Miguel’s Cocina

Came in here for a work lunch on Monday and food was just okay but the free chips and white queso dip are awesome. Be sure to ask for an extra one especially if you’re sharing with your buddies.

Ok ambiance, overpriced food, and the food is only «ok». Both times I have been here, the service was terrible. Dan the manager came over to inquire and was so arrogant (as in Used Car salesman type) it made me feel uneasy and unwelcome. I cannot put up with bad service and cruddy management more than twice. There are way too many restaurants in San Diego to settle. I would not recommend this place for a great meal or even mediocre service. Just plain bad.

Came here the first time the other day with my mom who was visiting from out of town. Here’s the breakdown:
Ambiance: Nice. Modern. Colorful. Good vibe. They have a large open dining room with very high ceilings.
Food: Tasty! The food and the décor were the best parts. I especially like their cheesy chip dip. The red salsa was funky. Just stick with that über yummy cheesy one! The chips were fresh and warm. I love that. My shrimp tacos were so good. I did kick the tortillas out though. The tacos are smothered in this delicious sauce but it makes them messy to eat with your hands, so I did elect to knife and fork it and in so doing, realized the tortillas are challenging to cut. I really like my food easy.
Service: Here’s where things go a bit south. It was 2:00ish in the afternoon when we were there. There were some diners, and a large table just finishing up. Plenty of wait staff. We were seated and given menus. I kid you not, we watched the large party chit chat over their empty plates and then they all got up to leave. And we still sat there looking at the décor, and all the people who «work» there just standing around. Ahem. Ahem. Nothing. Can’t even flag anyone. We were chatting ourselves trying to pass the time. It was over 10 minutes. Finally someone came for our drink order. It took another 5 minutes for the water and iced tea to come out. Took another 10 – 15 minutes to get our food order placed. Food finally came out, actually in better time than we expected, based on the sloth-​like movement we had seen so far. We ate. Bill? Bill? Where’s the bill? Finally paid and left.
Cleanliness: So when you look at the room, just a general look around it looks nice. When you sit in the booth and have 45 minutes total wait time to look at things a little more clearly, you begin to notice that the wood framing around the booths and on the walls and around the entire restaurant are greasy, have food chucked at them, and black grime and crumbs in the seam where the vinyl booth meets the wood. Then you begin to notice the glass décor in the room also is filthy. And you begin to wonder if anyone ever cleans that ever? Or maybe they call it clean and it’s really just freaking not? You know those people. They wipe down a table and it’s still crumby and greasy but they wiped it so they did their job? Those people?
So I’m not sure if it’s a cleanliness issue or a staffing issue. Because judging by how nobody wanted to take care of our table, I’m thinking they’ve got better things to do than clean too? I mean, when things are slow at work, why on earth would anyone actually take pride in their job and make their place of business look good? Restock stuff? Clean maybe? I didn’t see the bathrooms and that might be a good thing.
I will return, with my husband next time since he missed it this time, and I’ll get a good scope again and see if anything has improved. The food was good, but based on the lack of attention to cleaning detail in the dining room, I kinda shudder at the thought of what might be in the walk-​in or anywhere else in the kitchen.

After a kind gesture, we visited Miguel’s again. Again, the atmosphere is very nice. The hostess, waiter and service was good. We met the manager, Dan, who was really a great, amiable and customer service oriented man. My daughter had ordered the tamale plate with a meat tamale and a cheese tamale, but that cheese tamale had a mystery filling. It was cheese but it was not as it should be after the reheating process, but the second tamale brought to us by Dan was perfect. Thank you, Dan, for helping us with this and I’m happy that you saw it. You made a situation that could have been unpleasant perfect.

We came in for dinner on a Wednesday night thinking it would be calm and slow. It was significantly busy but our waitress Clarissa was amazing! She took care of every thing we could have wanted and needed and did it with a smile. We will definitely come back and sit in her section. She is excellent!!!

I went here for the first time and the place had very delicious burrito! I ordered the Pollo Asado burrito and it was big portion. The food came with rice and bean paste on the plate as well, which made very filling and tasty. In addition, they also served chips and salsa as a side snack at the table. The service was great so I have absolutely no complaint. I will definitely come back here again when I have a chance.

Not bad. Overpriced and under flavored for what they deliver. Living in SD County, perhaps we are spoiled with the numerous Mexican options. I would rather grab a bite at a local taco shop where we can get twice the flavor for half the price. Won’t be back.

Mediocre at best!!! Food was cold, service very slow. I ordered the fish tacos and got a very very small piece that was dried out as well as all of our food was VERY BLAND. We were also approached by a man asking for money during the meal. would never recommend

This is by far my favorite Mexican restaurant in town. The food is always great, the service always pleasant, timely and attentive. I love thier Ultimate Margarita.
You have to try the Carnitas, Queso Fundido, anything with shrimp or lobster on thier specials menu and the Birria de Res. You will not be sorry.

This place has a lot of potential. The food is ok. Friends and I have eaten there a few times and still don’t care much for it. On the other hand, they have good drinks.
I do think improvement in their menu/​food can help them grow. There aren’t a lot of competition around them and with the right marketing they can do much better.

I’m fairly certain I could eat my weight in jalapeño cheese sauce (aka crack dip) and I’m not exactly skinny. It’s what keeps me coming back, that’s for sure.

I came to this spot last weekend with my husband. Good food and environment. It is a good place to meet up with friends for happy hour! Although do
Not come here if you are in a rush. Service is a bit slow. But very nice and friendly! So that makes up for it. They have great drinks and a yummy happy hour!

