Rubio’s

Got the Coastal Trio which including 3 tacos, I really like the fish taco and shrimp one, and the last one is just so-​so. It took 15 mins for me to get my food, and those who came after me get foods faster than me. I was like… ummmm…fine.

I had the fish taco. Size was decent for the price. The fish tasted fresh. Definitely filling.

Rubio’s as a chain has yet to disappoint me. Friendly staff, fresh ingredients, delicious Mexican food. Focused menu. Outdoor seating. This particular Rubio’s gets slammed for weekday lunch break. However, everything came out quickly and tasted perfectly.
Go-​to order recently has been the Classic Grilled Shrimp Burrito with blackened Mahi instead of shrimp.

Standard Rubios. Great selection, fabulous food. I always get the burrito especial with chicken, and I’m never disappointed.
Pros: quick service at the register, quick service receiving food at table. Relatively clean environment.
Cons: line can literally be out the front door during lunch hour. Sometimes it’s hard to find a seat.
Tip: for those that don’t want to deal with filling the smaller plastic containers with salsa– just ask for a water cup at the register. It’s an equivalent of four salsas. Picture to follow!

I called ahead to order dinner for takeout. George (Jorge) took my order over the phone and gave me the total price. He was very polite and clear. I ordered the tortilla soup and the 2 fish tacos. Upon getting to the store, George was at the counter and greeted me and told me we had an issue. Rubios no longer served the tortilla soup, and he asked if there was something else he could offer me. I decided on another meal, and George apologized and offered me some chips and a drink while I waited for my new order. He was very courteous, and sincere and it seemed genuine. Sounds routine but at his age and in the retail/​food industry, it’s not everyday you encounter genuine sincerity from a young employee. George helped make my experience very positive and saved what could’ve ended up being a bad night with no tortilla soup into a good night for both of us. Thank you Jorge. Thank you Rubios. We eat here at least once a week, though I’ve never encountered Jorge, all of the staff at this location has been courteous.

This location at the mall is a perfect light meal while shopping. Service was nice and our food are out quickly. Plenty of seating, I love their balsamic roasted veggie salad add salmon, my favourite thing on their menu. Fresh good quality seafood and greens, a nice sauce and vwggies, kne of my favorite meals, worth stopping by while in the area!

Despite the Starbucks-​like remodel, the food remains fresh and tasty! The staff is friendly and everything is consistent.

Love coming here for a quick and good lunch! This location is definitely one of nicest Rubio’s I have ever been to.
It’s healthy (can be), clean, delicious, and quick. My personal favorite is the California Bowl. It has rice, beans, lettuce, guacamole, salsa, chipotle sauce, and I always add the mahi mahi or the tilapia.
Highly recommended!

Bottom Line: Tasty Mexican inspired cuisine but this location can get very busy.
I guess I am old school because I miss the Rubio’s that was Ralph Rubio’s Rubio’s. I enjoyed eating street tacos on paper plates underneath thatched palapas and watching fish swim in tanks. But, that was probably before Mill Road Capital purchased the company in 2010. A lot has changed since then. Some say that the food isn’t as high quality but for me the most noticeable difference is the vibe which has continued to evolve in the last five years. The most noticeable changes to me are (1) renaming of the restaurants to Rubio’s Coastal Grill, (2) swapping out the unique Baja décor for mainstream, trendy décor and (3) serving meals on real dishes rather than paper. Anyway, for anyone who is new to Rubio’s, none of that will matter so lets talk about logistics and food to help you determine if this is where you want to hang ten.
The logistics here are that you order your food at the counter and can either dine in or get it to go. With the new system, if you are dining in, then they give you a number and will deliver your food to you. (Admittedly, I like this better than the old days of having to listen for your name to be called.) The Coca-​Cola soda fountain is self-​serve and stopping by the salsa bar is a must. My favorite is the roasted chipotle salsa.
As far as food, even as the menu has been tweaked over the years, I have not had anything that I didn’t like. Things I enjoy here are the original fish taco, chicken quesadilla, health mex burrito (now called «H-​Mex Burrito») and chicken tortilla soup. Rubio’s has always had bottled Mexican beer and in recent years they have added some of the San Diego Craft Beers (at least in the SD locations) and Sangria to the menu.
This particular location is on the south side of the Carlsbad Premium Outlets and it can get very busy. If it isn’t busy with shoppers then it seems like its busy with the local work force during the weekdays. In fact, my crew stopped going here because it was too hard to get a table on weekday’s at lunch.

I had my daughter pick up the fish Talapia bowl for myself and she ordered the California bowl which was good but extremely small portions. Similar to a child’s meal but big prices for what you’re getting. I was extremely disappointed and will discontinue going there because there’s a lot of competition with Mexican takeout in San Diego.

