Great food but horrible service by the cashiers. They are mean, nasty and stingy. No wonder the restauarant was empty on a Friday night. We have gone here every Friday for many years and the customer service by the cashiers keeps getting worse and worse. They should be fired. read more

Great home cooked Mexican food prepared by the nice ladies at the counter. I love open kitchens! My favorites are the tostadas, crispy tacos and veggie burritos. read more

I work in Solano avenue and went in my lunch there at 11:05 and the cashier was still cleaning and not paying attention to me , I lost 10 Minutes waiting for her and another 18 waiting for the foood , and the cashier was just ignoring me when the restaurant was already open . read more

They have potential to be absolutely delicious but given the area I'm sure they hold back on season. I love the crispy tacos and nachos. The mejor burrito is tiny compared to real super burritos but I love the staff they know me and they have the best fresca just not the watermelon read more

This taqueria is a favorite with my parents and sister though I'm not sure why. Maybe because they're clientele in Albany/ Berkeley is mostly a Caucasian demographic which is why I think the staff here takes advantage of them big time. The ingredients are very chinsy especially in their burritos. I've ordered their burrito "mejor " with steak in the past and have always found the amount of meat very miniscule. The last straw came last night when I was dragged in to this place by my mom. The burrito mejor with carne asada, had no meat to speak of. I finally had to bring myself to the counter to complain. They were basically doing closing procedures and I guess the staff was in a hurry to go home. As soon as my order was corrected and I could finally sit down to enjoy my dinner, the kitchen staff started playing their salsa music really LOUD. Mind you there were other patrons in the dining room besides us. But this was the staff's way of telling us to get the F out. I was determined to stay, but mom wanted to just get boxes to go so we could leave. After that awful dining experience I will never come to this joke of a taqueria again. I encourage others to do the same. They skimp on their ingredients here, the food is very pricey, and their customer service really lacks. There are other taquerias in the surrounding area that are much better. read more

Cactus Taqueria - The Burrito Mejor I received, but looking rather small. - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

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During my Mexican food search in quarantine because my favorite Mexican place couldn't do take out, I found Cactus Taqueria. I got my usual burrito order which is a Chicken burrito with Guacamole and Rice. It was so scrumptious. I've been coming here all throughout quarantine and it has never disappointed, except the one time that it took almost an hour to get my food ready, when I had a virtual birthday party to host soon after. I always love eating food from this place and I'm always disappointed when I finish my burrito because it is just too good! read more

Taste-wise, I'd give this 3.5-4 stars. However, the regular burritos are ridiculously tiny. I couldn't believe they charged $8 for something that is about half the size of a regular taqueria burrito (think Taco Bell bean burrito size). Skip this place and go down the street for a much better value. read more

Great shrimp burrito! Good food but I rarely go now since they have no salsa bar. They used to have salsa bar with grilled jalapeño and salsa, now they look at you funny when you ask for a thumb nail amount of mild salsa. I'd go in there every day if they had a salsa bar again. read more

Good burritos, they have interesting margaritas on the weekend. However they only cook one fish burrito at a time! So make sure your friends don't order the same thing as you! read more

Reading through some of these reviews made me cringe. Clearly, the techie carpetbaggers have completed their takeover of the Bay. All these complaints about the facial expressions and demeanor of the staff? I've been coming here for many years, and I've never received attitude. (And, no, I don't speak Spanish.) Unless you stand on your feet all day, fielding as many customers as these folks do, maybe you're being a bit too harsh, judgie and entitled. What makes Cactus stand out is the quality of the ingredients: Locally sourced, organic, and sustainably farmed food. I don't know of other local Mexican restaurants that only buy from Niman Ranch, Mary's Chickens, GMO-free corn suppliers, etc. Also, their daily specials (which you can see on the calendar at their website) are creative and different. It's also super-friendly. Kids can run around and play at the indoor fountain while the adults hang out at tables nearby. Nachos? Lots of complaints here about the nachos. I agree; nachos are not their forte. Why 4 stars instead of 5? The restaurant is very drafty on cold and windy days. I wish they would close the front door, insulate around the opening of the other door alongside the street, and maybe put in some of those tall standing space heaters. That would go a long way toward making it a more comfortable experience for dining in during the cold winter months. Until then, I'll stick with take-out. Ironically, Yelpers will throng to anything "hot and new" yet also want "authenticity." Cactus (this one and the one on College Avenue in Oakland) is an institution, but it's gotten a bit tired. If it doesn't spiff up, the disrespectful carpetbaggers will pounce and shred it to pieces. Then we will have one less local institution to trash. read more

