Mercado Marlen

Decent Mexican food, at reasonable prices and order time

***This review speaks specifically to the taqueria in Mercado Marlen.***
This is my regular taqueria spot when I have my lunch break for work. It’s conveniently located to my job, so I’m naturally biased toward favoring this spot.
The service is fast. I’ve had the torta, super burrito, and caldo de res (beef stew). All three were good eats; the Caldo de res was on point. I guess a lot of people are picky about the food; the beef is dry and has a jerky look/​texture to it, but you can’t really complain for the price you are paying.
Needless to say, unless you have a bottomless stomach like myself, you will get full for a good price.

Seriously, Chipotle is better than this for a burrito. It seems like most people that come into Mercado Marlen are there for the taqueria, but it’s a wonder why. Our hero tried their carne asada burrito, which was pretty cheap at under $ 6 after taxes, but really poor in quality. The meat was in tiny pieces and overcooked, chewy and charred. The rice was a bit stale too, and there were barely any beans in the burrito.
These are unsatisfactory calories that you’re never getting back.
PROS:
— Pretty cheap taqueria inside.
CONS:
— Awful quality food and far from fresh.
— Prices are high in the grocery store side.
— The grocery store’s shelves are about 30% empty and looking sort understocked.
— The parking lot is a bit weird with slanted parking stalls, but only one way to get in, so you have to back out all the way to get out.
— The location is awful and in a very residential area with a sketchy looking dive bar next door.

Been passing by this place during my commute for some time and have wanted to stop… I finally went in for lunch. Fantastic!
Had the Al Pastor super burrito that was simply wonderful. One of the best I’ve had in a long time.
The store is small but very clean and looked like it had a great variety of food and nice produce. I will be back. Highly recommend you try it out if you have a chance.

I think this place deserves more than 3−½ stars. I like their taqueria. The food has the right amount of bite if your looking for something a little spicier, and not just soupy, one-​flavor slop you’d find at larger places. I also enjoy their produce section with tons of fresh fruits and veggies, clean and organized.

Marlen is my go-​to mercado when I’m planning to cook Mexican food! Good quality meat and produce at prices much lower than at Whole Foods. In particular, the selection and quality of tomatillos, cilantro, tortillas and salsa is much higher than at Whole Foods, and costs half as much. The staff is helpful as well.
They are a specialty grocer, so I don’t expect to do all of my grocery shopping here, but for my chile verde, there is no place better to shop for what I need.
The only down-​side is that it’s not clear whether their meat/​produce is free range, local, organic, or grown without antibiotics/​hormones/​etc. But I will ask them before I pass judgment.

The chicken tacos are fantastic. My roommate had the chicken burrito and gave it the thumbs up. They also carry a wide variety random Mexican products that I haven’t seen before and assume are hard to come by.
Basically the 4 stars are just for the tacos.

I guess it is about time I review this place since I check into here every other day. I’ve been to both the taqueria and the grocery store so let me double my game up on this review.
Service? (Grocery) — For a regular, they are very hospitable
At first, the girls at the counter were sure to stare me up and down with all that neck action attitude. But as time moved on and I would come here continuously, a couple of them have warmed up to me. What really sets them apart is that they are so kind to my dad who is on a wheel chair. It is a little hard for him to get in the door, but when they see him coming, they are sure to open the door for him.
Service? (Taqueria) — Varies with stress level
Simply put… if they’re slow, they’re nice. If its busy, they’re rude.
Selection? (Grocery) — Limited
They have the bare minimals usually brands from mexico as well. Had some issues with expiration dates but not recently.
Selection? (Taqueria) — Standard
You can pretty much find anything that is normally served at any taqueria. Burritos, super burritos, nachos, quesedillas, etc.
Quality? (Grocery) — Their fruits are usually always very sweet. They are a little local grocery store too so you can tell they dont restock everyday.
Quality? (Taqueria) — Not bad at all. Their food is very rich with flavor, especially their barbacoa.
Overall, it s a convenient place to go to if you work or live around the area.
Olé! Enjoy!

