Maya Restaurant

Great looking restaurant, so-​so service, excellent location across the street from the beach, but um, totally un-​fresh, uncreative, Sysco tasting hotel banquet food. Here’s the funny part: more than likely if you are reading this, you are in this restaurant or deciding «yay or nay» in it’s parking lot BECAUSE THE WAIT AT TACO TEMPLE IS TOO LONG! Right? If so, heed this warning from one who has been in your shoes: save your money, turn back and get out of town quick. This IS NOT an alternative. The food is horrible and both my wife and I got sick and I personally have an iron tummy… This, and Chapalla Restaurant I’ve written a similar review for, really show a deeper POOR BUSINESS MANAGEMENT issue… Here’s the problem: both restaurants are just a block away from Taco Temple (TT) which is an OUTSTANDING fusion American-​Mexican style, huge portion, very affordable, always long-​wait restaurant. TT has a super simple duplicatable menu, price structure and overall business model, but the problem is that it’s always packed and often times the wait is over an hour… So the only nearby alternative is this place a block up, and Maya Restaurant a block down, unfortunately both alternatives suck suck suck… Did I say suck? I mean S U C K triple exclamation mark!!! TT is so good that these other two restaurants can ONLY be called «bad trap alternatives»… But why don’t they just get their act together and copy all or part of TT’s again super simple model??? They do not have to be this way — it’s a choice! They have made the decision to leach off of all the poor hungry folks that can’t do the long wait for TT. It’s so terribly frustrating to experience two restaurants make such below average food when they are right next door to a brilliant lesson… Points to stupid and careless ownership. Both businesses truly deserve to fail and close ASAP :-(My families sickness reaction to both restaurant’s food, and, our colossal waste of time and money is YOUR FREE WARNING.

When I was pregnant, I was obsessed with the Chile rellenos. But after I had my baby, I ate here and was more than disappointed. The food was bland and the waitress was always texting whenever we needed her. She was nice, but… texting? The food is cheaper though, so if you’re trying to save money and like mild food, it’s a good place.

Stopped by for the first (and now last) time today for breakfast. We wanted menudo and this was the only restaurant open at 9:30, unlike nearby other Mexican restaurants which were closed. It looked immediately like a Mexican version of Denny’s. Lots of customers but many were eating non-​Mexican food items. We ordered 2 large bowls of menudo and 2 glasses of water. First clue: the water tasted awful. Second: apparently chips and salsa are an add-​on item, not complimentary. When the menudo arrived, it was very bland… we kept adding more and more condiments to try and add flavor but to no avail. And it was expensive, $ 10.99 for each bowl. My husband even said his flour tortilla was bland. Keep driving, folks.

Love coming here. Great service, and food always comes out hot, delicious, and fast. Mariachi make it even more authentic. Shout out to our waitress, Erika. That girl is a rock star! Definitely save room for the home made flan. Soooooo tasty!

Ordered beef tacos. No flavor and I think I know why. When I picked up my taco, water dropped out all over my plate. Boiled beef? So I ordered chicken nachos. Boiled chicken, I’m not kidding. Bland taste. Only chips, chicken, beans, cheese on the nachos. I told the waitress that the nachos were the most bland I’ve ever had She said, should I throw them away? I said sure. She threw them out. Then asked why I did not like them. I told her, no olives, onions, jalapeño’s no flavor. Then she said she could have added it if I’d asked. Really? My husband had a burrito and swore the enchilada sauce over the burrito was straight from a can. Good luck to you if you want to try this place, but we will never return.

I absolutely love this place. I have never had a bad meal, the service is always excellent, and the atmosphere is always relaxed. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone!

My wife and I loved it. Maybe a bit on the pricey side for Mexican food, but it tasted so good I didn’t mind.

Another successful Taco Tuesday! Great tacos AND cheap beers with an amazing view of The Cloisters. Bring your family; this place is great!

Three of went to Maya tonight and we were all really happy with our food. Good salsa! Good service. Nice and clean. This place is easy to recommend.

