Best burritos in Novato... so far. Things are changing, all over, as are prices and portions and…read morequality These guys are very friendly, you get a lot of food for your money, and the food is excellent. Native Californian speaking here, with 30 years in San Diego, so... (Btw, no in SoCal puts rice in burritos.)

6/8/26 Carmen's in Novato was awesome! Quesabirría especially was amazing. Same with carnitas wet…read moreburrito super flavorful the salsa had a nice kick to it as as well as the pickled onions. Staff was friendly will definitely be back!!!!

The food is absolutely delicious. We ordered chilaquiles red and green both were supper savory had…read morea great sazón! The meat on top was super tender the carnitas melted in your mouth. This honestly hit the spot, we came here after a run and the service was so quick. Loved it will definitely come back!

We brought the family to Mamita Cocina Mexicana for dinner right before heading to a local show,…read moreand they delivered a 5-star experience from start to finish! Why it's a must-visit: Perfect Pre-Show Service: The team was super accommodating and efficient, ensuring we had plenty of time to enjoy our meal before our show started. Delicious Food & Drinks: Freshly made guacamole, great salsas, incredible oak-wood grilled mains, and top-tier craft margaritas. Great Ambiance: Warm, stylish, and ideal for families or groups. Whether you're grabbing a bite before a event in Marin, looking for authentic wood-fired Mexican food, or just searching for great food in the area, Mamita is top notch. Highly recommended!

The Padre Macho Burrito can literally feed a family of four!! It comes in an extra long bread loaf…read morepan and fills the entire pan. My husband and I split one with carnitas and we still only ate half. Delicious fillings. The staff was extremely friendly and my take out order was prepared quickly. I ordered once I had arrived there. All the salsas have quite a kick to them. We will be back.

The flavor of this food reminds me of my old neighborhood in Chicago. We dined outside near the…read moredelightful fountain. It was a warm 77 degrees. Quiet. Then a family with an honestly adorably sweet young fella dined sent to us. Very sweet. I ordered 5 street tacos: cabesa, lengua, chorizo, pollo asado, y carnitas. Exquisite. You just have to try your favorite 5 from the list of 12 possible meat choices. Awesome. My companion had the 3 (is that the new usual 2 these days) enchiladas: shredded chicken and carnitas. Excellent. Oh! And the non-alcoholic margarita is the best in the area.

Well, how things evolve over time. My dad was JONESING for menudo Sunday morning, and it was too…read moreearly to visit any of his usual weekend Mexican haunts. My wife called around to find that El Rey was open - and had menudo. What we didn't realize was that there was a full-on buffet-style brunch going on every Sunday from 9-2. First, the aromas were intoxicating. Second, there was a HUGE buffet line with Pozole, Menudo, rice & beans, chilaquiles, sausage or eggs with chorizo, veggies, potatoes, huevos ranchero, birria, quesabirria tacos, EVEN American brunch favorites like scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, and pancakes (but why eat those when there is AMAZING Mexican buffet to choose from?). Coffee/soda also included, and desserts including fruits and custards. I figured for sure it was upwards of $30 a head for the buffet, but the bill comes and it's like $68 for the three of us! What a value! BTW, everything I had was delish. Fresh. Hot. Tasty. And the fact that 90% of the people dining at the restaurant were Latinx tells you all you need to know. Highly recommend this brunch, Novato!

Over a week ago, we were driving south to San Francisco through Novato when we decided to have…read moredinner, and Mexican food won the majority vote! We chose to try a new place, and El Rey caught our attention. We arrived around 7:30, and the restaurant wasn't busy since it was a Sunday evening. Looking at the menu, I was drawn to their ceviche. We decided to start with guacamole and chips, share a ceviche, and have a Quesadilla con Carne Asada. The guacamole was fresh and well-made, the ceviche was exceptionally delicious, and the quesadilla was very well prepared and tasty. Our server was very friendly and helpful with our questions, and we even shared a few good laughs. The service was excellent. El Rey has been a local spot in Novato for many years, family-owned and known for serving traditional Mexican dishes in a welcoming setting. It has built a reputation in the community as a reliable place for a hearty meal, and many locals have been coming here for decades. The restaurant is a standalone building in a shopping center and offers a large seating area. They also have an outdoor seating area, which I imagine would be especially nice on a warm evening. As a first-time visitor, I left impressed. The food, service, and relaxed atmosphere made for a very enjoyable stop on our drive. We would definitely come back again the next time we're in Novato.

Popped in on a whim, Amazing tasty food, freshly made. Varied menu, good for couples families or…read morefriend catch ups!! Friendly service. Would come back

This is a small but delightful restaurant in the fast, casual ethnic food category. There's a lot…read moreof Mexican food restaurants out there, which are great, but this restaurant specializes in central American food. If you haven't become familiar with it yet, give it a try! Their pupusa and their tamales are delicious. And you don't have to spend a lot of money to get great tasting food. I only spent $11 for example on my recent lunch there and got two items which filled me up sufficiently. I'll definitely be going back to Cocina Antigua on my rounds through Novato

UPDATED REVIEW:…read more What a disappointment! My family placed a lunch order for take out for Mother's Day that did not meet expectations. We knew they would be very busy today so we made sure to place the order early at 11:00. My mom only wanted a cheese enchilada but unfortunately it was about 1/3 of the size of the usual cheese enchiladas that my dad ordered. We did not order a child size enchilada! I called to voice my concerns and the lady that answered the phone was the same frazzled person I had called my order in to. She was clearly very busy and overwhelmed with the volume of Mothers Day orders they were not prepared for. She apologized and did not show any concern to make the order right. I ended up sharing my chicken quesedilla with mom, but have noted that after this experience we wont be going back to Tommy's Salsa anytime soon. Do better Tommy's Salsa by ensuring that all to go orders are properly prepared to meet customer expectations.