Tried this place a couple of times. Wasn’t too impressed with the food (make sure you add extra time to your meal, due to it taking awhile for your food to arrive at your table) or even the service (takes a long time to get your drinks, the server would take off — wouldn’t see them for a long time and the check). It could be better. The environment of this Resturant is more geared towards the older generation.

So we dropped in for Happy Hr and stayed for dinner. Everyone loves the chips and cheese dip aka «white sauce.» It’s the same Miguel’s from Old Town and East Lake. I went with the shrimp enchilada with rice and beans. It was smothered in the white sauce. Can’t complain about anything. Place is nice for a casual outting. Food served hot and company good. Or happy hour has me saying it backwards. Maybe it was my company was hot and the food was good. Either way lots of parking and you can’t go wrong with Miguel’s. Olé’!

First Impressions: My first impression was deeply rooted in the horrible parking situation of the center that this is in. Not enough parking for a Friday night. Be prepared to walk a distance or to wait for parking. Even being willing to walk, it still took me a while.
The Service: The server was attentive and friendly, which was nice. He asked us three times if we were ready for shots. I’m not sure why he thought we were shot people, but after the second time we said no, it seemed excessive. But they were kind enough to turn on the heater when requested and brought refills of the salsa and queso when asked.
The food: The food here is really good. I was hoping there would be a happy hour bites option, there is not. The appetizers are pretty sizable so I would suggest planing on sharing. I had a quesadilla with pork. It was tasty, very large, and arrived timely.
The Drink: Drink specials were better. On this occasion I just had beer, the selection was pretty good.
The Patio: The patio here is actually pretty fantastic and would be a good spot for a wedding. Also a good spot for a date.
Overall: I’d go back. I don’t think I would make a huge point to, but it wold never be a discourged option.

Definitely one of those fancy Mexican food places that charge a hefty amount for okay Mexican food that you could get for ¼th the price at Vallartas or any of those places.
FOOD: Food quality is okay. I do like that they give you chips and delicious salsa and cheese dip for appetizer. But the food entrees are lacking in quantity and sometimes quality. When I eat Mexican food, I like to taste authenticity and here, I just taste Mexican food ingredients that have been slapped on a plate in a fancy manner.
For entrees, me and my family got: Carne Asada Main Plate (carne Asada meat was well seasoned but a little dry), Classic Fish Tacos (okay, nothing different from Rubios but for $ 10.50), Salmon Main Plate (a very small piece of salmon. Not really worth the $ 23). I think my favorite food item was the chips tbh. Our total came out to about $ 56 for four but one person wasn’t really hungry, and the other three were left not completely full. WAYYY too expensive.
SERVICE: Everyone here is pretty nice and courteous which is why I gave the 3 stars rather than 2. They took forever to bring is our chips appetizer but were quick to fix their mistake and apologized in a very polite manner.
Overall, I would probably not come here if I’m craving good, authentic Mexican food but maybe if I’m in the mood for drinks and bar bites (they have a pretty nice looking bar).

In the few times I’ve been to Miguel’s, I have always received great service. The hosts are always friendly and greet guests as they walk in. They are always mindful of how long the guests have been waiting.
I usually sit at the bar because I usually come in to watch the game. Bartenders are friendly and attentive. They remember most of the regulars which is a big plus for most people because it makes them feel more welcome.
The place has many seating options from indoor to outdoor and of course the bar area. They have recently improved the outside seating and added a fire pit and overhead covering to decrease some direct sunlight. This restaurant is always clean.
But the main reason I keep coming back is the calamari tacos. It’s tender and tasty with their signature sauce. The portions are generous and the calamari is meaty and with just the right amount of batter.
I enjoy my visit here each time and I will be recommending this to my friends and family.

I have found my new Happy Hour place!
I came here around 630p on a Friday night & it was busy, especially at the bar area! I highly recommend getting a reservation! Luckily, my girlfriends & I were able to get a table & our server was fantastic! She was attentive & hooked it up with the complimentary chips & dip!
Complimentary chips, queso dip, salsa — Yummy! I could eat this alone as a meal! The chips were hot & the white queso dip was so creamy!
Chicken Flautas = Topped with sour cream, guacamole, & salsa — My girlfriend ordered this & gave me a bite & I had to resist asking for more! So good!
Mojito — Hands down, the best I have ever had! I forgot the name of it but whichever one has the coconut in it, get it! The first sip got me hooked because it was a minty, milky coconut taste & my mouth rejoiced!

Although I don’t venture too far off the beaten path at Miguel’s… I can always find comfort in their chips and salsa or an original fish taco. The food here isn’t anything to rave about– but the atmosphere and the outdoor patios make for a great happy hour or lunch/​brunch spot.
Solid things to try are their shrimp enchiladas, original fish tacos, nachos…
Love their cold dosXX on tap and their skinny margarita option.
Great place to sneak a bar seat and watch golf or a game.
The proximity to Ulta is a bit dangerous after a few drinks!

After doing the Potato Chip Rock hike, we were tired and famished. Since 4S Ranch was a short drive from the trail head, we decided to come here for lunch.
This is a nicely decorated and clean restaurant. We opted to sit in the outside patio to get some air. We ordered the fajitas, and I opted for the mixed fajita place (shrimp, beef, and chicken). They brought out chips, with salsa and a cheese dip. The salsa was so-​so, but the cheese dip was pretty good.
The fajitas were phenomenal. The taste was especially augmented by the habanero sauce that our waiter brought out. I, being a lover of nuclear-​hot food, thoroughly enjoyed adding the habanero on everything in my meal. The waiter even brought some more in a to-​go cup, which I will be adding to my food this entire week.
The service was great, and the food was even better. Come and check it out.