sauce. The portions are pretty decent but don't forget no meal is complete without dessert. We shared the Mexican Churros, which was mentioned on their chalkboard with all of the day's specials. The warm churros were filled with bavarian cream served with a side of ice cream. If you see the churros on the menu, get it. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Chicken Tacos - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

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Always amazing! My husband and I have never been disappointed by our local Mexican Restaurant. We usually get take out, but instead dined in tonight. We had the Dumplings A La Mexicana, which were just amazing. The dumplings were good, but the Creamy Chipotle sauce stole the show. Enough so that we ordered an extra side of it for my Fajitas, they're always my go to. My husband had the house special, which he all but licked the plate. Can't wait to go back, always delicious. read more

My family's favorite Mexican restaurant. This location is much larger than the Brick, NJ location which unfortunately recently closed. But it's clean with a festive decor and has tables outside. The food is just as good as the Brick location was. The salsa is fresh with much flavor, love the rice and beans they serve with our meals. The Burrito Buena Vida is supreme with tender chicken and steak strips. I had a tequila pasta dish that was a Special, years ago at their Brick location and also tried the Macarron Al Chipotle that was a good choice if you need to drain your sinuses. Actually both pasta dishes were very tasty but I love the BBV best. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Burrito Buena Vida Tenampa Mexican Restaurant Toms River NJ - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

Absolutely delicious. Fresh and flavorful. The soups are delicious. Everything is fresh and not from a jar. So glad I found this place. Burritos and the house shrimp dish were top notch. Also the nachos can be a meal on their own. read more

I've been meaning to try Tenampa since I live nearby by strip mall restaurants kind of turn me off. But I'm glad we went, food was delicious! Chips and salsa brought to table; Light, airy, fresh chips that weren't greasy... Yummy salsa. I had pork chimichangas that I was pleased with, Husband likes his chimi/enchilada combo although he wished it came with rice and beans. Didn't give 5 stars because the service... They needed another waiter. There was one guy hosting, serving, cleaning up, answering phones. read more

During a night when I unexpectedly needed take out, this place hit the spot. Some of the best tacos I've had in Ocean County. Truly delicious authentic Mexican cuisine. read more

Don't go here! It appears it is under new ownership or management. Went there in person and tried to order something, but they said no because they were too busy so I had to pick something else. Tonight put in a to go order and was told 50 minutes. Showed up and they said they cancelled to go orders and only making in store orders. Asked to speak to a manager and they said I go in the back kitchen to talk. How clean and safe if allowing just anyone in kitchen? Horrible...go somewhere else. read more

It kinda bums me out to give this place 3 stars... if the review was based solely on food (as another reviewer stated) it would be 5 stars. But the service... they have 1 waiter. The service is awful. Just awful... hire another waiter. read more

I originally posted a review of Tenampa many years ago and thought I should update it! Our opinion hasn't changed though. This is still our favorite restaurant in town, regardless of cuisine. It's also the restaurant we visit most frequently. The chicken chimichanga with creamy chipotle sauce is a favorite of ours, but I've never had anything I didn't like there. Enchilada options, are great, as are the Mexican style tacos, and the chorizo and cheese appetizer is amazing. read more

This is my first Yelp post ever, so here goes--- Our dinner was very good. 5-stars. The meat was grade-A and chicken was well seasoned. The service was great especially how much detail on the menu where I had questions. 5 stars + on service. Chips and salsa was a little less tasty than what I expected. It was like it was out of a jar from the market. Good but not great. 3 Starts on the salsa. I was told there was no alcohol served but people had beer in the restaurant. We will go back for sure. Maybe they will work on the salsa before then. ;-) read more

I mentioned in my previous review that the burrito was huge. Well, my husband saved half of his, and said it tasted better the next day. So I've upgraded my review to 5 stars. :) read more

Food is always great. Table was clean and the server was kind and attentive. I recommend the grouper special. BYOB hell yeah.

Our favorite authentic Mexican. You can't go wrong with the chimichanga or the tostadas. Simply delicious. Service is great. Always get the jalapeño sauce, it is a white sauce and it is not very hot. The desserts do not disappoint. Come hungry, we always leave with leftovers. The atmosphere is fun, the waiter decorates the place and does a great job. read more

One of the worst so called Authentic Mexcican restaurants we have ever been to, food was bland & tasteless, everything covered in cheese yuk..service the same un attentiev...there is so much better out there never again! read more

My husband and I love this place, we used to go to their location in Brick and we were sad to see it close. The drive to Toms River is worth it when we are craving good Mexican though! read more

The food is good but way too expensive for mexican food. I don't come here too often for that reason alone.

Everything came from a can. The salsa was processed. The entree was pre-frozen and tasted like corn tortillas sitting in canned pasta sauce. Less than great service. Very overpriced for what it is. But the inside looks nice... I'll give them that. read more

I live in point pleasant and I drive out to this place all the time to eat best place around. The creamy chipotle sauce is amazing def recommend trying it. Also the Bueno vida burrito is amazing. I recommend it to all my friends if they are ever down in that area. read more

Tenampa Mexican Restaurant - Bueno vida burrito with chipotle sauce. - Mexican Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

lots of choices...especially the sauces. everything was delicious. service was great too. just terrific overall. read more

Really amazing authentic Mexican food. They are pricey but you get what you pay for.

I ate here this evening and it was the oddest experience from start to finish. First I order what's advertised as Mexican Coke on the menu and receive a can of Coca Cola. Not the end of the world but certainly not Mexican Coca Cola. Moving on, everyone else in my group orders unsweetened iced tea and they run out so refills could not be filled. Now to the food order....my brother orders and chimichanga and receives a burrito instead. I ordered a burrito with sauce on the side and I receive it covered in cream sauce. Here comes the weirdest part, the waitress asks if we need anything else and I said I would love some limes (certainly not an odd request). She returns with lemons and says, "the kitchen will not allow us to serve limes with anything else other than tacos". I thought it was ridiculous to answer me that so, I went further and said I still wanted limes and would be willing to pay if it's extra. She returns and says they cannot sell me any and they will get mad if she does because she has gotten in trouble in the past for selling a customer limes. Needless to say, I hope you read this and realize you just lost 4 local customers that will not be returning to your establishment. There's plenty of much better Mexican restaurants around that serve to their customers needs! read more