I just love this place! They are clean, they have fresh, quality ingredients and I can't get enough! I've been coming to Cactus for years and they never seem to disappoint. If you want a fast abs tasty authentic Mexican meal, this is the place! The crispy tacos are my absolute favorite! It's a little messy, but so good! 2 crispy tacos are $5.75, not bad! You really can't go wrong with anything on the menu! Located at the top of Solano ave, street parking all around. I'll be back soon! read more

Cactus Taqueria - Beef and chicken crispy taco, yummy! - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

How is Cactus still in business? We ate there regularly before the pandemic, and we were eager to return. But the food was awful: uniformly dry and tasteless. Street tacos: no flavor at all, and no sauce of any sort. Shrimp fajita special: also tasteless, also with no sauce of any sort and small, mushy shrimp. We won't be back. read more

Their crispy tacos are really really good!!! Especially the shrimp ones!!! They really need to serve better chips. More authentic ones. And perhaps a couple with each meal. I like this restaurant more than the one on the corner down the street. It has more heart. read more

Me, my kids and husband had stumbled upon this taqueria when we were walking around on solano. We then ordered it from home for the first time and we were amazed by the results of this wonderful food. My daughter is in love with the burritos and my husband can't get enough of the fish tacos! Definitely recommend! read more

This location used to be good but when covid happened their food went down. Both of the last meals I ordered from here were burnt and missing ingredients that I requested. My crispy tacos were literally burnt until they were chips. I will not order from here again! read more

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This place is just ok. Let's be real, we live in the Bay Area, where delicious Mexican food is plentiful. This place wasn't it. Flavors weren't all there. Had both chicken and steak crispy tacos and they were just ok. Nothing special, nothing that would make me excited to come back and try another dish. The rice was probably the best part of my meal. And when your side outshines your entree, it's not a good sign. I'd honestly only come back for their tres leches and their caramel cookie. Other than that, a bit underwhelming for me. read more

Cactus Taqueria - Crispy tacos with a side of red rice. Chips and salsa complimentary - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

The crispy shrimp tacos and crispy chicken tacos are delicious! Quick and yummy! Easy to order online and have delivered also which is great. read more

Decent food, esp the Chile relleno, but terrible service. No one answers the phone, website often broken. Works if you want to go order in person and wait, but it's surrounded by other good restaurants that can do takeout, so why wait - just disappointing. read more

I can't believe I just came here now...I just scarfed down the chicken crispy tacos and they were authentically heavenly like my colleague neighbor said. Rarely do you find taco shops that do crunchy delicately crispy tacos anymore with simplicity and all around quality. I couldn't wait to get home to eat them...the cheese melted into the crispyness and the right amount of flavorful meat drips down as you bite in..on your plate (& hands;) and all the warm & cool (salsa fresco lettuce guacamole) taste & textures create that Love of Latin soul...ahem I come from San Diego, ca where I think we have some of the best Mexican food but I'm wrong...and impressed w/ Cactus. I look forward to my next binge for Latin flavors there read more

Been going here for almost 30 years. Crispy chicken tacos for the win! Also the guacamole is some of the best in the east bay!

Claudia is the best & sweetest. Placed a cater order and she was very thorough and very patient

Good asf chicken crispy tacos are smacking !!! Won't disappoint especially with a modelo

Gone here for years when visiting my sister in Berkeley and love this place! The food is excellent, tasty, healthy, and the staff is good, too. Prices are good. They have options that work for GF/grain free, too! our entire family loves this place. They kept going through most of the Pandemic, too. read more

Shame on me for continuing to come back for so-so Mexican food but worse of all, for putting up with rude customer service. The cashier woman with glasses is so rude towards customers. She's truly awful. I'd really like to talk to the manager at Cactus and share in more detail what happened to me during my last visit. read more

After 30 years of being a loyal customer, my family is done with Cactus. This used to be a favorite, but the quality has declined and the service has been terrible for years. They often make mistakes with our orders, and the few times the mistakes have been big enough to call them on it, the response has been completely unapologetic, and even insulting. Absolutely unacceptable way to treat customers, especially when you're the one who screwed up. AGAIN. And more recently they have imposed both price increases and skimpflation. Terrible service, inconsistent food quality, poor attention to detail... My last experience at Cactus for lunch two days ago. It was $45 for two enchilada plates and a drink. Instead of 3 enchiladas, now it's only two. You'd think they mention it when ordering? Nope. I asked about it the worker said "we changed the menu." The place was empty and it took 20 minutes to prepare. Two orders of enchiladas! There were plenty of staff, but they didn't seem interested at all. It takes a LOT to lose a customer of three decades. I'm done. Cactus sucks. read more

