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    La Chapala Market

    3.6 (48 reviews)
    InexpensiveConvenience Stores
    Closed 7:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Enchiladas verdes
    Isabel W.

    Sooooo yummy and authentic. Three enchiladas and beans and rice were $16. Yum. enchiladas verdes are slightly spicy

    Perfect place to finish a bike ride and read Adventure Cycling magazine.
    Don L.

    Continuing my Summer of Old Town as a celebration of the new, safer-for-cycling and walking Project Connect. I biked up to the top of Old San Marcos road and then went right on downhill to Old Town. La Chapala was the perfect, post ride stop. Had a delicious pork and chili burrito (ten bucks) and an orange soda. The staff was great and the booths are comfortable.

    Half eaten chili verde burrito. Soo good
    Jennifer N.

    If you are looking for authentic Mexican food in Goleta this place is the spot to go to. The restaurant is located in the front of the little super market. Whenever I come here to eat, I usually get the carnitas tacos or the Chile verde burrito. What I like the most about this place is the amount of meat they put on your tacos, burritos, etc. It's definitely worth the money. The prices for the food are just about the same as El sitio or any other restaurants around but way more meat. They also sell agua Fresca and have a little salsa bar in front of the counter. The only thing that kind of sucks is that sometimes i feel like they look at you funny if you don't speak Spanish, but that's ok! The food is good so that's all that matters.

    Menu
    Gris C.

    This is a Mexican market/restaurant. The 5 stars are for the amazing breakfast burrito that keeps me coming back! Forget the fact that these are busy people running a business, regardless of the wait, the loaded breakfast burrito is the BEST in old town. There's another amazing spot that has loaded burritos but it costs you about $15 where here's it's about $10 depending on if you add extra toppings. I recommend you try the breakfast burrito with jamón (ham) ‍ you'll be full for breakfast AND lunch. Please be patient, yes the wait can be long at times; they take care of the grocery lines and the food order lines, but I promise it's worth the wait.

    Lengua en Salsa Verde. One of their best specials... It's absolutely perfect.
    Alex D.

    La Chapala makes some of the best Mexican plate lunch in the Goleta/Santa Barbara area. Good prices, huge portions, and authentic flavors. It isn't California-style Mexican food. It's just like the food you would find in Nogales, Tucson, or any town on the border periphery. Their Mole Poblano is the definition of happiness. Unlike many spots in town, the mole isn't too sweet. It's mildly sweet, a little bitter from the chocolate, and the flavor from the ground nuts is warm and appealing. A plate is big enough to split with a friend, and comes with freshly-made, thick corn tortillas rolled up in foil. Their Birria de Chivo is also wonderful, and well suited for a chilly day. It's a huge bowl of goat soup with veggies. The goat is so tender - you can tell a lot of time went into simmering it to the perfect consistency and flavor. Their tacos are hit-or-miss, and could be greatly improved by a little more well-stocked salsa bar. Don't get me wrong, a number of their salsas are spot on... but their condiments (onions, limes, cilantro) can be a little sparse and sad. Looking at the other photos on Yelp, I see that isn't always the case... in the future I'll just ask if I need something. My favorite meats for the tacos include the pastor, chili verde, and (you guessed it) chicken mole. I'm not a fan of their lengua, and don't think it lives up to the higher price tag. La Chapala market is an excellent spot to fill up on homestyle Mexican food... consider ordering from their specials list as it has some stellar renditions of classic dishes. The market is also a great place to stock up on staple foods (all the Goya products you need for half the cost of other grocers!), frozen goods, etc.

    adobado, shrimp, and carnitas tacos
    Lily Z.