Always quick and good food. The staff are all friendly. Good location with parking available since it is at the end of the mall.

I used to love Rubio’s and would come here every Tuesday for the discounted fish tacos: usually a fish taco and a burrito. The portions for their burritos these days are incredibly small, they charge around 10 dollars for the entire meal, and the soda fountain has less flavors now. I never come here anymore, which is a shame because Rubio’s has been an important restaurant for me growing up in Southern California, so now I go to Kotija Jr for bigger fish tacos and burritos.

Came to Rubio’s on a Monday early evening after shopping around the mall with my daughter. There was no lines and the restaurant was virtually empty. I had received a free birthday entrée coupon in my email for becoming a part of their «Beach Club», so I figure j would stop in a pick something up to go. I walked in the door and was not greeted by the cashier at all. I walked up to her and asked her what the birthday coupon entailed. She somewhat rolled her eyes and said «you can choose anything for free.» I’m sorry, are you annoyed I received a free coupon? Feeling very rushed as her eyes were glued to me, I quickly just ordered the California Bowl. She asked to see my coupon and told me it would be right out.
Salsa bar was fully stocked and clean. The rest of the restaurant looked very clean, and the AC was on, which was nice for a HOT day.
My order came out and the manager handed me my bag to go. When I got home, I opened the bag and the bowl was not hot at all. In fact the rice was barely warm. Mind you, I live 1.5 miles from this Rubio’s so the drive home is maybe 3 minutes. I wasn’t impressed with the order, but it was free. So there’s only so much complaining I can do.
If I come back to this location it would be because my husband craves it or I’m shopping at the mall and craving a fish taco. I wouldn’t order the bowl again.

I’m surprised to find a really nice Rubios at the outlets. I haven’t eaten at one in years but that’s about to change. Tyler was really friendly when it came to our order. He recommended the cilantro lime sea bass rice bowl. Really good!
The place was clean, service was fast, definitely one of the better places to eat at the outlets!

This Rubio’s stands head and shoulders above it’s peers. The difference is astounding, given the fact that the entire franchise strives to have a consistent product line at every store. But I am not complaining, this is great news. Someone in the kitchen must really know their stuff to be able to take the same ingredients, recipes and logistics and improve upon the end product.
For years my standing order was a burrito made with Mahi Mahi. The menu changes frequently depending on what the test kitchen develops. I really enjoyed one iteration that had a sweet spicy habanero mango salsa with corn… I must be in the minority because it disappeared from the menu in a flash. With lightening speed the menu changes, and right now they are focused on infusing food with bacon, which is not my gig. I think that Rubios scrubs the internet for viral food words and infuses them into the menu.
I go against the grain and my new obsession is a bowl. Visually the bowls are better looking than a burrito, and now I can see what i am eating. I like to think that the best looking product will end up in bowls and the rest gets wrapped inside of a tortilla. But I will change my mind again soon!
If you are a Rubio’s fan give this location a try and let me know if you agree that they make better meals!

First time at this location!
Its Rubio’s. We expected delicious fast food .and we got it.
All Rubios’ are a bit pricy but I knew that going in.
Food was good and service was good, building was super clean & friendly staff!
LOTS of parking!
All good for this location!

You can’t go wrong with Rubio’s ever. Delicious fast food but a little on the pricey side.

Love the new décor. The quality of the food is still iffy. I’ve been there twice in the past two weeks. The first time, it was terrible (dried-​out cheese) and the shrimp was stale and cold. The second time, the black beans were amazing. I had actually stopped coming here last year because the meat portions in their burritos shrunk. I might try them again.
3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

This Rubio’s location definitely deserves every bit of five stars! We walked in after finding parking right up front and there was plenty of it! The place was pristine –superclean and had all salsas full and freshly stocked.
We were greeted immediately by the counter employee. I ordered a chili lime taco and a original fish taco combo meal along with a kid sized churro for desert.
With the drink the total came to a little bit over $ 11. I am extremely full right now so I’ll have to say it was definitely worth it.
You can sit at tables inside or outside as well as by a long bar table on barstools which are very comfy.
The music is pleasant and varies from rock to pop to country so there is something for everyone. The restaurant is kid friendly so bring the whole family!

I’m a huge Rubio’s fan, but this is not my favorite location.
I recently went on Taco Tuesday with my girls and had a horribly long wait (45 minutes from entering store to receiving food) It was typically busy for a taco tuesday, but the wait was inexcusable. The shift leader/​assistant mgr finally brought the food to our table without any apology or explanation for the delay. During the time, I took advantage of the Rubio’s comments form on their website to let them know about this situation…
And I got a personal phone call from the district manager just 5 days later. He listened to my concerns, apologized, and promised to look into the situation and provide coaching to improve the service.
So my loyalty remains at Rubio’s, but this location still needs to earn my trust.