Be aware when ordering the corn quesadilla: it's a quarter the size and thrice the prize. I paid 14 USD for two tiny corn quesadillas with Carne asada, beans, and cheese. What a ripoff! read more

Cactus Taqueria - 14 USD corn quesadillas with beans, cheese, and carne asada. - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

Typical average Mexican affair. I'd personally compare it to Gordon taqueria. Everything just tastes neutral. Had a wide arrange of foods, and it all kinda falls flat unfortunately. The big burrito, which isn't big, just comes with sour cream I think, just tastes like w.e beans you choose. Mine tasted like tortillas and pinto beans. Another plate dish we got just tasted like vegetable oil. A tad of a dysfunctional ordering and ticket system. Was under the impression we'd customize our order down the line. Was told I would too. But ticket was called, bags were packed. read more

Horrible service, rude employees, gave me wrong order and the food was very low quality This was a much better place years ago. Sad how it has taken a turn for the worse read more

Eh, it good. Not bad but not the best either. I had ordered a shrimp and pollo asado taco which I gotta say, the shrimp taco was pretty darn flavorful choc full of green leaf lettuce, tomatoes, and shrimp. Watermelon agua fresca: check Highlight were my butter sugar cookies with jelly in the middle. Buttery, jelly goodness. read more

Lotsa specials.....unique aguas frescas (ours, papaya) ...many options for salsa. Sorry to report: Tacubaya has so got the upper hand on the chile rellenos (poblano). MSG ordered some veg enchiladas with salsa verde/chile. Both satisfying enough. Don't expect any chips to come with these picking for to-go. There wain't none. read more

I would like to recommend that you NOT come here. We stopped by this afternoon at 4:30 ... for a late late late lunch. I ordered the shrimp ceviche special and Fred had a burrito. So my ceviche tasted like frozen shrimp that was boiled and then put into a ketchup like salsa. Several big shrimp and chunks of fresh avocado to be fair .... but just disappointing all around. Fred's burrito was a weight watchers burrito ... probably 1/3 the size of a normal one. They also tried to give me a fresca that had been sitting around on the counter, insisting that it is the watermelon flavor that I wanted. I had to persistently inquire into what types of watermelon has tiny white seeds. read more

I was craving tacos so I stopped by this taqueria with my friend. We bought 5 crispy Asada tacos and when I asked for no cheese and no lettuce they said it was not possible because the tacos were premade. What kind of taqueria doesn't make fresh tacos? My friend and I came to the conclusion that the "premade" tacos were frozen. I took one bite and got a mouthful of cheese, immediately felt sick and could not eat any more. I love tacos but these tacos were seriously HORRIBLE. Also, lettuce on tacos should be a crime. Worst tacos ever and the cooks would not stop staring at us. I felt extremely uncomfortable here and the tacos were not good. read more

Highlights Low price point but be warned it can add up before you know it Variety of options (beans, rice, salsa, meats, tortillas etc) High rotation of product due to how many people dine here Relatively fast service, as it should be Empanada were good, flaky buttery crust but a little expensive Salas bar was good Low Points Portions were inconsistent Meat was skimpy and lacked seasoning Ordered slices of avocado and only got 2! The larger burrito is probably the size of a regular burrito anywhere else but you have to pay an extra $1 Overall Thoughts Cactus Taqueria reminds me of Chipotle only not as good, mind you I'm not the biggest advocate of Chipotle by any means but I rather go there then Cactus Taqueria again P.S. my friends tummy weren't too happy that night or the next day read more

Cactus Taqueria - Chicken Empandas - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

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The food is good , they put too much rice and beans inside of burritos ,the prices can soda I think is very high $3.25 ?? Just for drink coke can ! read more

Damn, I should have read the reviews. I was pretty surprised when my mejor steak burrito set me back 12$, but hey times are expensive. But nothing can get me to forgive this mess of a burrito that i just finished. Not at half that price. Its an embarrassment. Where to begin. So much salsa fresca that the poor thing fell apart a third of the way into it. Wound up eating it with a fork. That is tragic. Pitiful amount of steak, a few lonesome cubes. dry and sad. If there was cheese I missed it. And this is mejor? Enjoyed the cilantro though. The only reason it gets a star is the chips, although they may be made elsewhere. Or maybe I can not give it zero stars. A great burrito is about the bean to cheese to filling to moisture ratio. It should be creamy. This had none of that. Gordo's didn't pick up the phone earlier when I called so I thought I would grab a burrito there. I wish they had or that I had waited in line. This was once our neighborhood fave but that was long ago and times change and sometimes for the worse. Wont be back. read more

