Picoso! Mexican Grill

Thank god this place closed. I would show up to find them closed on random days and noon hours. They were always out of something, whether it was guacamole or chips, or something. I always used to see an employee chatting it up with either customers or friends. what a piece of crap… GoodBYE

Stars are based on service and the fact an employee was downright ripping me off. Loved this place til The Señora with short orange hair charged me $ 8 for picoso papas-​I commented while paying saying ‘Wow, $ 12 for fries and a soda?’ to which she said ‘yes’ and then after she gave me the receipt I saw that she keyed in ‘STEAK fries’ which was wrong, and rather than her working out the difference, she rolls her eyes, pulls out $ 2 from the register and shunned me away. Que tonta!!! :(this broad SUX !

This place is somewhat like Chipotle but with more flavor. I love the tortas with guacamole and the tacos as well.

They skipped out & abandoned the place… my husband said, maybe if they had the papas they advertise they’d be able to pay their rent.

UPDATE: They were actually open for once and the place is similar to chipotle so if you like that make up, then maybe this place is for you too.
This place seriously needs to update this Unilocal account because THEY ARE NOT OPEN on Sundays nor are they open before 12. I’ve gone more than once already just to find it closed or to be told as soon as i enter, oh we’re still closed.
Not to mention that they don’t accept cards only cash. Don’t bother with this place, they obviously don’t want business being closed all the time…

I’ve been here twice, and I’ve yet to complain. Overall the restaurant is really good! The food is good, and the place is a little hidden. Unfortunately due to its location the place isn’t as busy as it should be. Employees here were courteous and quick. 5 stars from me, until I’ve received different service. Overall good experience.

++++
I’m very confused about the experience I had today in this weird place.
***I had a Groupon «rush, get here before 8:30***
First of all, the place looked abandoned and I could actually hear crickets when I walked in (I’m lying). There was NO ONE… not even any servers…
When she finally came out (restroom, I assume), I asked for 3 quesadillas. She says «we have NO cheese for quesadillas» and I was like WTF? Let me guess, the crowd I had to fight through the door ordered up all the quesadillas? So I was pissed off but I said to myself «ok, self, calm down and order the next best thing» so I said «let me guess, you have no bread for the Tortas either right?» and she looks at me and said «no, we have no bread for the Tortas»
OK, so WTF??? No Tortas, No Quesadillas…
I ended up ordering 3 SMALL burritos and 1 sad bowl for $ 35.00! With the Groupon, I ended up paying like $ 20.00 of the $ 35.00 but it was NOT worth it AT ALL!
Groupon is used to attract more business but this place has it ALL twisted!
NEVER will I go there again!
I rather eat beans at home :/​
WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY!
++++

UPDATE: The place has gone through a transformation since I last visited. They have always had less then competent and patient staff but now they just frustrate me.
I placed my order well before two ladies walked in. The lady could not understand a basic question as she was stuck with her original answer to my first question. FRUSTRATING.
Then, my order was ready well before the ladies behind me but because the other employee had already started inputing it into the register, the person helping me tried in vain to delete everything and charge me. This took 2 minutes. Then the other employee got to the register to help but rather than charge me, he charged them. This took another 2 minutes. When he finally got to me, he went to the back for who knows what. FRUSTRATING
Although the place still looks nice, the service has degraded to the point of less than a street taco stand.

Right off my first bite. This is already better than QDOBA! Only reason I found out about this place was through a deal I got from Groupon, or else I would of never heard of it. Similar to all these other so-​called Mexican places. Rubio, Qdoba, Chipotle, Cilantro, Freebirds. etc! Well after a few bites my taste buds decided it was better than all of those!
Horchata: Was very good and authentic. no machine horchata crap. freshly made! That’s one thing I really enjoy when it comes to drinking horchata
Burrito: Added Carne Asada. which in my opinion had a great taste and of course NO FAT! You have two options of choosing either hard boiled beans or refried beans. got refried and were good as well. As I was going down the aisle they have the usual to add from the other places but one thing that got my attention and just was a winner for me was the BUTTERY CORN. Unlike Chipotle who has corn also but difference with this one was that they don’t add purple onions, which to me or anyone that hates onions never gets it for that reason. Lady was kind enough to give me a sample and right off the bat I said YES… THROW SOME OF THAT CORN ON THERE…
So I def will be coming here again but during lunch hour. since I seen a sign they had outside «Burrito (Chicken or Pork) & drink for $ 5»

