Just Tacos

Decent food. Excellent service.
Lots of tequila options. I’m guessing that the more tequila you drink the better the food tastes.
Can’t go wrong with happy hour — drinks and chips/​salsa/​guac!

I almost didnt give this place a chance after my 1^st experience at the Mililani location.
I give this place 3 stars because I’ve been there on a:
–slow Thursday night where it wasn’t too busy, we got great service with our waters full almost the whole night AND
–a BUSY Saturday night where the bar & restaurant was full, the service was REALLY BAD, we received the wrong order, then got the correct one 10 mins after the 1^st one was eaten, seen sauce fall off a tray on to the hair of a customer, our waters were always empty, and we seen people walk out!
My group of friends (5 of us) are a very easy bunch and not critical. 3 of 5 of us were there on both accounts here. We took in to account the busy and understaffed restaurant. Truthfully just staff more people on busy nights in it’ll be much better.
Over all I love the calamari, best I tasted from all over. I usually order that as an appetizer where ever I go. As for all the other food, from what each of ordered, everything was great.

Woo-​hooooo! My very first «First to Review»!
I was super hungry after my colonoscopy and so I decided to come here to satisfy my Mexican fix.
I ordered the three taco meal, consisting of carne asada, carnitas, and birrio.
Couple good things:
1) food came out super fast
2) waiter was super friendly and attentive
3) they have the HUGEST collection of different types of tequila that I have ever seen in a restaurant
Now the bad:
1) the tacos were rather tasteless. I couldn’t distinguish one taco from the other, despite choosing 3 different types of meat. But, the spicy salsa is good, and u can put enough salsa on your taco as you want (catch my drift?)
Bottom line: Am I coming back? Definitely not! (unless it’s to get ripped on tequila) Was I disappointed in the food? Yes.
This is a franchised Mexican restaurant in Hawaii, so what did do you expect? Then again, I remember that I liked eating at Chevy’s, which is another franchised Mexican eating place in Cali.
I should have spent my calories and money elsewhere, and I’m now bummed that I Blessed my squeaky clean colon with this place.

They have a ridiculously extensive tequila collection at the bar and some interesting margarita and specialty drinks with prices you’d expect at a restaurant. What isn’t extensive is the menu. There are enough choices that would keep you interested for a visit or two, but unless you’re trying to sample more tequilas than you’d ever remember, this place may get old fast. We tried the shrimp, carne asada, and pork carnitas. The meats were a little bland, but tender. Overall, I don’t think this is a satisfying place for a Mexican meal, but okay for a snack and some margaritas.

Pearl City, HI location:
I can’t express how fast this place is headed in a downward spiral!
First visit: awesome food, good service, food prepared fresh.
Second visit: poor service, waiteress had no clue what we were ordereing from their own menu?
Third visit: nice food, fair service.
Fourth (and very last visit): Waitress was too busy hanging out at the bar talking to other employees rather than sevicing customers. Waitress took orders wrong, blamed on kitchen, but when you order carne asada and pulled pork comes out TWICE you kinda get a hint that something is very wrong. Menu claimed tableside guacamole prep, didn’t happen was prepared by the bar in order to keep in touch with her fellow employee, every other time was prepped tableside? We ordered a side guacamole, the portion was smaller than usual, when ordering a second guacamole, it was mysteriously back to its correct size? no refills on drinks? Food came out in stages, ranging from 5 – 10 minutes apart? There was 3 other tables with customers in the restaraunt at the time each with couples, so there was no crazy rush?
All in all this place had alot of potential to be «THE» best spanish food around but the quality control has obviously left the building! I feel very sorry for the owner (s) their money is being wasted.
**UPDATE** owner left me a messege asking me to come into his koolina location, i answered 3 months later and he did not honor or reply.

The first time I went to Just Tacos was with some coworkers when the place was pretty new. Much like the other restaurants in the area, it was pretty small and unassuming with several tables to eat at and not much else. It looked okay, but I didn’t end up eating there.
When I just went the other day with my girlfriend, however, the place looked much improved. There’s a nice big bar there littered with all kinds of tequila and I noticed a lot of people drinking mojitos and margueritas, which looked pretty good. Our server greeted us and she was a very friendly and attentive waitress. Unfortunately, the positives end there.
My gf’s quesadilla was very drab to put it mildly. It was only a quesadilla by definition, really, just barely meeting the ingredient requirements. It was incredibly plain and way too oily.
My food was way worse. I had a shrimp fiesta and let me just say that I wish I didn’t RSVP to that fiesta. It basically comes with shrimp prepared in three different ways, each more horrible than the last. The best tasting one was a battered shrimp. This would have been good, but the batter was too thick and you could barely taste the shrimp. And it was incredibly oily. The next was a cheese covered shrimp wrapped in bacon, which sounds good, except the bacon wasn’t cooked. Two out of the three of the shrimps had virtually raw pieces of bacon. The third variation I can’t even describe, but it was the least appetizing of them all, so I’ll refrain from saying what it tasted like.
Overall, you normally expect Mexican food to mess up your stomach a bit, but you at least want some food that makes it worth it. If it wasn’t for the excellent service, this place would have gotten one star from me.

