El Chorlito Mexican Restaurant

The wife and I just love this place. We’ve coming here since the late 90s every time we’re in the area. We went there two weeks ago, sat outside, enjoyed the sunlight and our picture postcard view of the ocean. Oscar was very attentive and the food was good. I like the salsa, it had a bit of a kick to it. Yes, we would recommend this place, We’ve taken our friends there in the past and they liked it, too.

It was ok, I went with my wife and 2 kids. I ordered the Fajitas steak… the rice was broken, meaning it was stirred too much after it was made probably because it was reheated a couple of times during the day. The fajitas are not your traditional ones, these were not grilled, but done on a pan and so were steamed, overdone and soggy. So, in the end it was ok.

Kinda a bummer that it was bad. We stopped by on our way back from Big Sur on V-​Day. It wasn’t busy but I guess was down to only one server. It took awhile before we even gave a drink order, then more time to get the drinks, then more time before the only server came over to take our order. The kids working there were polite however.
The food got to us in less time that it took to even get the drink order. It looked great, then I tasted it, flavorless, and the taco fell apart. I ordered 2 taco’s with rice and beans (shredded beef). They only use one tortilla on the taco, the shredded beef was flavorless and greasy, this explains why the tacos fell apart before making it to my mouth. The rice and beans were a bit «crusty» like they were reheated in a microwave or something… that type of old texture if you know what I mean. The wife orders a enchilada with rice and beans. Same deal with the rice and beans and the enchilada was horrible. Not sure what type of sauce they used, but they should stop using it.
I guess it was average in price. The venue was cool and they have a good view if they seat you in the right spot. The restroom (men’s) was a bit filthy and smelled like piss. I’m pretty good at hitting my target, but there was no reason pee had to be all over the floor.
Other than the politeness of the server and whoever the other kids were, this place is just bad. I think the food is either comes from a can or is pre-​made a and days old.

I have to say El Chorlito is not as bad as the reviews I am reading. Yes, at night it is VERY dark. We happened to go on a Thursday evening. Not too many people in the restaurant. At times I felt like I was in a library. Had to keep our voices lower than normal due to the close proximity of other guests. Which is quite hard to do with my family! HAHA Anyways, the food was pretty good. I judge a Mexican restaurant usually by their chips and salsa and we loved the chips and salsa. The rice and beans on the plates was fantastic as well. No, they do not have a license for hard alcohol, so we stuck with beer. Which is just fine. I would recommend someone to eat at El Chorlito. As a previous reviewer mentioned, there are not many places to choose to eat in San Simeon, but I would not disregard this restaurant.

The interior is nice the service was topnotch. They quickly arranged a table for our party of nine, and they did not rush us out when were done with dinner and talking about our photo adventures earlier in the day. The food was just barely okay.
I had a taco and a chili relleno ala carte. The asada taco was pretty good if I had realized how large it was I would not have ordered the relleno. The chili was buried in sauce and did not have much cheese inside. I gave half of it away and still could not finish it. I suspect if it had been better I might have made an effort.
There are not many places to eat in San Simeon. This will not be a repeat for me!

Their food was okay… It definitely was not the worst Mexican food I’ve had but it’s isn’t by any means close to the good Mexican food I’m used to… The service was okay and the place was kind of cute :)

I am 59 years old and Worst experience I’ve had in a long time. Waitress was very rude to me. Told me «that I needed to pay attention to her»!!! Without customers, she would not be employed. There was a group of us and messed up all our bills. I will never visit this establishment again. Then to top it off… They added a 18% gratuity to our bill!
I will ensure I NEVER go back! Worst waitress ever!

Two cheese enchiladas with (a dark) red sauce that tasted homemade, plus the standard refried pinto beans and Spanish rice. I haven’t been here in YEARS and they sure have fancified. the place UP! The servers are very conscientious and attentive. Not much of an Oceanside view at this hour, but the lovely interior décor makes up for that. I see they’ve added two outdoor patio areas in the intervening years since I’ve been here — one covered and glassed in (for windy days, I imagine) and one not. Also the landscaping is charming and well-​tended.

Not so great… food was very average and there was no spicy salsa! How does a Mexican restaurant not have spicy salsa? Service was okay. Our whole experience as average at best. However, they do have a really nice view of the ocean.

The best Salsa I’ve had by far!
Love the view from the patio on a sunny day, which is quite often.
Fish tacos pretty good too, I’d say one of my favorites.

Pretty terrible food. Rice wasn’t cooked fully, everyone’s plate had no flavor, super bland, one of our Chile Relleno had no cheese in it (which is supposed to be with jack cheese). The food as a whole was super bland… Salt is NEEDED, but still doesn’t give any flavor. I won’t be coming back.