Quick breakdown:
Cost: 2 adults, two children — $ 45.00…Yikes. ‘Could’ve eaten at an actual sit down restaurant’, was what I said to the husband.
Taste: Tortas were good, the loaded nacho french fry thingies were delish, the drinks were assorted and refreshing, with refills included.
Bottom line: Due to the down turn in economy, it’s a little too pricey for a family of four to eat there all the time, but it was worth trying once.

2 ½ stars… really on the fence about this place. This last time I went the food was cold, they said they had no microwave so they couldn’t even melt the cheese. But, the manager replaced my meal with some to-​go orders and sincerely apologized and asked us to give them another try,
The atmosphere is nice, classy. The workers are nice enough but the food needs seasoning desperately and they have got to serve hot food.

Though the décor is shiny and new, the food is reminiscent of Chipotle and little pricey.
Pros:
–Menu is easy to choose from, not overwhelming
–Tortillas are made as needed in front of you
–Everything is made to your specification «on the line» (e.g. Subway style)
Cons:
–The food is served on styrofoam plates
–Food is CRYING for salt but there’s only one shaker in the whole restaurant.
–If you ask for things like guacamole while you’re going down the line, be prepared to pay extra $ 1.50 without anyone warning you
–The dark red salsa is on the extreme side of spicy
I most likely won’t be returning for a second visit.

I que picoso!
This place is a serious yummies to my tummies!
WHAT A DEAL! for $ 10 I received a $ 20 gift certificate. So my sister and I went and feasted on so much food that I still had .88 to spare. I couldn’t believe it! we ordered two chicken bowls, an order of chips AND guacamole, with a coke and a freshly made jamaica (not the kind that come in fountain machines) and wow! talk about amazing!
The staff was really nice and welcoming too!!! which is ALWAYS a plus in my book… They offered advice and joked around with us while we waited for our chicken to finish grilling. Let me add by saying that those chicken bowls are like wow! huge! I did not finish my food and when I took it home my boyfriend ate it a couple hours later and said it was delicious. 2 people can eat off one bowl!
That’s pretty good when the left overs are still tasty. I definetely recommend this place to the fullest. It’s waaaay better than chipotle also! It has that chipotle feel to it but far from it. Gosh thinking about it … I think I’m headed there for lunch today ;)

Tried this place because of the Unilocal deal ($ 10 for $ 20).
Some people say it’s a «knock-​off» of Chipotle, but I actually think it’s better than Chipotle! The ingredients are fresh, there are more meat options, and the workers are friendly and let you take your time. They also have daily specials, which happened to be fish and shrimp tacos the day I went. I ordered a bowl with carne asada and al pastor, and my friend had papas and al pastor and barbacoa. I liked the al pastor and barbacoa better because the carne asada was a little tougher, but they were all pretty good. We also tried the shrimp and fish tacos, and they were tasty, but it was weird because they chopped them up into tiny pieces. We ended up having too much food, but with the deal it was good and cheap!

Picoso, a knock-​off «we can do better than Chipotle» restaurant.
Not bad, by all means, good food. Simple, and quick.
The menu is kind of confusing if it is your first time eating here, but you might have to ask them the price of a few things.
I gave Picoso a 4-​star because of two major things:
1. Firstly, they waste a lot of food. Every time I have gone into Picoso, they forget to leave the tortilla on the warmer, or keep the hand-​made tortillas on the grill too long and throw them away. If I was the manager I would be livid! The tortillas were fine, not burnt by any means, but apparently they weren’t usable. I guess there are two sides to this; first, they want to keep everything uniform. second, my thinking, is that if it was ²⁄₂ times they threw product away that would amount to a lot of waste and you would be losing money!
2. Secondly, and most importantly, THE SERVICE SUCKS!!! Every time I come to Picoso I feel as if the employees don’t care that I chose their restaurant over others. I am a paying customer and should be smiled at, and treated better! I am not conceited, but I do live by the rule that customer service is one the main aspects to a successful business.
I would of given Picoso a 3-​star, but due to the lack of greed from Picoso, I will settle with 4-​stars. I mean by this, they allow as many scoops of toppings you want. They don’t nickle and dime you for added toppings. They do have free re-​fills, and they offer free limes, and hand sanitizer at the exit/​entrance!
(Also, please don’t grab the bathroom key with the same hand you make my food with!)