HC and I decided to eat dinner at Just Tacos last night after running to Wal-​Mart. He loves Mexican food, so we’re always looking for new restaurants to try.
We ordered chips and salsa. I tried their spicy salsa and it was really hot! Thought it was great though. I ordered the enchiladas with green sauce and HC got the huge burrito with ground beef. The servings were huge! I was able to make another lunch and dinner from my leftovers. HC was able to finish his meal, which was surprising since there was so much food! I didn’t think he’d be able to finish it.
I think we may have gone close to closing time, but that still doesn’t excuse the kind of service we received. There was one waitress and a bartender. The waitress seemed friendly enough at first, but as time went on, we saw less and less if her. We ended having to ask the bartender for a takeout box and our bill. We have no idea where she went. Guess what she lost out on? Yep, a good tip.

I decided to give Just Tacos one more shot. In the mood for mexican food and a mojito, sure enough I pass Just Tacos, and decide, oh what the hell, it’s worth another chance.
Boy, was I surprised. My first visit there was a mediocre experience. Wasn’t impressed since it was not a restaurant, but instead, just a mere order and take out. Now, on my second visit, it’s a full blown restaurant and bar.
Now onto the food. They don’t have much to choose from, but I believe it’s just enough selection. I chose to get the two tacos, one pork, and one steak. The pork I’ll give a thumbs up, the steak wasn’t bad, but wasn’t remarkable either. It also comes with beans and rice for a reasonable $ 15.
Service was good in my opinion. Food and drinks came promptly, and the waitresses were very attentive, and made sure we were okay. The atmosphere was great as well, a small and laid-​back place.
Overall, I was very impressed, and enjoyed my meal. I will definitely be coming back!

It’s okay. Service was okay, not exceptional. Alright for a fast Mexican fix. There are definitely better places for Mexican food out there.

This place has been renovated since the last time I came here. They have a margarita bar and place to sit at the bar or booth. Servers nice. Price is kind of pricey but big portions. Will come back for their margaritas.

A new year offers a new beginning for this grand reopening Mexican restaurant. Owned by Hispanics from California, they know exactly what they’re doing.
I ordered the ceviche (fish marinated and cooked by the lime) come w/​chips, guacamole and a side of salsa. My husband ordered the three tacos plate (birria, chicken and carne asada), comes with beans and rice.
We normally share, so I always get a bite of everything. My fish was served in a cone shaped glassware and it was topped off to the rim. The perfect bite is a bit of fish on the chip, a bit of guacamole and their awesome mild salsa. In the mouth it goes and I was hooked.
The prices are decent and at first bite, you’ll quickly realize how your taste buds are surprised with bold flavors.
The pictures that I have taken to share with you, speaks for itself. It’s authentic and I’m a fan. Their tacos are delicious, but their beans are overly salted.
I think one of the problems with the Mexican restaurants in Hawaii, is each restaurant has only 2 or 3 solid dishes. I’m hoping this is not one of them, since this was our first visit.
If you are a connoisseur of tequila, you’ll be intrigued with what the waitresses and owner’s overwhelming knowledge of this fine liquor. They make all their drink with fresh squeezed fruits and no bottled stuff. So go ahead, order their mango margarita and you will see the actual fruit being squeezed. So be patient with your bartender and the reward will come.
The nicely decorated, natural brown tones throughout the restaurant reaches all the way to the bathrooms. This is a clean, very inviting environment that offers booth, table and plenty of bar seating. You can either have a nice dinner here or chill out with 2 nice flat screen TV to entertain you.

I think it’s a pretty cool lil MEXICAN joint for a quick fix. The bar was amazing wow. I luved my tacos they were actually very good and my wife got the Fijitas she said they were pretty good. The cheese dip, well we thought it was cheese dip lol. It is just melted Monteray Jack, and our waitress told us that when she brought it out she wasn’t lying lol. I“m giving it 4 out of 5 stars, I like my food, the service was really good, the bar is amazing, the size of the place is kinda small but very nice. We will eat there again sometime in the future.

