The Mexican Restaurant has been around at least 60 years...great food. I travel 80 miles to eat the chicken and vegetable Enchiladas... So good,also the nachos are so good...but they have a wide variety of Mexican and American food. read more

The "cheese" enchiladas are filled with orange nacho sauce. The enchilada sauce may have been salsa. The appetizers are likely from Gordon food service. If you want a Northern Michigan version of Mexican food, Desi's is for you. Nice server, though. read more

Always excellent food and comforting ambience. Very welcoming staff and always making sure you got what you need. Desis has amazing food and will continue going forever! read more

Luckily it's one of the only places in that area to get any kibble or I fear they would not survive. Be warned it may leave you quicker then it entered. I think they make better tacos and burger King if that tells you anything. But if you need to gut your insides out this is the spot. Alot of local skuzz read more

After hiking the Highbanks trail, Desi's menu and food hit the spot! We walked in to the delicious smell of battered mushrooms, which my pregnant self certainly could not resist, along with some cheeseburgers. My husband always gets the chips and cheese reminding him of childhood visits to the establishment. The staff was very kind and friendly and the service was fast. Very cool place with a train running above our head and so much decor. Strongly recommend!! read more

Desi's Taco Lounge - a plate of fried tater tots and chips - Mexican Near Me - Oscoda, Michigan

Food was not good-don't order the perch, cod, or chicken tenders. It's just frozen warehouse food dropped into a fryer. Also observed some unsanitary practices such as waitresses reaching into a bucket of chopped lettuce with their bare hands to dish up tossed salad. Same waitress I saw picking at the corner of her eyes. read more

Everything we have had to eat there on our three visits in the past month was excellent. The Cod Fish dinner, hot roast beef sandwich and the patty melt all were well prepared and had excellent taste. Our new go to place in Oscoda. read more

Our first sit-down restaurant visit since the Michigan lockdown opened for eateries. The group of us enjoyed our meal, as usual. * Beef Burrito, an old favorite. * Mexican Platter #4 with a chimichanga, tacos, rice and beans. * Fish and Chips with salad and mashed potatoes. Although they have Coke products, we enjoy their bottled Root Beer. read more

This is basically exactly what you would expect from a Mexican restaurant in northern Michigan. Very Americanized, average food... with friendly service, and a little charm in the decor. We went to this restaurant because one of the other restaurants we had been frequenting while in town was closed on Mondays. This place did the trick, and there was a nice turnoff along the way that we enjoyed as well. Overall good place to get some food on a Monday near Oscoda. read more

The food was not good the tacos were dry and the Chicken strips Were gross. The French fries were kind of good. The service was good. The ambiance was good. I liked the look of the place. read more

The Mexican dishes were not truly authentic, which was disappointing. I guess we should have known better with the split menu of American and Mexican cuisine. Our waitress was really nice though. read more

Love their steak fajitas... so good .. friendly service . Never had bad service. I really enjoy the feel of the place too.. very cozy

Desai's is a must have local diner that you have to visit at least once a month! We enjoyed an amazing breakfast of Sausage Gravy and Biscuits, served by an amazing Waitress named Emily. Highly recommend!!! read more

Kind of a laid back atmosphere which was very non commercial type and very relaxing. What a great change for myself and my wife. Very plain and cozy. PERFECT! The menu selection was GIGANTIC. The food was FANTASTIC. The service was the best. Food was served fast and piping hot. First time here BUT won't be our last for sure! Highly recommend . Oh and did I mention the large cast iron fireplace? Oh ya. What an added treat. read more

I ordered 1/2 pound deep fried shrimp. The shrimp was very small salad shrimp 1/2 inch long. There was more better than shrimp. and it was not even 1/2 pound. very disappointed. read more

Stadium style nacho cheese?! Hell. Yes. Desi's is my guilty pleasure when visiting Oscoda. It is so good. "The diet starts Monday" kind of places. Great food aside, the service is friendly and the Margaritas are strong. read more

Desi's taco lounge is a descent restaurant for lovers of Mexican food. The nachos (which appears to be canned cheese) are really good and also the rice is very good. The chips are homemade. The beans are bland. The fish tacos have room for improvement. The chimichangas are pretty descent. Overall, a good choice for when you are in oscoda area. Good wait service. read more

Fantastic food, a very different atmosphere from the regular restaurant, and the service was great.

