Picante

Sometimes Unilocal is your best friend and sometimes not so much. This was, unfortunately, one of those times Unilocal led me astray. I am in constant pursuit of great Mexican food and since I work in Pasadena, that is the current area of search. This place was a huge fail. I’m fine with little hole in the wall places as long as the food is good but sadly this was not the case. And there was no AC on a 100′ plus day! But the food: The chips (what little they provide) were literally inedible. How do you mess up chips and salsa? That’s a first for me. The taco/​enchilada combo was awful as well — just s big blob on a massive plate with everything swimming in sauce. And for $ 10+, actually insulting. They seem nice enough but when presented with my untouched food, they either didn’t notice or chose not to. What I wanted was my money back but it was too hot in there to even have the discussion.

Small neighborhood spot, good food and they are very very polite. I am allergic to the lemon and lime so they make my guacamole from scratch for me (I do pay extra for it). The chicken tacos (shredded, hard shell) are the bomb and a good size. Would recommend this place and the price is really good for the food you get

Delicious food! Excellent service and worth a drive across town for! Excellent Value! Super fresh food! My favorite is their carne asana tacos and their taquitos! Cash only

I gave it a 4 star rating, because even though it is a legit hole in the wall, in a strip mall, the food is actually really good, and the people who work there are nice. I’m an athlete so sometimes I eat a lot (not always, like when I was younger). My only gripe is that they go super cheap on the amount of delish chips on the side they give you. Not unlimited refills or even enough as a side.
When I’m hungry and I actually have the time to sit and eat, (as I am always on the run), I order the shredded chicken wet burrito, fries, and 2 shredded beef tacos, that my personal combo, and it’s AMAZING!!!;) I have been to a ton of high and low end restaurants in Pasadena, and I highly recommend this spot.

This place is low on ambiance but high on flavor. I had 1 asada, pastor and carnitas taco and they were all good. So were the green/​red salsas. I’m coming again to try a burrito and torta

Yummy. one of the best burritos I have had.
Took pork burrito to a friend in the hospital.
She says the chips were fabulous.

AMAZING TACOS. I’m a full blooded Mexican and I have grown up eating tacos all my life and these were great. Very friendly people. I will stop by again if I’m ever in town again.

Great food, we had the nachos and tacos, and even better people. The salsa verde is tasty, and the albondigas soup we tried was superb. The interior is quaint and tastefully decorated: murals, wood tables, and glass plate with silverware. A true family restaurant.

Love their food, tried their burritos, tacos and enchilada plate and carne asada plate all so good. Now that I’m closer to the planning on coming here more often, just wished they accepted debit cards

Picante was good we used to go all the time but now every single time we go they have different cooks and the food don’t taste the same to salty or no flavor

Great food and great service :). I have been going to picante ever since I was a little girl. The food tastes deliciously the same all the time. Try the enchiladas with cheese they are great.

Good reliable and inexpensive. The chili relleno burrito is really a treat and done right!

Service was great. The girl was sweet and the food came fast. Unfortunately, my bean and cheese had a fermented taste and my boyfriend’s carne asada lacked flavor. It also came with two packs of very stale chips.

Definitely a place to get a quick bite. Loved the costumer service first of all, very friendly and helpful, place is really clean. We ordered some al pastor tacos, we made the rite choice. Super tasty and delicious and with some green salsa you can’t go wrong. The order of tacos came with chips as well. Will definitely come back every time we are in town.

Picante is a decent hole in the wall joint that serves a wet burrito that my husband likes and a very generous ceviche. We don’t go too often bc there are just so many hole in the wall mexican restaurants to try in Pasadena and so little time!

This place is cash only!
The couple who worked there were sweet and helpful. You definitely get the mom & pop vibe.
I had the green pork burrito. Pork was super dry. It was a good size. But I needed lots of salsa to eat it. Comes with a handful of chips.
My friend had the nachos with chicken. Even the small size was large. I thought the guacamole was a little off, perhaps too much lime? Otherwise the nachos were fine.

