Selecta International Grocers

OMG good tamales, tacos de carne asada, rotisserie chicken. Total ethnic market with simple but delicious food. Good prices on groceries but I go here for lunch time, sublime tacos de carne asada. Not the most tender cuts but certainly the most flavorful.
I ordered Xmas tamales de res (beef). They require 24 notice and a deposit. They were knock-​your-​socks off good! Smallish with great proportions of masa to filling and the beef tamales I ordered were on the medium/​hot side. think level 5 hot at Sab-​E-​Lee. Probably too hot for nonacclimated tastebuds.
I recommend this place for their hot foods. Its on my Tamal radar. Probably the best meat tamal I have purchased anywhere in the county. Recommended with gusto.

We came by for the rotessrie chicken family meal. Was delicious!!! And so not expensive. They give you about 6 – 7 pieces of chicken with about 10 tortillas. Small half pint of beans, salsa and rice. The salsa is bomb. Beans are good and rice too. I asked for extra sides of beans & rice and also ordered the bombest taco de lengua i paid less than $ 15. I will definitely come back. Service is nice food is top. notch and the price is awesome. This is gonna be my spot for tacos their cheap and fat as f

Love coming here because of their most recent companionship with selecta bakery so with that said best pan dulce i’ve had hands down, even better than gonzales. Any who they have great deals on all sorts of items.

tacos are FAT and yummy especially in the weekend they break out the al pastor meat on a spit-​grill. Then watch it burn baby burn (in a good way).

Even if their ourside name keeps on changing we will still know it as Mercado Internacional. Great variety of South American and latin products. Being in there is at times difficult to know in which side of the border one is.

Wow! I thought I was the only crazy who would bring tortillas from USA to Mexico or other states and cities.
Yesterday I was at this awesome store when a man asked the cashier. «Can I take these tortillas all the way to Washington? can they be frozen? Ha ha! I knew the answer because I always do that because my relatives in Mexico tried these tortillas and they are always asking for me to bring some. Ironic I know.
I proceeded to tell the man that all he needs is a zip lock bag an freeze the no problem, when the owner Who is always there making sure outstanding customer service, gave the man the tips to keep the tortillas fresh even after frozen.

A small grocery store but has most everything you need.
Excellent prices on the sangria sodas only .99 cents a real bargain.
A good selection of meats at good prices.
No real quality of steaks at all here everything is lower grade which is why it is sliced thin.
Outside they have a snack bar where they serve all kinds of tacos and also whole chickens on the grill
They have adobada tacos here for only a buck which is a super good deal.
Today I bought a pound of carnitas meat, 6 fresh tortillas and fresh pic de gallo salsa in a package for only 6.99 a great deal.
This is a really nice little grocery store but the parking can be bad when it is crowded.
Sunday morning is a good time to go to beat the crowds.

I LOVE going to the Walk-​Up window and ordering the Tacos Al Pastor Con Todo as well as the Carne Asada.
Always fresh, always delicioso and in my opinion, a REAL, true competitor of Tacos EL GORDO, but $cheaper.

This is my go to place for getting carne asada, adobada, and pollo asado. It’s my one stop shop for all of my Mexican goods. They have a great selection of corn and flour tortillas at different sizes. They also have a small selection of produce but all the staples are there.
The place could use a little cleaning and parking sucks.

The store is not one that I would go shopping for my groceries for my household, but I went outside in their taco shop/​stand place and ordered a small carne asada mula and OMG bottom line one of the best mulas I have ever had even better than those popular taco places in chula vista. I would definately come back just for the mulas!

The grocery store is nothing special, good prices on produce and meat but a little more expensive on everything else.
But on to the real deal:
Their tacoshop is bomb-​tastic.
Theres a little taco shop (erm, actually I would just call it a window?) on the entrance side. Usually there’s a grill cooking up chicken and a little tarp.
I work right next door and they are my go to place for lunch. I’ve gone there so many times that they have my order placed right when they see me walking towards them.
I get 3 tacos worth of meat with onions, cilantro, guacamole, salsa and a side of beans. Enough food for 2 small meals! The best part (besides the fact that it’s DELICIOUS is there are no complex carbs and it leaves me full). Less than $ 8 for 2 square meals is a deal.
The guys that work there are extremely nice and always very polite. And they don’t laugh when they listen to my rough Spanish. :P
Parking is a little rough, but the food is worth it.
Tip: Mix refried beans, onions, cilantro and a Cholula hot sauce. Experience awesomeness.

Selecta Panadería is now located inside, which is where we purchase birrote grande for the café. I can also score cheap produce here for my place of business when I need it: tamarindo, roma tomatoes, citrus fruits, avocados, and more.
Downside is that their parking lot sucks. I was in heels one day and had to make a stop here. Navigating with a full carriage, in heels, on that steep incline was next to impossible. And no one offered assistance like they typically should when they see a lady struggling not to embarrass herself completely.
All in all, a handy place to have available though even if I do have to trek all the way across Chula Vista to get to it.

«No! No! No! You do not ever get your tortillas from any of those grocery store chains.» — G. Rosales (2003)
No truer words were ever said to me than that day an ex-​coworker shook her finger at me and wrote down the address for Mercado Internacional. There were two specific things that she bought from this store. 1) The charcoal to grill her carne asada meat. 2) The freshly made street sized tortillas.
They also have a small fresh produce selection, as well as a butcher shop, which comes with an array of meats.
But, another added bonus is outside of the store — FRESH and DELICIOUS tacos!
The only downside is that the market is small, so you may not get all the items you need in one swoop. Also, don’t be surprised if the cashiers only speak to you in Spanish. Overall, a good place to go if you need your basic Mexican food necessities and to grab a bite to eat.

Great bang for your buck here.
…remember Woo Chee Chong?
I really liked their landscaping a lot better LOL

This is not a northgate, so don’t expect a lot of space. It’s small, but good for quick stops. Their tacos are really good!

I hate shopping at Mercado for its over crowded parking lot, chaotic wait at the meat section, incredibly small aisles and the people who adore to abruptly stop and park their carts in the middle of these already small aisles.
With that said, I cannot deny the fact that they make damn good marinated carne asada and chicken as well as, guacamole and salsa. Not to mention the precooked meat for carnitas and the BBQ chicken you can obtain from the guy barbecuing just outside of the store. Additionally, its all inexpensive.
Now, do I think it’s worth the hassle? I’m inclined to say «NO» but, as I drool over every bite of my carne asada or chicken, then I’m inclined to say «HELL YEA!»

This is one of Chula Vista’s staples to buy anything you need for your «real» Mexican food.
I’ve been going to this location forever to buy fresh tortillas. You can go in and pick up a bag of hot fresh tortillas from a cooler near the meat counter. While you are there pick up a container of guacamole, salsa verde and salsa fresca. Than walk over to the indoor food counter and buy a pound of cooked carnitas. You have an instant meal in about 10 minutes!
The best buys are usually in the produce area. You can almost always find avocados, green tomatoes, and cilantro to make your own stuff but I’m too lazy most days and buy the stuff they make because it’s just as good. They also sell all the different cheeses used to make some of the more authentic dishes.
It’s not a big chain grocery store so there are things you would find cheaper else where but for the hot fresh tortillas alone this place is worth the trip.