Who loves Mexican food? This girl. I have eaten here a handful of times while being down in Oscoda, MI and they have two of my FAVORITE types of meals, Mexican, and delicious breakfast. The first time that we stopped here to eat during this trip was for dinner. I ordered a combo platter. On this huge plate filled with food, was a chicken chimichanga, smothered in cheese sauce and topped with lettuce and tomato. Next to that was a hard shell ground beef taco, topped with lettuce tomato and shredded cheese. Under the heap of lettuce in the back is a Mexican potato cup, that consists of a hollowed out baked potato filled with taco meat, and topped with the usual toppings. Served on the side is refried beans, and Mexican rice. Read the rest of my blog review at the link below: http://smalltowngirlfoodieworld.blogspot.com/2014/09/desis-family-dining-breakfast-to.html read more

See all

Lousy tasteless food. Food was barely warm. Drinks were weak. All together terrible. Don't bother going here

Super friendly atmosphere. Food was quick, hot, plentiful and delicious. We had the loaded nachos, fajitas and the various combo plates.

Just cuz its my home hood I gotta make a couple corrections. Desi's is on the AuSable River and really is no where near Saginaw or Saginaw Bay unless you call a 1.5 hour drive close .. And your right, you can find better Mexican other places but if you have spent the day on the lake or pond and are sunburned and happy and don't want to cook .... there is NO BETTER PLACE ON EARTH THAN OSCODA and some Desi's. And if you never get to Oscoda Michigan to try it them you are missing more than some slightly odd Mexican food. It's not any kind of Mexican I've ever had any place else but ...... I have an emotional connection to the place. My dad brought us here at least once a week for most of my life at home !! He LOVED Desi's !! And if you go in not expecting some traditional Mexican or tex mex then you can LOVE Desi's too !! I have only gotten the Chicken and Vegetable Enchiladas for as long as I can remember which is weird cuz at like 8 or so -- I'm not sure I loved vegetables but whatever it was .. it's stuck with me and maybe even helped inspire my food obsessions. It is a strange item but it's really good -- if I described it -- you would think i was nuts so just try it. And the chips -- fresh hot and deep fried !! YUMMMMMM I know -- clearly it's personal for me with Desi's but if you get up that way -- it's a place worthy of your hard earned dollars !!! read more

Yah no, don't go here until they promise to remove canned nacho cheese sauce (the stuff from high school snack stands) from their dishes and make their food fresh, not defrosted or fried pre-packaged. The atmosphere and service were very good but the margaritas were just syrup and mix, and the food was nearly inedible, even the rice & beans. I have never seen my family leave whole plates of Mexican food sitting on the table. I'm told the food was better back in the day. Not sure what happened. I should add, my niece's shrimp fajitas were good, so if you're stuck here for a gathering, order those. read more

I've been eating at Desi's for close to 25 years and I've never once been disappointed. There's always been plenty of food, great service, a friendly attitude, and a colorful character to the place. It's far and away the best place to eat in Oscoda. read more

Went for breakfast. The long hair that was included in the meal was discusting. Place needs to be cleaned, get an updated menu and be conscious old what they are serving-no hair please. Probably won't be back. read more

A friend of mine who spends the summers in the Oscoda area told me that Desi's ceased doing business at the end of this summer. Can anyone verify that? I haven't been to this place in 35 years but do have some fond memories of it. read more

Seems like a decent roadhouse outside Oscoda. My basic sense is that you should treat it like you would most bars. Good place to drink some cheap beers and maybe munch on some appetizers, or grab a meal if you've been out on the river all day, but not really a dinner spot if you've got food on your mind. We got a bunch of the Mexican dishes based on the name and the fact that others mentioned it on here. You certainly get a lot of food, but it reminded us mostly of school cafeteria "Mexican" day. You really do get the weird yellow gloopy "cheese" on your nachos and everything. Nice folks, decent atmosphere, just know what you're going for... read more

Ate here with the family July 3rd and loved the place! Very "up north" feel to the place with excellent food. Service was a little slow , I think because they were so busy, but our waitress was very nice. Started off with nachos that came really fast, and they were good. Fiance and I had steak and chicken fajitas that were delicious. Her parents had the wet burrito and chicken quesadilla that were also very good. Definitely recommend Desi's for a lunch or dinner. read more

See all

Between the rumors of roaches in the kitchen, and the refried beans being too many days old. It's a wonder this place is still in business. Their prices are ridiculous, and their food is terrible. I have never left without being sick. You can see right into the kitchen, and witness employees not washing their hands properly. The wait staff is beyond rude. One old lady in particular who is always there, never even tries to be friendly with people. Perhaps she's bitter that she's worked at such a terrible establishment for so long. I refuse to go back. At least the atmosphere is cool. read more