Visited this place to try something new. Turns out it’s more than your average hole-​in-​the-​wall, but still with a mom pop feel. Knowing that it’s located in a Food4Less strip mall, you really can’t miss it. Service here is order at the counter, find a table, then they’ll bring your your food on ceramic plates. After finishing my meal, I had no clue what to do with my plate, so I sat there a bit and observed 2 older ladies (locals I gathered). Yep, they just left it all there and so did I. That’s your pro-​tip if you get nothing else outta this review.
-=-Bean and cheese burrito-​=- So I’m vegetarian for a little bit longer for this Lenten season. I’ve really started a craze into these bean and cheese burritos and have been sampling them here and there. When the burrito came, it was a fairly large sized boring burrito on your ceramic plate. When the cashier asked me if I wanted it as a wet burrito I should have taken that offer. The way that this burrito was constructed there was no picking it up, so you would have to knife and fork it anyway. I also really wished there would have been more cheese inside, but oh well, there’s a salsa bar at least.

Was looking for a good burrito today on this rainy cold day and landed here from the Unilocal and urban spoon reviews. I have driven by this place several times and decided to stop to try it out since it was full.
This is a great hole in the wall! I had the carne asada burrito and you can’t go wrong with it. Lots of homemade salsas. You can tell the restaurant was full of regulars which is a great indicator.
Everything that everyone was eating in the restaurant looked great and authentic. Definitely worth bookmarking and trying! The soups people were eating (Albondigas and Camarones) looked full of ingredients and smelt great!
The carne asada was perfectly seasoned and tender with the hint of lemon and generous. I am sure the taco plate for around $ 5.50 must be just as good with its side or rice and beans.
Although the space is tiny I had to eat in the car which was well worth it. The burrito for a little under $ 7 is enough for two as well. Service was very friendly as well like a family hole in the wall restaurant should feel like. Very welcoming!
I want to go back and try the camarones! I can see why this place get so many 5 star ratings. It rocks!!!

The food was really good, and I am excited to go back. I got the chilaquiles with green sauce. They were decent. My friends all got other stuff and my mouth was watering. I took bites of their food and was blown away. When I go back I know I will switch up my order.
What I also liked about this place was the prices were really cheap. You get a really good meal without breaking the bank.
This is a wonderful little mom and pop like mexican restaurant, that won’t break the bank. Don’t let the weird outside fool you, this place is a gem.

I’ve had this place bookmarked for quite awhile but happened to get lost amongst the 300+ Bookmarks, why did I bookmark this place in the first place? Unilocaler «Mary B» and let me quote Mary…
«Another Mom and Pop spot. Another low-​priced alternative to fast food. In another corporate American mini mall otherwise devoid of soul»
«In a lot that sells groceries, shoes, wigs, linens, Chinese fast food and Subway’s «eat fresh» sandwiches, find Picante. Fast food casual, surprisingly homey, the from-​scratch wholesome nature of the meals to be had here are totally unexpected.
Thank You «Mary B» you make it sound so good!
For those of you who don’t roll like Pancho, «Always has CASH in pocket» Unilocal has this place as accepting Credit Cards, it’s CASH ONLY…
I always love to try little places like this, you’ll generally find good food that resembles home-​style cooking, feeling like a Pig I ordered a bunch of food…
Tacos ($ 1.39) —
Carne Asada —
Nicely cooked with good flavor, average tortillas, street style taco should have been ($ 1.00 — $ 1.25) 4-​Stars
Al Pastor —
NO Trompo here, pig was tasty, slightly above average nothing great! 3.5-Stars
Carnitas —
Nicely cooked, little crispy pieces + soft and juicy pieces = Mmmm & 4-​Stars
They do have a nice little salsa bar…
«SPECIAL»
Not sure how often they change or if they even do, since I’m visiting 17 months after Mary and Specials are pretty much the same.
Costillitas de Puerco con Nopales en Salsa VERDE —
Little pork ribs with meat that just falls off the bone, strips of nopales (cactus) slow cooked in salsa VERDE
with sides of rice, beans, corn tortillas and a tiny salad, beans were not bad, rice I didn’t bother, I loved the pork ribs, BUT…
The salsa verde was odd, flavor just seemed a little off but the texture
is more like a purée or very thin paste, NO seeds at all, maybe out of a box or can? I’m not really sure just didn’t like the taste of the salsa verde only!, all else was pretty good. 3-​Stars
AVG: 3.625 — Stars