The crispy shrimp tacos here are slightly expensive, but they are well worth the price as they are one of the better tacos I have had. The shell is crunchy while the shrimp is soft and juicy on the inside, covered with cheese. The fish burrito with pan-seared fish was absolutely amazing. The fish was fried to perfection and the avocado added the extra favor that made the burrito perfect. TLDR; Get the fish burrito and crispy shrimp tacos. read more

My parents recommended we go to Cactus for lunch. So I decided to give it a try. When you walk in there is a huge long menu to the right. You order at the counter and then find a seat. I read in a lot of the reviews that the fish tacos were good so I decided to give it a try. We ordered the mushroom and spinach quesadilla and a carnitas burrito as well. We also ordered the pineapple and papaya frescos. The fish taco was good it lacked I'm flavor to me. There was way too much lime juice on it for my liking as well. The carnitas burrito was alright. I tried better. The salsa bar was pretty limited on the salsa they had. After we finished our food, we decided to order dessert as well. We got the tres leches cake and the Alfajores cookie. They were both really tasty! The downfall to this place is the service. The lady behind the counter was not welcoming at all. She seemed like she did not want to be there. When I went back to order the desserts the guy was on the phone and she was standing next to him but did not acknowledge us at all. The guy however apologized for the wait and was much more kind in serving us. Also with seating it's a bit small. Most of the seats are for 1-4 people max seating. So it may not be the best for groups. There is also a fountain thing right in the middle of the seating area, which can get in the way when you're walking from your seat, to get utensils, or salsa. Overall this was a nice place to go to if you're ever in the Solano Area. read more

Cactus Taqueria - Fish Taco - Mexican Near Me - Berkeley, California

I always get the same thing: crispy chicken tacos! My husband and I both love them with their green sauce from the salsa bar. I can't speak to the other dishes but the crispy tacos hit the spot and they make the food very fast. We usually get it as take out but it's a self serve seating area so it feels the same when we eat there or don't. If I feel like splurging then the one addition I'll get is the horchata! I limit my sugar so I don't get this too often but if I'm going to splurge, that's what I would do it on. read more

Maybe my experience here would be better if we ate in, but we do takeout to eat at home. I was pretty much done w/ their food but then Nina told me how terrific their empanadas were, so I figured the next time Alan was in the mood for their takeout I'd try the empanadas. That was last night. He gets there about 7:00 and they are all out of empanadas! He called me and I settled for their carnitas. Their packaging guarantees the food arrives home tepid, mixed together in its cardboard container. Good that the container is compostable, but I'd prefer a container that keeps the food warm and is easier to remove the food from, although the food itself wasn't particularly impressive and half of it ended up in the compost w/ the container. He did bring home a salad, which was crisp, fresh and delicious, w/ slices of carrot, radish and jicama added to augment the romaine. A container of vinaigrette was included to dress it. The remainder of the salad will be part of our dinner tonight. Alan, who prefers his food temperature hot, was a fraction more pleased w/ his meal. I much prefer Gordo's Plato Gordo. The carnitas is significantly better. If I happen on the empanadas here I will try them, but otherwise I am well and truly done. read more

The better of the two Cacti. Why? One person still makes your burrito while you watch. This critical step has slipped away from the Rockridge location. It absolutely effects the quality of the build. When you make food for a person, you make it with love. When you make food because a machine spits out a ticket, you make the food to get rid of the ticket. If the person who will be eating it, is part of the process, the person making the burrito is less likely to be sloppy or careless. Besides that brief bit of ideology, what is so good about this place? 1) Good meat - Niman beef & pork, Fulton poultry 2) Pollo mole rojo - rich and tender 3) Mini corn quesadillas for the kid 4) Carnitas burrito with refried beans 5) Interesting daily specials 6) Enchiladas & tamales 7) Agua frescas: especially horchata & cantaloupe What's not so good a) Mucho gringo tacos b) Sometimes the pollo asado is dry c) Sometimes the Carnitas are too chewy d) Green rice e) Loud f) Kids splashing in the fountain g) Parking h) Lines Overall: 3* for the food +1* for the quality of their ingredients read more