Yum

The taco trio is quite filling. Although the tacos are on the smaller side, there’s a lot of meal in the filling. The al pastor came across as a little saucy, but not bad. I really liked the carnitas and barbacoa tacos. All three were spicier than I was anticipating, but not in a bad way.
We also got the chips and meat. The girl behind the counter asked if we wanted to add corn and fajita toppings. We weren’t sure, so we just said «okay.» I think next time we might decide to go without those two extra toppings. The corn made it sweet in a strange way.
I didn’t have a Unilocal deal at the time, but especially with that, you can’t go wrong.

I want to start with the positives.
Firstly, the servers here are great. Genesis (BAMF name) helped me out and was really patient and diligent about figuring out to input my Unilocal Deal into their system.
Secondly, the entire interior had a nice, clean feel to it. All their menus cycle on flatscreen TVs and the walls aren’t too busy — very simple.
Lastly, housemade tortillas for their tacos. Nothing more needs to be said about freshness.
For this very reason, I got their Carne Asada Tacos and unfortunately, freshness does not equate to being tasty.
The meat, while tender, was near flavorless. It didn’t taste bad — it just didn’t taste at all.
If later reviews say that the food’s getting better, I’ll give it another go — a new Mexican place is always appreciated — but until then, no dice.

I heard about Picoso through a friend and even though it’s out of the way for me (Pasadena) I decided to swing by and I’m SOOOO HAPPY I did. I had a really great experience with tons of yummy food.
#Chipotle Comparisons#
A few people are comparing Picoso to Chipotle, but I feel that’s like comparing In-​N-​Out to McDonald’s. Here are some differences: Instead of sour cream Picoso uses crème fraiche which really adds something special to the flavor. They HANDMAKE EVERY SINGLE TORTILLA. If you’re not Hispanic maybe that doesn’t matter to you, but dude, i’m seriously impressed by in-​house tortilleras, it makes a BIG difference. Picoso also makes their own home made Horchata every day… not like Chipotle… just saying…*shrugs*
Food Variety
— — — — -
So obviously, it’s a Mexican Grill, so lots of meat and chicken (you can order without the meat in case you’re vegetarian). They’ve got all the staples: tacos, nachos, tortas, fajitas and most importantly they have their Picoso Papas (steak cut fries tossed with garlic, cilantro, and lime juice served with Chipotle cheese sauce = mind blown.) They had several different sauces to choose from to put on your taco/​salad/​burrito/​bowl including this awesome fresh corn salsa.
Taste
— — — -
The food is INCREDIBLY fresh and flavorful. The guacamole is super creamy and tangy. The salsas are exactly like the kind you’d have at family gatherings. The meat is SO GOOOOOOD. Words cannot describe: it’s tender, smokey and has just the right amount of seasoning. Delicious. I literally daydream about their Picoso Papas… Literally.
Portions
—–
HUGE. I’ve got a healthy appetite and I’m usually stuffed after a mere 2 tacos. You’ll definitely have delicious leftovers.
Price
——
I think the price is suuuuuper cheap. Plus, there’s a good chance you’ll have leftovers. (SUPPORT LOCAL SMALL BUSINESSES!!!)
Customer Service
—–
The people who work there are really nice and answer all your questions (that’s how I found about the horchata!!!). Everyone is bilingual. Plus, no one bothers you so you can stick around as long as you like to use the free wifi.
Décor
—-
Inside it’s really neat and minimal, kinda trendy. Good music. And you see all kinds of people eating there.
GO TO PICOSO. I wish I lived closer so I could go more often :)

Great Service!!! Very Yummy food! I recommending this place to anyone that love great Mexican Cuisine.
I order the chicken bowl and the chicken is so flavorful its so yummy OMG!!!
And the guacamole is soooo good i want more!!!
Great Prices! Love it!!!