La Selva

This is SUCH a disappointing review to write!
The food is good and I was all set to write a rave !
Visit no 1: perfect! Food was delicious, service great
Visit no 2: Walked in at noon and was nonchalantly told that chicken wouldn’t be ready until 130 or 2!
Here’s a crazy idea, start cooking before you open so that you can serve customers the food on your menu! They were VERY unconcerned about me asking for food they didn’t have
Visit no 3: BLARING MUSIC
Huh? What? Huh? I can’t hear over the obnoxious juke box
Service was sooo rude!
Forty dollars worth of food and you’re giving a snotty attitude over an extra salsa cup? Yikes!
Visit no 4:
I am now legally deaf bc of the juke box. When I asked why it was so loud I was ignored. Wow.
Chicken this time was dry and order was wrong. Service was sloww
Adiós La Selva! This is one jungle I won’t be exploring again

the worst burrito we ever had I swear, friends of mine told me the something before but we wanted to check this out. good service but the food… down down down.

Came for the BBQ chicken I’ve heard so much about. I arrived at 12:15pm and was told there was no chicken available yet, they had only just begun grilling it. Smelled and looked delicious outside on the Q. Guess you have to come for a late lunch? Ordered a carnitas burrito instead which actually turned out to be very good, some of the best carnitas I’ve had in a long time.

Tasty grilled chicken! The salsa bar is huge with lots of delicious choices of mild, spicy, and HOT choices to dip your tortilla chips with.

S. Panza was kind enough to treat the Old Don to a tasty repast at this tidy and unpretentious café located In the Harbor Center of San Rafael. First of all the service was gracious and attentive. We received four or five inquires about our satisfaction with the food. They have a well laid out and imaginatively stocked salsa bar, that provides real bowls (not annoying little plastic mini cups) for the condiments. There is fresh bar-​b-​qued chicken roasting outside. This is the dish I had, a generous helping of four pieces of moist, tender chicken served with rice and refried beans and a substantial fresh herb, tomato and baby romaine salad garnish. That was a scrumptious main meal that would keep me for the day and all for less than seven dollars. For seven-​fifty, Sr. Panza had a Barbacoa platter rice beans salad and soft tacos served in a ceramic warming caddy. It looked lovely but Panza thought it over salted, and ate less than half of it and with out much gusto. I polished my plate and was reluctant to let the solicitous waitress remove the chips and salsa. Afterwards we took a walk in the harbor and its waterside surrounds. Some lovely boats and interesting small businesses. A very nice afternoon. Best, Don Qui.

I agree with everyone else the best thing to order here is the grilled chicken. Is it the best chicken I’ve ever had? No! Not really but it is the best chicken I’ve ever had in a Taqueria in California thus far.
Is it a 5 star joint? Nope its a taqueria hidden beside a Harbor in a 1950’s era shopping center with strange jungle décor. I dropped off another star because the salsas and meats (pork, steak, chicken) are inconsistent. Sometimes great sometimes dry and chewy, welcome to a 3 star joint peeps.
Why is their chicken so dang good?
The whole chicken gets smothered in an Achiote style rub that is a popular meat rub from tropical Latin America. It is a bright red herby spicy mix that adds a whole lot of flavor to grilled meats. It reminds me of some cajun blackened mix. Then they slow grill the pollos over a fire pit out front till they get some nice smokey black markings.
So what are some good tips Pollo?
Numero Uno,
Be here directamente at Lunch Time or your chicken will be dry. It seems they do most of their chicken grilling right before the 12 O’Clock rush so this is your best bet on a juicy piece.
Numero Dos,
The bright green Avocado salsa is the best Mexican Green salsa in Marin County. There I said it sorry for ya Farolito y Taq. San Jose! It’s got a hint of acidity but not over the top like their darker tomatillo salsa.
Numero Tres,
Try all of the salsas at the salsa bar which get prepared and changed out daily. My second favorite salsa here is their red chipotle salsa not to be confused with some of the other red salsas that they make. One red salsa has a ton of Chile de Arbol and will stoke a fire in ya mouth. Another one was a strange attempt at the classic fire roasted red. so taste your salsa before you start smothering it on your chicken.
Numero Cuatro,
The half chicken plate is the best bang for your buck. The chicken tacos are great and cheap too from the same chicken but i prefer building my own tacos from meat off the bone. The pork and steak tacos were mediocre to me due to inconsistent quality.
Any Complaints?
Yep! When you order half a chicken they cut my favorite part, the breast piece, in half (I assume that’s for taco meat?). So in reality I’m getting a three eights chicken but I guess that doesn’t sound as good as getting half. Oh well it’s still hella better than Fartolito.
Nos Vemos La Selva.