    La chapala market is much more than a convenience store. The front kitchen area makes authentic Mexican fairs at an incredible bargain. I got an array of tacos and a chili verde combo for less than $15. The serving size was generous, the adobado was nicely seasoned, the carnitas was tender with a few crispy bits. The shrimp taco was a little overcooked, but still tasty. For those with a more adventurous palate, you can get goat and cow brains for the taco fillings. The chili verde combo was enough for 2 to share with big pieces of tender pork in a tomatillo sauce that's spicier than you expect. Even the rice and beans were very flavorful, but there could be copious amount of lard in the preparation that made the sides so delicious. I took a quick tour of the store while waiting for my food. The best part was the meat department with most items being around $3 per pound. They had already marinated pastor and fajita meat (get 2 pounds and drive to Goleta beach to grill for a relaxing yet delicious weekend). There were also many cuts that were completely foreign to me, most of them were sliced very thin so you could grill it quickly or prepare it Milanese style. I imagine some korean bbq marinade would work beautifully with them too. The store also offers good prices on a selection of produce common to Mexican cooking such as tomatillo, scallions, chayote, jalapeno, etc... There are ample parkings in the back of the store. Don't let the sketchy looking facade fool you, there are plenty of cheap good eats in La Chapala.

    Caldo de Res (Mexican Beef Soup)
    Mark F.

    Market/restaurant. One stop shopping for all you South of the boarder, culinary needs. Well, I assume they have everything you need. I wandered the meat and veggie isle wile waiting for my Caldo de Res (Mexican Beef Soup) that was on special. My lunch date ordered up the Chili Verdi The menu board is inside to the left and you order at the cashier just ahead. Grab drinks from coolers along the left side and pay. Con't find a spot ton the street? No problem. Pull around in back for plenty of space.Helps to speak and read Spanish but it's not a prerequisite but it helps. Don't let that stop you form visiting. While I was not crazy about mine due to the lack of any real spice and a bland broth, I did like the Chili Verdi. I'll give it a try again.

    Lots of good meat here
    Aowei C.

    I love walking to this restaurant to take a break from work and buy a breakfast burrito. This restaurant is 80% market and 20% restaurant. They have a large raw meat selection in the market that they use to cook their burritos and other mexican dishes, if you like pork ribs try the costillitas. The food here feels fresh and homey, because the ingredients are from their groceries I know that I'm getting good quality meat in my orders. Their Taco prices are a great deal at only 1.89 a taco with a ton of different options, they have a 3 taco and a drink special for 5 dollars on Wed (Or was it Tuesday?).The other prices are average and I haven't tried many of their more expensive dishes but the portions of the 10 dollar entrees are already massive as is (see photo).

    Menu posted at pickup counter. Order and pay at the grocery checkout.
    Lemonjelly L.

    Oooooof! That's my final remark on my taqueria tour of Old Town Goleta. La Chapala was the last place on my list, and I am FULL. The majority of La Chapala Market is grocery/convenience store. There's even a good meat department, for raw cuts, and carnitas and chicharones. But I was there for the dining portion. It's a very, and I mean VERY, basic counter for ordering hot foot, and half a dozen small tables for eating in and another eating counter along the front windows. Really, no frills. It is important to note that the counter where the menu and prices are listed is not the counter you order and pay for your food. That is done at the general store's cashier counter. If your Spanish is no bueno, that is okay, the cashiers can cope. But for the guys in the kitchen and who bring your plate to the counter, you might encounter a language barrier. Just hold onto your order stub and listen for your number, and pick up your food at the counter where the menu is displayed. The menu is not complicated. An assortment of meats and vegetable, offered as burrito, taco, torta, hurrache, gordita. And a few combination plates and specials. I got the birria hurrache for $4.99. Oh man, it was more generous than I expected, piled high with succulent goat meat. There was one bone in it, but it was obvious and I much prefer that to fine shards of bone I get at some other places that serve goat. This hurrache also was loaded with a cold marinated green vegetable, perhaps a sweet pepper. There was actually too much of it, and I picked some off. I also ordered a carnitas taco, at $1.39, the cheapest tacos in Old Town. This deep fried pork had both the golden-brown deliciously of being fried and big tender chunks that make me feel la Chapala has been best carnitas of Old Town Hollister as well. Really good stuff. My lunch companion got the mole chicken, which came with refried beans and rice and tortillas. I sampled a bit and found the mole underwhelming compared to other places I like in Santa Barbara. It had a bitter burnt taste. I think that dish cost $6.99. I spent just a smidge over $6 and I am ridiculously full. So full, I am feeling a little relieved that my taco tour is over. Time for a break. But I know I'll start reminiscing over the memories within a week. Adios!

