Sonora Cantina

I would give this 5 stars for the food, but the service was HORRIBLE! Hostess threw our menus on the table and walked away. We had to get up and ask for the server. I guess that’s what you get for eating at such a small establishment. Will not be coming back.

Tacos toreados are phenomenal! A flavor I’ve never had before and I’ve had Mexican food all my life. The salsa is good and so is the rest of the food. One of the best enchiladas I’ve ever had. The chicken was juicy and tasty.

Service was HORRIBLE! We waited in lobby 10 minutes and they seated the people who had just walked in the door and never came back to seat us. We finally sat ourselves, and after another 10 minutes they brought us water and chips. Another 20 minutes brought our drinks. After another 10 minutes we moved to another, more visible, table. They finally asked if everything was okay. After waiting an hour with nothing but drinks and chips we walked out. It doesn’t matter if the food is good or not first impressions mean everything!!!

We visit once a year and crave it the rest of the year. Definitely the best Mexican food in Big Bear.

The only plus. Peach margarita, although it was $ 9.99, it was strong and delicious. Salsa was good but full of green onions. Chips crisp, but greasy. We came for taco tuesday at lunchtime $ 1 tacos, tried shredded beef, carne asada and carnitas: all flavorless, they come with lettuce, tomatoes, onions and cheese. Tortillas were not grilled enough to withstand the juice, got soggy. Never got napkins or serving utensils. Side of beans and cheese $ 3.99, they were microwaved so the edges were hard. Had to go to the bathroom to wash hands since no napkins, bathroom smelled like mildew but was clean, faucets were too close to the sink. Patio is nice but on the street so traffic noise, and dogs are allowed. Waitress was friendly Overall not worth it to me.

Best Mexican in Big Bear, not counting my friend Jorge Martinez, who lives in Moonridge.

My wife and I went to Sonora for Taco Tuesday, as we have for about 12 times over the past year. When the bill arrived, I was charged $ 4.99 per taco. I asked the guys at the next table and they said they were only charged $ 1 per taco. I asked the server why he charged more and he responded that he got me larger tacos. I didn’t ask for larger tacos. It’s Taco Tuesday with tacos for only a dollar. I think they try to scam out of town people, but we’re locals. Disappointing.

Waitress is excellent but all four of our plates had cold food. Very disappointing. Margarita was weak not worth the price. We have eaten here before and this was disappointing.

Food was good… Giving it a 3’star though because we also tried out another Mexican food restaurant in The Village that we enjoyed more! The chips and salsa here were not as impressive as one would hope. We also visited on a night that a local church was doing a fundraiser which made it a little hectic with too many kids running around «helping» in my opinion. We enjoyed our main entrees very much!

I like the outdoor patio and the Cadillac margaritas. The food is ok. I like the shredded beef or carne asada burrito with green sauce. One time I went there they had mariachis on the patio. That was great, they should always have mariachis at least on the weekends.

We keep going back to Sonora, they simply have great food. We got combo shrimp, chicken and beef fajitas for 2. It was the most amazing pile of food I have ever had! Shrimp were falling off the sizzling grill! Hats off to the chef on Saturday afternoon May 7^th. The spices used were fantastic! We got margaritas on the rocks, yummy rice and beans as well! Yum! They have awesome fish tacos, I order 2 but can only eat 1. They are huge! It’s so nice to get good food and margaritas that are not not made with some kind of brown fermented fruit juice. Don’t be fooled by other in town Mexican restaurants. They get away with Terrible margaritas and lousy food because of the location. Sonora is a great Mexican restaurant what has an outside patio area (seasonal). Try this place, you won’t be disappointed. Want good food go here, want ambiance bad food and brown margaritas, go in town.

Best Mexican food in Big Bear! The fajitas for two can really feed 4
Chips and salsa are excellent!
My wife got a rose from them on Mother’s Day
This place is incredible. I can’t wait to come back!