My first and last time going here at the Pearl City Just Tacos. I love tacos and I’ve eaten a lot of Mexican food and this is not among the best. Nice little place with a small atmosphere and decent location, but needs improvement. This place has a lot of potential, but lacks service and food quality to keep its customers coming back for more.
We ordered two of the two taco plate with one Birria and Carnitas, the other with fish and cochinita. For appetizers we had the chips and salsa and margaritas.
First of all the the plates were big but the serving is actually pretty small with one serving spoons worth of Spanish rice and beans that tasted like they came straight out of the can. On the up side the Birria tasted pretty good, but the Carnitas tasted like leftovers that had just been reheated in the microwave and Cochinita was like a dry variation of the Carnitas. For the quality, the food was really over priced.
The service was bad. There was only on bartender and two gentlemen on the floor and one of waiters were really nice and attentive, but he seemed like he was the only one waiting on people. I wouldn’t really care, but if I have to wait almost 10 – 15 minutes for some to take my order and the other waiter is hustling and you are just standing around looking pretty while you have guests who are waiting outside… what are you doing?
Two stars for the Margaritas, the Birria, the bar, the music, and the ONE nice waiter… and thats it NO MAS.

I frequent the JUST TACOS in Mililani quite often, and after the Pro-​Bowl decided to try out the new location, since it was pretty close!
Its located in a strip mall, and is somewhat difficult to find.
Its VERY small compared to every other location.
It wasnt very crowded, but our meal took about an hour to come out. every 15 minutes or so the waitress would stop at our table and assure us our food would be out shortly. My dish came out about 10 minutes before my friends did, and it was already cold!
Super disappointed with the service, or lack of at the new Just Tacos. the Mililani and Ko Olina locations are MUCH better!
This one just sucks!

OK, I was a little skeptical when I saw the dramatic jump from one to five stars but I checked it out, and it really is good. I never ate there before, so I can’t compare, but obviously someone had a come-​to-​Jesus moment and put things in a different direction. Wait staff were over-​the-​top attentive and the food came out fresh, hot and delicious.
I had the two taco combo plate with shrimp and «birria,» which is marinated beef (like barbacoa). The birria was really good, but I was a little skeptical about the shrimp because it said it was breaded. I like the fresh, healthy style of unbreaded shrimp tacos– BUT, it was one huge shrimp in a tempura-​type breading that made it a little crunchy and wasn’t heavy at all. I would definitely order it again. I liked that the sour cream, guacamole, and cheese were served on the side so you could decide how much to indulge in. Also, the «hot» salsa I asked for was obviously fresh and had a really good flavor in addition to a sizable «kick.»
Comparing this to taco bell is like comparing Ruth’s Chris to McDonalds (both serve grilled beef). If you’re looking to scratch that Mexican itch here in Hawaii (and I was– I grew up in San Diego), I would say this is the place to go.
A few small suggestions for the owners: for lunch you might consider making things a bit cheaper to compete with the lunch crowd. Like, a few $ 6 – 9 plates would be awesome. I don’t mind paying $ 11 – 16 for dinner, I expect it, but I probably wouldn’t go routinely for lunch. The other thing is, throw in a small basket of chips to get people started. It’s authentic Mexican hospitality and it won’t cost you much. Otherwise keep up the good work!

UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT and definitely not the same place as before. Do not pay attention to the reviews prior to January 2011.
Upon entering we were greeted very promptly from gentleman behind the bar. He told us to sit wherever we would like.
Upon sitting we were given menu’s and asked if we would like to start off with a cold beverage.
A couple minutes later we were ordering and we both ordered the 3 taco meal with your choice of 3 different types of taco filled with your choice of 8 different fillers. I ordered the chicken, ground beef, and carne asceda. They were all very good. The plate also came with refried beans and a relatively big scoop of Mexican rice. It is quite a bit of food for the price. The atmosphere is very nicely decorated, they have a couple big TV’s behind the bar and there is music playing in the background.
This restaurant is definitely different and if you have had a bad experience here before I’m sure that it will be different now. It was definitely a very good experience for me this time. Plus the food is good.