Love this place mostly because I've come here since i was a little girl. The food is 3, the drinks are 4 and the atmosphere is a classic 5. Come here if you're ever nearby. They're closed on Tuesdays tho... read more

This is my favorite restaurant in the world. It has great food, awesome decorations (signs and license plates all over with a train riding around the whole restaurant), arcade games, and fast service. The place has an amazing atmosphere and is what I look forward to the most when traveling to northern Michigan. read more

My boyfriend and I had been driving around the area for the day and decided this looked like a cool place for dinner. When we walked in the door we were literally starving, and so we asked the waitress if chips and salsa came with the meal, like they do at a lot of Mexican places. Apparently, this was a big mistake because she went into a lecture about how nothing is free here and if we want chips and salsa we have to pay for it. Okay, then... We opened up the menu and saw that this isn't really an actual Mexican restaurant. They have basically like a Ram's Horn/ Coney Island style menu with just about everything, burgers, etc. One of the menu pages focuses on Mexican type food. Since we walked in expecting Mexican, we both decided to go with that. I got a chicken quesadilla, he got an open-faced sandwich, and we ordered chips and nacho cheese as an appetizer. The chips and cheese came on a styrofoam plate, which was a little weird, but I love that goopy liquid cheese, so it was delicious to me. Our food came. The waitress made a couple more weird comments. My boyfriend liked his food, mine was just okay. The quesadilla tasted like one you would get at Ram's Horn, not very authentic and made with frozen chicken from a bag. Needless to say, I do not think I would come back here if I was in the area again. read more

Yes, I've had better Mexican food in Texas and San Diego, but for this part of Michigan the food was not bad. My wet burrito dinner was very tasty and ooey-gooey, the refried beans were excellent and the gazpacho was smooth with the right amount of heat. The wait staff was attentive and friendly. My glass of wine was a generous pour and the prices were fair. The decor is wonderfully eclectic with a train running along the edges of the ceiling-plenty of fun for kids! read more

I've only been to Desi's once. My cousin recommended it for good Mexican food. I was a little nervous when the appetizer was brought out on a styrofoam plate and I wondered, "What kind of place is this anyway?" The rest of the food was on regular plates. I can't imagine why they wouldn't serve up the appetizer the same way. I'm still confused about that. The Marguaritas were about average and the food was tasty. Portions were enormous and we all had left-overs to take home. My sister-in-law had a steak fajita and that looked fantastic. The server got my order wrong and brought my enchiladas with the red sauce when I requested the green sauce. Other than that the service was just okay. Nothing to brag about. I probably won't make the long drive back to go there again. read more

Eating here is like entering in an episode of the twilight zone . Everyone looks happy enjoying their "Mexican" cuisine dishes , but the food is far from . Worst Mexican food I've ever had . Cheese wiz sauce for some dishes . Uncle bens microwave pouch rice . Anyone who says this is good Mexican food should be ashamed . Really I just feel sorry you've never experienced Mexican food . read more

We enjoy it. The train running around the tracks, all the "stuff" on the walls and if you come at Christmas time it looks like you are at the North Pole. Our favorites are the chicken taco salad and the mini nacho. Delicious! Desi's is only 6 miles west of the Dairy Queen on River Road in Oscoda. My grandkids like it too. They are all little, but there is plenty to look at, we try to sit by the train. read more

I will say that Desi's is always busy but my one time I ate there I had a two foot long grey hair in my burrito. I will say I think the hair was clean, it tasted like Salon Selects. But now every time I drive by there I puke in mouth so I have to take an alternate route. read more

This is an Oscoda must. Just so you can get an awesome smothered burrito. I have the luxury of getting quality Mexican food all the time in Colorado but none of them ever really compare to Desi's. You may regret eating there a few hours later, especially around company but trust me...it's worth it! read more

Food is as good as Taco Bell. Always packed with snowmobiles in the winter. Nice place out in footsite, would like to see another restaurant out there to compete with a bit. read more

Grew up in Oscoda and graduated in '77. Desi's was awesome! Family, friends, cold beer, and friendly staff. McQuaig softbalI tourney then Desi's. I live in Phoenix now. Yes, Authenic Mexican Food everywhere. I still go to Desi's the second I get back to town. Father in law looks forward to dinner there (life long resident). There are 3 things a restaurant can offer: Service, price, quality...they are a great blend of all 3. Are they a 5 star restaurant? Not a chance! Are they a great night out? You bet!!! Remember, you are in Oscoda...NORTHERN MICHIGAN...go ahead and find a better Mexican . Respect what they can do with the limited season and demographics. Name me a more successful longer lasting restaurant. read more