Me and my three kids went here for dinner. We have lived in Morro Bay for several years now and had never tried it. I guess now I know why, the food was generic and bland. The horchata was from a fountain and had no flavor. I had the veggie burrito which had those generic frozen vegetables you can buy at the store: cauliflower, carrots and broccoli. My money would have been much better spent at Taco Temple or Chapala. I would like to say that our waitress was very nice. We will never go there again.

This restaurant is VERY convenient to our hotel, Best Western El Ranch inn. The food here is excellent! I would recommend it to basically anyone! Just 1 thing the inside is dated, but I would go again because of the food!

I have to eat here every time I visit Morro Bay. For dinner I order the Chile Verde burrito. For breakfast I get the breakfast burrito «wet.» Their red sauce is scrumptious! The staff is friendly. It’s a small place but the food is awesome!

Truly awful. They literally must go to the grocery next door and buy bags of packaged soft and hard tortillas, flavorless shredded lettuce and cheese. The meat is bland (only the fish taco had any flavor)

Stopped in for Taco Tuesday. First time in. The first thing we noticed was how clean the place was! The bathroom and tables were spotless! We tried each taco, the ground beef, shredded beef and chicken. Fresh, simple, tasty. The salsa is great and endless chips… Yes, please! Service was good! Loved it!

I stopped in Maya on a bicycle tour up the coast and it just kind of looked like my kind of place when I am hungry. And it turned out to be just that — casual, clean, and solid eats. First, the place, tables, seating, bathrooms, … were spotless, which is always nice to see if you are away from home and trying a new place.
I was there an odd hour (about 2pm), so there was only a few others in the restaurant and so my service was excellent — don’t know if that is true or not when its busy. I had a chile verde burrito — chile relleno combo, which came with rice and beans. Nice fluffy rice, flavorful beans, fresh chips, but my favorite was the chile verde. Maybe it was just August and the tomatillos were fresh, but they hit it out of the park.
The portions were not on huge platters that you get at some Mexican places, but they were ample for someone touring by bicycle, so you shouldn’t leave hungry. I would absolutely hit this place again if I was passing through.

My wife & I went to Mayas lookibg for something just a little different. We found it. I had the camarones ala mexicana. This was about 6 large, fresh prawn sauteed with mushrooms, chile, onions and peppers. Can you say SPICY? This was severed with rice & beans which also yummy.
Anyway, the wife had a shrimp cocktail which she said was very good too.
We’ll be back next time we’re in Morro Bay.

Awesome family restaurant. Fish taco was the best we had in Morro Bay. Our waiter was a totally sweet young kid, the vibe from the other diners was good, totally relaxed and very post-​beach.
Taco Tuesdays is a steal. $ 2 tacos, $ 3 beers. (Fish tacos are still $ 5 on Taco Tuesdays, but worth it.)

We are locals who have enjoyed Maya’s pretty regularly over the last few years. The last few times have been a little off. Sad to say that tonight will be our last visit. Food quality and portions did not match the price. My son’s burrito was cold in the middle and our salads were so skimpy and did not come as stated on the menu. We also weren’t given silverware and had to grab some off another table because she never noticed. Another mediocre Morro Bay restaurant to cross off our list.