I love this place. What a find!
I had the oft-​mentioned half grilled chicken plate with black beans, Spanish rice, and salad and it was spot on! It also made for amazing value for money at $ 6.95 (plus tax) for all that food. I am usually done with just the rice, salad and quarter of a chicken; the flour tortilla, beans, and remaining quarter chicken makes for another meal!
The complementary salsa bar had a good spread and I enjoyed the salsa on offer with the chips. One of my friends said he loved the condiments on there (they had turnips, pickled potatoes, and some other stuff that I didn’t really check on)
The service too is quick and friendly.

We learned about La Selva (The Jungle) when we attended the San Rafael Food and Wine festival recently. The food was to sample, but it was so good, we waited in line two more times, and then went to the restaurant to order us up more of their delicious chicken. The chicken is grilled to perfection, is scrumptious, and there is a great salsa-​bar for chips and your food. The rice and beans that came with our meal was equally as delicious as the chicken.
The staff was helpful when ordering, and very friendly too. They invited us to the Dancing during the night, which they host in the restaurant– we couldn’t make it but we did notice some huge box speakers located throughout the restaurant– so it is most likely similar to a regular night-​club as far as sound and atmosphere is concerned.
We have definitely found a great place to eat whenever we find ourselves in the North Bay.
Great food, great service, great people, and on a side note, I believe it to be a family owned business from the feel of it, but everything is professional, clean, and the food is great– if I didn’t mention that already!

Talk about some excellent food. DANG!!! One of the best salsa bars I have ever experienced and the owners are some of the coolest people in town. You can really tell that they care about the food and their customers. Everything from the rice, beans, and salsa all had such good flavor and care. Someone really loves what they do for a living, Cesar! I can’t believe I didn’t know about this place, make sure you find this hidden gem of San Rafael in the Harbor Center.

The food is great. I had the Pollo Al Carbon, which was grilled outside over a huge charcoal grill, with beans and rice; it was delicious. The chicken had some kick from the rub they added. The value for the portion was awesome. They had a chip bar like no other. Yes!, I found a new spot for Mexican food.

Awesome Pollo Al Carbon! (Grilled chicken)
They grill the chicken outside over a huge charcoal grill. The chicken is dry spiced, and puts Mi Pueblo’s grilled chicken to shame. They have a lot more spices going on, and a bit of heat from cayenne pepper I believe.
The half chicken plate is a great value at $ 6.95, which comes with rice, refried beans, and a romaine tomato salad.
The salsa bar is HUGE, with about 6 different salsas (some really spicy ones), house pickled jalapenos, pineapples, cabbage slaw and other items.
They have tacos for $ 1.50, burritos, quesadillas, tortas, enchiladas, bistek ranchero, and fajitas.
The seafood menu includes mojarra dorada, camarones al mojo de ajo, camarones a la diabla, camarones con pollo, cocktel de camaron, agua chile, empanadas de camaron, pascado veracruzano, 7 mares, campechana.
Their specials include Camarones La Selva, chile verde, mole con pollo, chile relleno, caldo de res, caldo de pollo, wilotas en tomatillo, birria de chivo.
Birria and menudo on the weekends.
They have beer, aqua frescas, Mexican cokes, Jarritos, etc. and AC for these hot days.
Karaōke on Saturdays!