Rubio’s

This place is never open on time. I work near the area and I get my lunch usually around 10am. But when I get here it’s not even open. Loosing sales.

I absolutely looovee seafood! So I definitely had to try the burritos here.
I ordered the lobster burrito and the shrimp burrito. It always surprise me how much calories burritos contain even though the ingredients aren’t so bad. The lobster burrito is 820 cal and the shrimp is about 700. The lobster burrito was… okay. The shrimp burrito was definitely better but not amazing. One nice thing was that the burritos include avocados instead of then being extra. On the downside, I don’t think the ingredients are not as fresh as La Salsa or Chipotle. The salsa bar definitely doesn’t match up, selection wise and quality wise, to La Salsa. It was definitely less fresh and I think the salsas are watered down. For example, the salsa verde contains a suspicious amount of cilantro and has a watered down, lime taste compared to tomato…
The tortillas weren’t very good at all. they were very bland and hard… like a bit stale kind of hard. If i reallly want tortillas with my burrito, i’d hop over to safeway and buy some packaged ones. Maybe some salsa along with that. Srry, i really don’t like them.
That said, I might come back again, but to try a fish taco or something. Maybe on tuesday for that special the other reviews are talking about ;).

All the noms! Typical rubies but with great customer service.
Came here after returning from the Nike Women’s Half and jonesing for a chicken quesadilla and their amazing white chipotle sauce. Service was pretty stellar, even when I got there about an hour before closing.
Overall I would recommend this location and rubio’s as a whole.

Come here nearly weekly. My favorites (usually on Fridays) include fish or shrimp options — salad bowl or burrito.
My standby for the weekend (next day meal) is an order of their bean & cheese burrito, with extra onions and cilantro. Their bean burrito is better that what I’ve had at Uno Mas or Chipotle.
Actually I like all three «organic Fresh Mex,» yet seek Rubio’s out ahead of the others.

Sunday was Nat. Taco Day, so I celebrated with Salsa Verde Tacos !

Being a fish taco fanatic, I came to Rubio’s a few times based on the recommendation of a friend. Reading the story displayed on the wall here, it appears Rubio’s is yet another chain that blossomed from a single, successful restaurant; in this case: a hole-​in-​the-​wall taqueria in San Diego.
I’d bet good money that the original restaurant was a lot better than this location. I found the food to be decidedly boring. And it certainly wasn’t a hole-​in-​the-​wall. The vibe is much more in the «corporate fast food» vein. Way to stick to your roots guys!
But I was here for the food:
– 2 taco plate w mix n match tacos: ($ 8) The mahi mahi taco was tasty but overly dry. A shame. The original fish taco was a little better but slightly cold. Service overall was a bit slow and I had to wait a while for my food. Beans and chips were pretty good, though the chips were not fresh (out of a bag). 3 stars for my OK experience.
I returned once more to give their «signature» taco one more chance:
– Original fish taco plate: ($ 7) included two tacos plus two sides (beans and chips again). Really good price for the bay area. Tacos were small and simple, each containing a single, thin piece of battered, fried fish, white sauce and way too much raw cabbage. The flavor was bland but the fish quality seemed decent. The batter was a little soft and oily; i would have loved something crispier. Also the sauce was very runny and looked like thinned mayo with a few added spices. Slightly gross. The worst part was the corn tortilla — it was just barely warmed. They could’ve improved the texture and flavor immensely by throwing it on the grill for a minute. Beans were good but chips again were store-​bought. On a fish taco scale, i’d give Rubio’s a 4 out of 10. But based on the good price, I’ll round up to 3 stars; Aka average.
I’m probably repeating myself from other reviews, but I feel a place has no business offering a «world famous» dish or «signature dish» if that dish isn’t something special or well above par. Based on this rule, I’m tempted to give Rubios a 2-​star rating for what amounts to false advertising.
One saving grace for me, however, was Rubio’s use of real plates and metal silverware for eat-​in orders, not the usual paper + plastic fork. Kudos! I have a soft spot for this kind of trash avoidance, and that saves them from a negative review.

I will not be coming back. I tried it based on an article I read that it was ‘The Next Chipotle.’ Having been to a Chipotle very close to this location, I figured I’d give it a shot to compare.
There’s nothing to compare. The ambiance, if you want to call it that, is borderline McDonalds. I don’t see any reason to designing a new place to look commercial and crappy. The moment I stepped in the door and looked around, my ideal of getting fresh ingredients, or a solid meal, went out the window.
I was greeted by a person who didn’t speak English. She was saying stuff to me, but I didn’t understand. I think she was telling me that she wasn’t an order taker, and someone would be with me soon. «No problem!» I’m a patient guy. But she kept looking at me. So I ordered. The replacement came soon enough and finished the transaction.
I ordered a Burrito Bowl, since that’s what I get at Chipotle. «What are my options?» I could choose my salsa. That’s it? Okay…
I got home and promptly disassembled the Burrito Bowl to see what I got: 75%+ rice. Some beans. An immeasurable amount of lettuce. And some dry diced chicken. A dab of guac. Almost the whole thing was rice. Absolutely awful.
I get it, you’re trying to make money, but replacing expensive ingredients with rice just causes people like me to never come back. How much money do you make on people who never return?
I’ll keep giving my random burrito business to Chipotle, where I can see and pick the (quality) ingredients, and where I can have my meal stacked in my favor (instead of just a glorified rice-​bowl). I’ll never return to Rubio’s. 2 stars because the food was edible.