    Carne asada quesadilla.
    Adela C.

    I've visited for both the market and to eat in. For the market I got the fixings for a carne asada the meat was reasonably priced and marinated nicely. The produce section is small but has what you need. Tortillas are handmade at the restaurant, yum! I highly recommend the al pastor and buche tacos. My daughter also loved her carna asada quesadilla. Looking forward to some caldos and menudo on the weekend. Flavor is authentic, food is tasty and service has been consistently good!

    Tilapia

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    i got a carnitas torta the lettuce was very sweet and delicious and the meat was crisp and fatty

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    Asada burrito made my stomach sick didn't taste that good meat didn't taste fresh tons of rice in it which is not good

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    6 years ago

    Great prices and good food feels pretty authentic. Come here repeatedly for their made food. Has good meat as well

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - La Chapala Market

    Review Highlights - La Chapala Market

    The huarache is very tender and there is a rich lard flavor, it is heavily topped, and the green and dark red salsas both taste great.

    Mentioned in 2 reviews

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    Keg N Bottle - exclusive 4 loko flavors

    Keg N Bottle

    3.2(39 reviews)
    2.4 mi
    $$

    there's lots of cool alcohol choices. I give them that but the service is absolutely terrible. The…read moreman who help me at the front was an absolute asshole. My card wasn't working because I had just signed out of my iCloud so I had to re-sign in and he told me that, if I couldn't get my card ready, he wasn't gonna ring me up again. From the minute I walked in he was being completely rude to me. This was my first time ever coming here and I never wanna come back because of the way this guy treated me. When I got my card ready he ignored me and I asked him if he could ring me up please and he said all right if you're ready in a sarcastic tone. After rang me up , I asked him if he was the manager bc the only send allowed to treat people like that would be the business owner he told me he "wasn't the manager, if he was, he wouldn't be there on a Sunday night", For the dude who had this interaction with me. If you see this message, I hope you go find another job and stop being an asshole to people. I literally came in with a good attitude. I usually don't let these type of people get me down, but this guy was extremely rude and he just continued to be rude throughout this whole experience. The place is also very clean and well put together. They need to find better workers here if they want to stay in business.

    I shop here for beer. I'm a big craft beer fan and always on the lookout for new types to try as…read morewell as my old favorites. Keg'n'Bottle's has plenty of both. The selection impressed me from the first time I walked in. Really, it was better than I expected for the tiny college eating/drinking/shopping/services area that is Isla Vista, even knowing there would be a large number of beer aficionados here. There is an entire aisle of refrigerator cases stocked with four- and six-packs of beer, and another aisle is half cold case, half unrefrigerated beer in cans and mostly large-format bottles. The breadth of brewing companies and styles presents beers from many countries and likely has something for every palate. I see a few one-star reviews and I can't speak to the experiences those people had. I can say that I have never felt I was treated rudely. Perhaps this is because I'm a graduate student, though that really shouldn't have anything to do with it. I also haven't had cause to ask any questions about selection, because I let the beers give me all the info I need. But I do make smalltalk with the employees while at the register, and it's always been fine. There's also an impressively large selection of other types of liquors, liqueurs, and mixers, and some snacks as well. I've seen quite a few interesting looking bottles I'd be interested in trying, if I had more time to drink (grad student) and more money (yeah, grad student). I hope this store survives the Covid-19 pandemic. For those who stay in IV, drinking may be a pretty appealing activity, so I expect it will.

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    La Chapala Market - convenience - Updated May 2026

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