From the outside this restaurant sort of looks like a walk-​up type of restaurant, but inside they have booths by the windows and tables in the center. It was crowded with the breakfast crowd, but after a couple of questions to the cook it turned out I could order lunch. It used to be run by a bunch of guys, but now the ladies have taken over. They have made a lot of changes to the menu and service, I had to make a special request for lunch during the breakfast hour since they hand out the breakfast menu now. I find that the service is a bit lacking as well now, with mistakes to my order and them forgetting things like tortillas for fajitas and chips & salsa on the table. Also, the ladies don’t offer to refill my soda, I have to ask them specially. They really do have the best chicken fajitas in town, so I will definitely return here often.
They have good chips and their salsa is not too spicy. They are light and crispy, without being greasy.
I order chicken fajitas, green salad, and a bottomless soda. The salad was small but good. Iceberg lettuce with carrots and cabbage mix, I ordered mine without tomatoes. They had blue cheese dressing, but it seemed to be the same brand all the local restaurants use which is a bit too vinegary for my taste. The last time I was there, though, the salad seemed to have been frozen, as it was limp and I couldn’t even finish it.
Their chicken fajitas were wonderful with large chunks of chicken breast, seasoned just right. The chunks of chicken were easy to pick out of the bell peppers and onions. They come with beans and rice, and some guacamole and sour cream. They sometimes offer me an extra plate to «build» the fajita on, which I appreciate, but usually I have to ask them for the plate. They come with two tortillas, which are now larger so I can fit all my chicken into them. They used to bring out the fajitas on a sizzling platter, but the last time I was there they didn’t use it.
Overall I am pleased with the quality and affordability of my meal at this restaurant. When I first came to this restaurant, when the guys were running it, I needed to avoid a young female server because she almost totally ignored me. I went to the tables that the men served and everything was fine. So far the ladies are doing a satisfactory job, but I have not left higher than a 15% tip since they took over because there is always something lacking in the service or quality of the food. I might have to seek out the restaurant where they moved the guys in the future, perhaps they are at the Los Osos restaurant?
Follow-​up: I went here for chicken fajitas tonight and was quite disappointed! They were dry, primarily due to the lack of veggies in the pan. I hadn’t realized how much moisture the veggies added. They also gave me a plate with less sour cream and guacamole, without the bed of shredded lettuce under them. The service was slow, probably because they only had one server. I ended up eating two bowls of chips. The server was friendly, and probably overworked, but the food lacked quality. This was more than just disappointing due to the fact that this was to be my final restaurant meal for a long time since I ran out of my unemployment insurance.
Another follow-​up: I stopped by here again during breakfast and they totally ignored me while I was at the table. The building was quite warm, there were no napkins or utensils on the table (even after my salad was brought to me). When I ordered the fajitas the server looked at her watch, I suppose that she decided it was late enough for fajitas. When my salad arrived it was drenched with water and there were no croutons. I watched her bring out another diner’s burrito, and then 5 minutes later the rest of the table’s food came out! They didn’t offer a chips refill, even though I had to wait quite a bit for the food to be served. When the «extras» plate came out it was placed WAY on the other side of the table! And the plate was sort of «used» looking, not clean. It was almost like this was a different restaurant!
More Follow-​up: I dined here the other day and, as usual, I ordered the fajitas. I found it interesting that the men seem to be back in charge of the restaurant, the same men as before. Perhaps the men and women trade off restaurants seasonally? I know there is a Maya in Los Osos and I think I saw one in Paso Robles, as well. The «extras» plate was better than recently, but the fajitas were a bit dry. Also, the salad was simply shredded lettuce, not chunks. It had some shredded cheese on the top that I removed to use with my fajitas. The men were pleasant and the food is still good. I will still return here, since they really do have the best fajitas in town!
Bottom line: The inconsistency of this restaurant can be frustrating, but the servers are usually friendly and their chicken fajitas are the best in town.

I’ve been eating at Maya’s for quite a while. I would guess it’s been around six or seven years. My grandparents moved here and every time my family would visit we came here on our last day.
The food at Maya’s is your typical greasy Mexican food that you can get in any city of California. The portions are huge, the prices are low, and you’re guaranteed to leave full and satisfied.
Ever since my very first time here I’ve always ordered the same thing. Usually when I eat out (especially places I’ve never been) I try to order something different or that I haven’t tasted before. But the good ol’ cheese enchiladas are so good here I can never pass them up. The cheese is melted, gooey, and oozing all over the place and the tortillas are warm and soft. When cut-​up and mixed together with the beans and rice the dish becomes amazing Mexican slop.
The service is charming, nice, and they always attend to empty drinks and plates. We’ve also talked to the chefs and managers on some occasions. Plus you can’t complain about the cheap beer! Also, being attached to a small motel means plenty of parking right by the door (in-​case you’re with older folks).