Went here because I was craving for fish tacos. The restaurant's decor was cute but the chairs…read morewere a little old. Friendly staff. Good selection of salsas at the salsa bar. Ordered the 2 fish taco plate and horchata. The complimentary chips and bean dip was unexpected and much appreciated. The horchata was perfect. The taco had a lot of fresh slaw but I was disappointed that there was not a lot of fish. Couldn't really taste the fish. Maybe I'll come back for something else as they do have an extensive menu.

We happened upon this sweet spot on a Friday night. We sat up front and got an amazing show with…read morethe live music. They were awesome! Service was great! Drinks were lovely. We just got in before happy hour ended and it made our trip even better. We shared a salad and each ordered happy hour tacos. The flan we ordered for dessert was amazing. And I don't normally even like flan. It was the best I've ever had. Great place to try out!

Am liking this place more than before. Went with daughter-in-law, wife and one grandchild for lunch…read moreand it was OK. Mexican Jarrito sodas are $5 each, a glass of Modelo beer is $7 and a small orange juice is $6. Prices, to us, are high. Yes, it is in California, but Mexican dishes are not that expensive to make. Eli was our server and he did a good job with us. The Conchinita Pibil Tacos plate ($21) is a Yucatán Peninsula dish of deeply flavorful pulled pork, marinated in citrus and achiote (those tiny red seeds common in the Americas) paste. Served with pickled onions on corn tortillas. They were OK. Huevos Rancheros ($19) were, as expected, fried eggs over corn tortillas and slathered with green and red sauces. Pretty good. Most expensive was the five Street Taco Plate ($48), an outrageous price for five street tacos. Of course, you could choose what protein you wanted in those five tacos, but... We will be back as son's family like it very much. We...not so much.

I just noticed that the tequila list has been updated with some amazing choices!…read more Also 10/24 and 10/25 this year will be their El Día de Los Muertos celebration with music and dancing. So excited. As always, the entire staff makes us feel welcome like family.

I usually avoid writing bad reviews for small businesses, and at the time didn't think I would…read morebecause I know how hard it is to run a business today- even though the food was terrible. But after some days I realize that I think food safety is a concern here- so I feel I must share our experience so that others can avoid it, or the restaurant can know that the lack of effort or maybe skill by the cooks is noticeable, and they are way overpriced for such terrible food. First off my friend who is allergic to dairy specifically asked for no cheese, no sour cream, I believe she even said she is allergic. Not written down, which always makes me nervous. Well, when she bit into it, it had cheese. They offered to make her another, she said she didn't want it, and they did anyways, a communication error maybe. The food was bland- couldn't taste any seasoning or spice, and tasted like it was days old and microwaved, beans dry and bland, as was the rice, it was clear the miniature shrimp in her taco was canned. I know food is more expensive these days, but this was bottom of the barrel food quality. I've had much better Mexican food probably using the same lower quality ingredients, but at least they know how to properly prepare the food and season it. This was nowhere near the tasty Mexican food I can get in East Oakland by a non restaurant owner selling food in their front yard, food trucks, even Taco Bell. That food is tasty. This was just awful. Even the Arnold Palmer was the worst I've ever had. And I'm comparing it to mixing the Minute Maid lemonade and Nestea at Carl's Jr., which was far better. Was it that nobody ever cleans the fountain pumps, which needs to be done regularly or else it spurts mold into your drink? The taste I would describe it as was "funky". Gave two stars and not one, only because they at least were apologetic about the cheese and tried to make it right, but THAT was NOT a $60 meal!!! As I've said, I've had MUCH better food cooked by many different types of places. This was absolutely substandard, and we both spent the rest of the day and the night with upset stomachs, which is what makes me wonder what their food safety standards are like.

Maya Palenque has the best fish tacos and micheladas! The tacos are fresh, flavorful, and perfectly…read morecooked, and the michelada is always delicious. Definitely one of my favorite spots.

Large freeway-adjacent Mexican restaurants are a thing I've long noticed, Maya Palenque being one…read moreof several to be found as you traverse north on Highway 101. I've often wondered about such places, fantasizing that they may be great but if Maya Palenque is representative of the genre I've been missing nothing. The dishes here were nice enough in presentation. The place itself is very large and the menu quite extensive. I ordered the Taco Salad with grilled chicken and though there was nothing wrong with it, I'm someone who requires spice with my Mexican food choices. Green and red salsas were delivered to my table and - wow - I've never tasted salsas that had zero spiciness. Now I have. These added exactly nothing to the taste profile making it clear that were I desirous of any spiciness it would have to come from Tapatio or Tabasco. If you're okay with very bland Mexican fare, Maya Palenque is serving it up. My curiosity about large, freeway-adjacent Mexican restaurants has been satisfied and no further exploration of the genre is required.

The best tacos in Novato. I usually get the al pastor and carne asada tacos. I originally found…read morethem at the Novato Farmer's market a few years ago. They are there every week from May-October from 4-8pm. I've also had their burritos and quesadillas. They have agua frescas and usually offer different flavors every week. My work has hired them a few times to cater our events and every time they're fantastic! We got to order as many tacos and quesadillas that we wanted to and there were lots of toppings, chips, salsa, guacamole and agua frescas. Consider them for your next catering event or check them out at the farmers market. They also have a taco truck (Manny's tacos).

Every Friday at Keg Stand. The best tacos and burritos you can get. They are set up outside of Keg…read morestand. Mary the owner is amazing. The food is spectacular. Best tacos and burritos in Marin.