Bare handed handling of the food with attitude rude workers. Made us all feel sick. Do not go here horrible people there. The health department should be informed. Good bye rubio’s never again. Anywhere else than rubio’s.

I have to update my review based on the appalling display that I witnessed today.
I echo that the service is not the nicest, nor the fastest here. However, witnessing an individual (whom I presume was of supervisory rank) berating an employee in front of customers is simply uncalled for. An epic display of embarrassment to the employee, as well as the business at large.
Poor form Rubio’s…

My Mexican friends scoff at this place, but I LOVE it. This is a casual place, better quality than fast food, but more a place to take the family than a date. Salsa bar has 3 pretty good options.
Some have commented on the staff here, well, I’m there about once a week and see new staff nearly every time. I have found them usually very friendly and helpful, but I know their menu and prices better than the staff does. Make sure that you get what you ordered as the error rate is higher here than most places. The management would only improve the operation if they invested some time in training, and take measures to improve employee retention.

Cannot get enough of their ancho citrus shrimp burrito. SOOOOO good. And their churros remind me of the old Costco churros when they were crunchy and delicious and sweet and cinnamon-​y… mmmm. Almost comparable to Disneyland’s without the excessive and unnecessary cost.

If Unilocal was only about reviewing food this place would have gotten 5 stars, however… the employees here, especially their «shift leader» need attitude checks. Its unfortunate that on numerous occasions I have encountered bad service. Every time I just assumed they were having a bad day, but every visit there?
I still recommend the food but if service is a big deal to you, don’t bother here.

This place is soo good I had too come twice in the same day .
Oh the food is soo orgasmic.
I got that coastal trio, omg it was soo good.
This isn’t my first time here tho.
I’ve tried all the taco’s and I must say yum.
The shrimp and steak is so so so good,
I like the diablo sauce, I am a big fan of that sauce period so it was a great site to see.
The managers are great here, they really put in there work an it shows .
The enchilada plates are really good like really really good ya feel me.
This place is clean, an you can just tell there all about teamwork, my plate was fresh hot an ready with quickness an a smile.
The bathrooms were even really clean .
They even have patio seating here which is really cool.
I also overheard more then one person say they were regulars here so y’know its not just me feeling this place.

Their food is great, I try something new every time never been disappointed! Also there service is beyond excellent.
My top fav tacos are the salsa verde shrimp taco and the steak street taco.

The location was clean and appealing and the service was great, but alas, it’s all about the food.
I ordered a Classic Chicken and a Classic Steak tacos. Plus one for the corn tortillas, but everything went downhill from there. The copious lettuce looked tired and the flavor of each taco was flat.
In an effort to inject some life into them, I poured on some of the sauce. It’s important to note that they don’t appear to offer actual salsa at their salsa bar. Just blended sauces that taste more like ketchup than hot sauce. That’s it. I’m out.

I’ve been here many times during the lunch hour and the food was great. Service was a little slow, but worth the wait.
From the time I entered the door tonight to the time I got my food it took 50 minutes; I wish that was an exaggeration. The restaurant was half empty so this is very puzzling because I didn’t order very much food. My fish tacos were colder than lukewarm, almost like they pulled them out of the fridge and put them on my plate. I guess this is more of a lunch place.

The food quality here is pleasant surprise for a fast food mexican spot. They have great fish and shrimp tacos and salads for a reasonable price. The salsas are tasty and they have a nice unlimited salsa bar. The menu even seems to change up enough to keep things interesting.
The 3 stars really just comes from the brutally slow service. For a to go order you are looking at around a 15 – 20 minute wait even when the restaurant is only half full. This is especially puzzling given it is an open kitchen; they always appear to be doing something back there but whatever it is doesn’t make the food come out much faster.

Pretty much a standard Rubio’s, nothing too special.
They have great service though, and the restaurant is very clean and their condiments/​salsa bar seems to always be well stocked, so 4 stars!
Will definitely come back to quenchmy taco Tuesday cravings: D

Taco Tuesdays at Rubio’s are an institution. Featured prominently in 2014’s Lego Movie, the Original Fish Tacos are $ 1.50 per taco on Taco Tuesday after 2:30pm.
Made from Alaska Pollock, the Original Fish Taco is a fried number served on a corn tortilla with coleslaw and some mild salsa. Be sure to go to the salsa bar and grab one of the three other salsa options (salsa verde, and two other types of salsa — mild and hot). The website indicates that each taco is 310 calories, with 11g of protein and 20g of fat. I can eat about three or four, and that finishes me for the night.
This location makes it child’s play to pick up a few things at Safeway and then easily grab dinner as you’re on your way out. There can be a bit of a line though if you go at peak dinner time. Lines of 10 orders aren’t uncommon, and sometimes they stop taking orders to let the kitchen catch up. Our orders have ranged from 5 – 15 minutes.

Lobster tacos are back! Rather on the small side but always mouth watering. I am so happy to see Rubios in the Bay Area, I really thought it was a San Diego thing. Same taste yet different look. I see this restaurant has not done the facelift yet and shows the look of the 90s splendor, which I actually like more than the standardized modern simplistic new look of most Rubios in SoCal. Service was fast although not too friendly.