I stopped by last Saturday for lunch and drinks. The current 3.5 star rating truly surprises me because I had nothing short of a great experience.
The place is cute and has a great patio. All of the employees were very polite and attentive and were clearly working very hard — they all took multiple roles (eg. hostess + busser + food runner) and looked super efficient at their jobs. The customer service here was great during my experience.
The food and drinks were also awesome. I had a bloody mary and margarita that were enormous and very flavorful. I ordered shrimp enchiladas and was very pleased with the grilled flavor on the shrimp. The rice wasn’t lumpy or stuck together (like it unfortunately it is at many restaurants), but seemed pretty fresh. Even the chips and salsa were great — the salsa had a nice kick to it and it did seem (at least partially) homemade.
Pros:
Efficient + attentive service
Great menu selection
Fresh and delicious food
Good parking
Cons:
Small drink menu — it would be nice to have a list of tequila brands and other drink options
I will definitely return on my next trip to Big Bear!

Food here is delicious. salsa is tomatoes from a can but still good. If you venture into Big Bear, stop in for some authentic Mexican food.

We’ve been eating at Sonora Cantina for over 15 years now. We were back for lunch on a recent Sat. after almost a year and the food was even MORE AMAZING than ever.
We started with a house margarita, blended. I was expecting a small margarita glass. What I got was a huge tub of awesomeness ! While waiting for our food we munched on the best warm chips and homemade salsa, which was refilled each time we polished it off. But when the food arrived, I gazed down at a steaming hot plate of melted goodness. I ordered the shrimp enchiladas and it was filled with large shrimp and covered with a delicious green sauce. It was absolutely delicious ! By far my favorite Mexican restaurant. Beats out places like El Cholo in LA or any other local spot you may know of !

Better late than never…
So I was here back in October 2015 but let me tell you this place is BOMB!!! I eat authentic Mexican food since I’m Mexican and this place is truly authentic Mexican. Make sure to get a Michelada best Michelada ever. If it wasn’t for beer making me feel blooded I would probably have 3. I’m bummed this place scary to get to. I don’t think is far from home I just hate getting up the mountain. I had the taco toreado and a green cheese enchilada a la carte. I don’t remember much about the chops and salsa but they give you some as a starter and that is preety nice of them a lot of places are skipping that and it totally sucks. Well I hope you check it out and enjoy.

My complaint is that we asked for a bottle of wine. I spoke with the owner who I thought had said it would be $ 16. Turned out it was $ 60.99. The bottle sells for $ 8.99. Quite a bit of a mark up for a place that doesn’t have a wine list. I can get Justin for $ 65.
As for the food. The rice was good. My Carnitas had a slab of fat that I could have placed on my face like Silence of the Lambs. For a family the bill of $ 130 when 4 were kids meals was ridiculous.

I wasn’t expecting much from this place but this place proved me wrong the food was very good no complaints. The Michelada was just right and the staff was friendly would definitely come again to try other dishes.

Busy Mexican Cantina with decent food and good margaritas. We have been here many times with families and friends and it’s a good consistent spot that is great for kids.
Eaten this time out was two tostadas (both good), chili colorado, a combo plate and two kid taquito meals. No one complained! I particularly like their carnitas here because they are juicy and never dried out like some places. The salsa is a little bland so if you are going for heat, this is not the salsa for you. Better add some tapatio. Kids enjoy it here. We all had margaritas (not the kids of course) which were strong and not too sweet.
Service is always friendly and fast.

We’ve come here twice now when we go to Big Bear. if you are super hungry they have a competition to eat a «Big Juan» (giant burrito) in under 45 minutes and you win a free shirt. We order to go, and the bf absolutely loves the Big Juan. so we split one (technically at least 3 people can be fed off one Big Juan). I can only really eat ¼ in a meal, but it is fine as leftovers the next day.
We’ve gotten chips and salsa, enchiladas, regular burritos here. all have been piping hot and tasty. Definitely a good place to stop if you need your Mexican Food fix while you’re in Big Bear.