Ok so I am not a big fan/don’t eat Mexican Food but I tried the Food out last nite which was their reopening nite and it is «DA BOMB» Their burritos are sooo delicious and they have a «FULL BAR». The staff is great and very friendly and welcoming!!! The menu is full of pictures and easy to read and understand, it’s a simple menu but I don’t think you would get tired eating the food, because it is soo delicious and homemade!!! not your taco bell food! So if your in the neighborhood or just want to have some delicious Mexican food/​drinks you should check out Just Tacos!!! I highly recommend it!
P. S. They have «LI HING MUI MARGARITA»

OK Everyone! I have read the previous ratings and I will say this. .. . ignore them because Just Tacos Mexican Grill just REOPEN yesterday Thursday, January 20, 2011! New Menus, new cooks, new interior and even a full service bar (YES! A BAR). The pics provided below do no justice what is presented to you in person. I was greeted with a very happy and enthusiastic staff. Let’s get to the good stuff — THE MENU. It’s definitely not the same stuff like last time. I ordered the burrito with Carnes Asada (that’s marinated beef). Perfection along with the salsa is to die for! This is real salsa — not island fusion with pineapple, maui onion, and mango. I was introduced to Seniora, who proudly stands behind her cooking and she even had me sample their shrimp civiche. PERFECTION!
I am a picky eater when it comes to Mexican foods and Just Tacos Mexican Grill at PC hits the mark. After living in San Francisco’s Mission District, Fresno, Sacramento, San Jose I pretty much have trusted my palette for what is authentic and what isn’t. Just Tacos is the real deal and I don’t make a lot of recommendations because I expect a lot when I eat. This is one of a FEW places on the island where one can find TRUE Mexican food. Everything made from scratch and you can taste the difference too.
Tonight, I try the tacos platos and maybe test out the bar too — I will let everyone know! Do yourself the favor JUST TACOS MEXICAN GRILL at Pearl City next to the Starbucks — across from the WalMart!
Friday, January 21, 2001 7:00 P.M.
Hola los chikas and chikos! Here is my follow up that I promised!
I just had the tres tacos platos at Just Tacos Mexican Grill at PEARL CITY. Two word s” MUY DELICIOUSO” ! It doesn’t get any better than this — except the other menu items! I had the tacos carnitas (pork tacos) but you can also have other choices of meat and even a vegetarian style too! The meal was accompanied with a fantastic mexican rice and refried beans! Another HOME RUN! And I left again very happy. For anyone wanting to try authentic Mexican food, come to Pearl City.
OK EVERYONE — the staff is ready for your hungry stomachs! Have a Wabo Margarita too — a 60 ounce one! Speaking of which this place has an extensive collection of Tequila — maybe I can do a write up for that too.

My experience was actually pretty good. Girl with the Pink Polo had great customer service, and I like that she asked if I wanted lettuce and cheese on my tacos.
My little one and I stopped by before going home for dinner. I ordered two shrimp tacos, two shredded pork tacos (I forget what it was called or how to even say it), and a side of beans and rice for the little one.
The shrimp tacos were ok, maybe next time I’ll ask for no mayonaise. It would be even better if they maybe flavored the mayonnaise or made it an aoli. It’s just straight up mayo. Not good for my hips. I liked the deep fried shrimp and cabbage. MMmm. was pretty tasty.
The shredded pork tacos was massive, I put some salsa verde on it and it made it even better. I couldn’t taste the lime juices it was supposedly marinated in but it was tasty. And it made my tummy FULL!
The beans was ok, but I’m not a big beans fan. The rice was little bit hard and looked kind of day old or more, but my child ate it up. He doesn’t like tacos but he likes beans and rice. My nose definitely won’t be too happy with his diaper in a few hours.
All in all, it was actually a good experience for me. I like that they have a self-​serve salsa-​ish bar on the side… kind of reminds me of maui tacos except they didn’t have quite the same variety. I also adore the fact that they warm up your tortillas on a griddle first and that they have «FREE» drink refills!
I cleaned up after myself and put my rubbish in the rubbish and the baskets back on the counter, and Girl in the Pink Polo expressed thanks for not having to do it herself.
Nice and Clean. I liked it, I’m going to be going back for more.

Chef Ramsey would say, «taste everything!!» I feel bad for this place since the employees were so friendly and nice, but the food just doesn’t taste good.
I got the rolled beef tacos since I was craving some tacos, and you’d expect them to be good judging by their shop name… but, ick. The rolled tacos taste like the frozen taquitos you can buy at the super market and the refried beans had no taste. :(The rice was ok, but I’ve definitely had better.
The salsa bar was fresh and I liked being able to try 2 different salsas and grab some limes, but you can’t really go wrong with salsa. Or can you?
Sorry guys, but you should try your own food… it’s not that tasty. I’d rather spend $ 8 bucks and buy a whole box of taquitos and bake them in my own oven.