Found this place by random chance. I have a habit of trying out any hole-​in-​the-​wall taqueria I drive by, so that’s how I wound up here.
My acid test for a taqueria is to try a carne asada and a carnitas. I’m happy to say that Mercado Marlen did a decent job at both. Standard construction with 2 corn tortillas, onions, cilantro (if you want — I don’t!), and some homemade looking red pepper sauce on top. 2 tacos filled me up nicely, so they weren’t chintzy with the qty of filling. Carne asada was grilled fresh on order. Can’t recall the deal on the carnitas — might have been just warmed up. Both meats were tender, lean, and flavorful with just the right balance of seasoning.
Prices were at the low end of the scale for tacos — looked low for other items as well.
Facility-​wise, it’s a market — you can eat at the picnic tables out front if you want seating.
I recommend this place for a quick, tasty take-​out lunch that’s superior to any chain offering.

Went and bought milk on the way to work (which is a min away), thinking I was going to have some cereal I stash at work. Opened it and it was SPOILED. the expiration date is 08/​29/​2009 WTF. need better shelf maintenance!!!

It’s places like Mercado Marlen that remind me there are probably a thousand taquerias in the greater bay area; And that there’s no way any one person could visit them all. Still, I’ll continue to do my best to find most of the ones in and around Sunnyvale /​Mtn View.
As for the taqueria itself, it is situated in a small clean, mom-​n-​pop food market on a little-​used 101 frontage road. (There is an extremely seedy bar next door; Across the road is a boarded-​up Denny’s that looks like it has been vacant for 20 years). There are very few patrons here, which is a good thing since they only have two outside tables for seating. I’m mystified as to why the current Unilocal rating is 4 stars, since I found the food to be less than special. (though the staff was friendly enough)
Lunches I’ve had here:
– Regular chicken burrito: $ 5.50. An average price for a below-​average burrito. The chicken was simmered, not grilled, yet it was bland and dry in spots. Tortilla was too thick, starchy and chewy. 2 stars.
– Taco plate with rice and beans (approx $ 5). Ordered a-​la-​carte since it wasn’t on the menu. The carnitas taco was quite respectable — very flavorful, though it could have been crispier. The carne asada taco was average. The pinto beans were subpar, with a few shriveled ones mixed in. Rice was OK. Maybe a tad under 3 stars overall.
Dan’s Taqueria checklist:
Food? — 2 – 3 stars
Prices? — Avg
Portions? — Avg
x Light crowds — YES
Standout items? — n/​a
Chips + salsa included? — NO

3.5 stars.
A nice find. A very clean mercado with a wide selection of dried and canned chiles. Their produce looks solid.
I got my standard super asado burrito, no guac. The meat wasn’t seasoned that much; it tasted like beef. The rice was flavorful, and the cheese and cream were very tasty. The salsas were good. There were some pocketing issues (the ingredients were not well distributed), but, when you get everything in one bite, it’s a very solid burrito.
I’ll have to come back to try the birria. Their carnitas look amazing, but I’m not into pork.
—
Update: I came back and tried the birria and barbacoa. Nothing too special.

This has got to be the cleanest, nicest mercato I’ve ever been in. I come here regularly and get food to go (to eat during meetings) and I’ve found all of their food and some great. The staff is friendly, and their grocery selection is very nice too, I usually walk out with something interesting and something I could use at home or in the office.
For the food, I really like their berria (goat), it’s well prepared and generally not too stringy and not too mushy (it’s a difficult meat to cook properly!) Their carnitas are to die for, too, as is their pollo. Their tamales are «meh», at least the one time I tried ‘em. Kinda dry. Chile verde and al pastor are good. Burritos and tacos are always well prepared.
The owners of this place run a tight ship…

Went to check out the market after lunch at Mario’s. Turns out they have a full taqueria in the back with 11 different selections of meats. Various entrees to boot and it’s a full grocery store so if you’re in the mood to do you’re own Mexican cooking… good selection of Paleta’s for dessert, also, so I’ll have to return and do a full fledged lunch when the weather is better and the outside seating they have isn’t rain soaked.

AWESOME breakfast burritos! I’ve been searching for a good breakfast burrito for a while, but who knew potato/​egg/​cheese would be so hard to find? well okay, its mostly the potato thats missing or incorrectly done (who wants huge chunks of potato poppin out of their burritos?), but that key ingredient is the one that defines a good breakfast burrito.
This joint has shredded seasoned potatoes in their breakfast burritos, along with some pretty tasty salsa to top it off. at $ 6/​burrito its not as cheap as the 24 hr burrito spots down in san diego, but definitely worth it. the burrito is massive though, so dont plan on being productive (or conscious, really) for at least an hour afterwards