Sadly this was by far the worst Mexican food I’ve ever had. Even worse than I Hawaii’s Mexican food that I have experienced. I’ve never had food that was both overly spicy yet incredibly bland before.
My chile relleno didn’t even have cheese, and I checked the entire chile. My Spanish rice wasn’t fully cooked, the rice was actually raw and crunchy. The food was over priced. And the water was salty. The Coke was flat and salty and the tea was salty. The only thing I could find to drink was chocolate milk. They told us after the fact that it was because they were using well water, but the restaurant Cavalier (recommended) was filtered and unsalted.
Not only will I never go back, I will warn all my friends to avoid this place at all cost.

Well, the average review here is accurate. We came here and had a larger group, and was told there was a 20 minute wait; no big deal. We asked if we could have a drink in the meantime, and they said no, they don’t have a bartender, even though they only serve beer and wine so all it would take is a simple pour. We were treated rudely, and the rest of the people eating were eating in the dark, and definitely not having a great time!
We asked if we could at least get chips, but that was also a quick and short «no.»
These people had crap hospitality, they definitely need a lesson on that.
We left before we could taste their food, and for that I’ll be forever thankful.
Go to West End Bar and Grill people! They were amazing!

Not bad for Mexican food in the middle of nowhere. They have a good vegetarian selection, including tofu fajitas. Service was good. In would definitely come back, if visiting the Hurst Castle again.

This is one of our favorite restaurants as locals. We come here all the time. Great homemade Sangria. The staff is awesome and attentive and the food is fantastic. Def recommend. Sit outside of u can. Beautiful view. Oscar was our waiter today. Awesome!

We stayed next door and tried this place vs. the Best Western restaurant and that was a mistake.
The wait was around 20 minutes and seeing empty tables told me the kitchen was not keeping up we waited out front after hearing we could not set at the bar as the bartender was not there that evening
We were seated at the outdoor patio after the tree debris from the nearby yard was cleaned off of the table.
Service was friendly but from seeing and hearing what was going on at the other tables we were in for minimal service.
Once we ordered the food there was not a long wait but when my food arrived it was not hot nor very good.
The best part of the experience was the sun setting over the water.

First time eating here. The salsa was excellent, the Mexican chicken soup also excellent. We ordered the Seafood for Two plate which was a stir fry with fish, shrimp and scallops. The sauce this made was perfect on the rice. The beans were very tasty. Prices were fair. We ate on the patio (we had our dog, and they are dog friendly). We would highly recommend this place.

We had stayed late at Hearst Castle and wanted to grab a bite before everything closed. We thought, Mexican food, how can you go wrong? I will say, the food wasn’t bad. I mean, it was by no means great, but bad it was not.
What was awful was the service. We were seated right away, but then never looked at again until someone, I think the bartender, came to our rescue. I don’t know if the servers got their areas mixed up, if we were in a gray zone, or maybe we didn’t look hungry enough, but we were ignored. No water. No silverware. Nada.
Thank goodness for the bartender who came over, took our order and at least brought us everything we needed. I gave the extra star just because of him. Honestly, I wanted to just eat quickly and get out. We managed to do that, no thanks to the servers. A simple, «I’ll be right with you» is often appreciated. A simple acknowledgement of a diner’s presence also welcome.
Can you tell we will not be returning to this place?

We tried this place again on a second trip to San Simeon (5 years later). Not much has changed. Food was fine, a little pricey but not too bad. They do not have tequila, so their margaritas are really weak and made with agave wine. Kind of weird… I wouldn’t order one again if we return. Generous servings, green chili tamale was actually really good.
Great service from Andrew (waiter). He was great!

Eehh… just ok.
My friend and I were on our way to see Hearst castle, when we decided to grab something to eat before doing the long tour. This place struck our attention, for it exuded that authentic mexican exterior, and for the fact that it was right on the beach; which we anticipated would quite possibly offer some spectacular views.
We were right, the exterior and interior of the restaurant were authentic and lively as expected-​offering some breath taking views of the sparkling blue ocean.
We were warmly greeted by our server and handed the menus. The menu options all sounded incredibly delicious, which left us a bit indecisive of what to order. For our drinks, I ordered a Negra Modelo and my friend just had water. We then came to our decision. I ended up going with their Chili Rellano-​ala cart for $ 6.00. My friend went with a chicken quesadilla. They gave us the chips and salsa while waiting. Chips were not necessarily great, and were a bit to hard for our liking, which we asked to just have taken away. Salsa was decent-​mildly spicy.
Food arrived with in a reasonable amount of time looking quite delish. My chili relano was pretty thickly breaded and fried, which I am not necessarily a fan of, and which left me taking off most of it and just eating the actual chili stuffed with cheese. Taste wise it was ok, it was stuffed generously, though I felt it lacked flavor. My friend thought her quesadilla was decent.
Our server was extremely sweet and very attentive, which made the experience more enjoyable.
Overall, I would say this is more of a place specifically for the views, for the food is nothing to make your way out for. And again I wouldn’t necessarily turn down an opportunity to come here again, though I certainly can’t say I would be eager to come here for just the food –but perhaps just for a drink :)