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    Ruben's

    4.1 (102 reviews)
    Open 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Ruben's Photos

    RUBEN'S ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

    Recommended Reviews - Ruben's

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    Reviews With Photos

    Female performer on Sundays for Brunch. Best Mexican brunch ever
    Lisa G.

    This is our to go place when down south. We love Sunday brunch and live entertainment on Sundays. The female performer is awesome and knows how to get the crowd going. She sings all rules of music. We are always ready to dance and of course the shots Ruben passes around. Highly recommend. Ruben is always great.

    Fresh Salmon Chef's Choice...Excellent!
    Larry F.

    We've eaten here a few times and this particular evening when we came I saw two fish specials walking in on the board so I asked and the waiter said the two fish specials were salmon or sea bass and I asked which might be better he said the salmon was fresh. He asked how would I like it prepared and I said please ask the chef for his own choice. I am so glad I did that! The chef wasn't super busy and he took great joy in preparing what he thought is the best method and he was right! He cooked a variety of small vegetables in a light teriyaki sauce and poached to the salmon in the same sauce with beautiful garnish and a wonderful presentation. I thought I was in the fanciest restaurant in Baja California! Even the house salad was better than most house salads on the north side of the border.

    Sampling from the buffet
    Missy B.

    We recently discovered Ruben's and we've back twice since our initial visit! First off, go on Sunday for brunch! I think it's better than the over-hyped La Fonda and not as crowded (though still busy). They have a buffet style brunch with bottomless mimosas, or you can select meals from their menu as well. We've been for the buffet and for a typical dining experience on a Saturday and both times the food was excellent! The buffet has everything from chilaquiles and omelettes to seafood and other traditional Mexican dishes. There are obviously fresh-made tortillas (quesadillas, anyone?!) and they even have paella! There really is something for everyone. We enjoyed sitting back down at our table and laughing at all of our randomly (yet perfectly) put together dishes! Service at Ruben's is top-notch. The servers are always hustling and are quick to fill up your drink and bring you whatever you need. You'll even see Ruben himself running around, greeting guests and making sure everything is running smoothly. The view is insane so definitely sit on the patio if you can and the weather is nice. Otherwise, there's plenty of room in the dining room as well. There's even seating at the bar if that's more your style. I highly recommend you check this spot out. I think you'll find you favorite new brunch spot, too!

    Outside patio with
    Ryan M.

    Still killing it! After covid I was worries spots like Ruben's may not survive or that the buffet would stop. They've adjusted and now have the buffet served cafeteria style and the food quality hasn't lacked. Went last weekend and it was $22 a person w/unlimited mimosas and of course Ruben himself is out there working his ass off and pouring shots in peoples mouth assuring we all have a good time.

    Wendy B.

    Ruben had a dream. A classy, big, gorgeous restaurant that offered fine dining. And he made it happen. And even though the huge back patio (intended for brunches and wedding receptions) is still incomplete, that is something we must get used to if we are to immerse ourselves in the "there's always mañana " Baja way. That's ok with me. It was quite beautiful inside, tastefully decorated, rich with stone work, tile and lots of wood, with white table cloths, flickering candles, and quite elegantly modern in attitude. And the hospitality that would not quit. We were guided here by someone who knew Ruben and had no doubt he would make us happy. It was a memorable evening. We tried to be discrete in ordering, our group of 6 friends. We failed miserably. And we really barely sampled the menu. First, a huge bar where we sat around, imbibed, and admired the new surroundings. After being seated at our table, we ordered a bottle of wine to share, then started with a tableside Caesar salad, something I haven't seen in a couple decades. Had to try it. The waiter pushed out a cart laden with tons of small dishes and bottles, even the raw egg, all the ingredients necessary for making an authentic salad. It took about 5 minutes, each ingredient added one at a time and expertly blended. The performance was fascinating. Out came a couple of baskets of garlic bread. Mind you, not just any garlic bread. Thinly sliced, delicately buttered, still soft and hot. Then out came another appetizer. Guacamole. Not your Grandmother's guacamole. This one was generous, lumpy, even had cubes of cream cheese in the mix. Served with thin pita chips, it was unusual and tasty. When I saw Shrimp Scampi listed as an appetizer, I knew this was my "dish" for the evening. And I was so right. Despite only 5 large, sweet shrimp, it was the copious amount of garlic, wine and butter sauce that pushed me over the edge. I cleaned my dish, left not a drop of sauce, greedily sopped it all up with that great bread. I shall probably go to hell for this. And I spent the rest of the evening, and most of the next day, fiendishly calculating how to get that dish again. Nobody took my blatant hints, but some day, I shall. The rest of the group each naïvely ordered a bowl of the lobster bisque. Eating light? Right. Who knew it was so huge? Who knew it was completely sealed with a buttery puff pastry lid? Who knew it would be another showpiece as the waiter cracked open the middle and drizzled sherry into the hot soup inside. It was creamy and rich and filling (I stole a spoonful). My only wish would have been to discover chunks of lobster meat inside. This one was a smooth one. No matter. I was still sopping up that amazing scampi butter and tearfully moaning words of endearment. The grand finale was yet another tableside showpiece. If you have never seen Mexican Coffee made, this is* the* place to do it. The cart came out displaying the bottles of Tequila and Kahlua. First they glaze the edge of your glass with sugar, then caramelize it by fire. Then comes the igniting of the different alcohols that have first been poured into a ladle. And a generous sprinkling of cinnamon that sparks like fireworks. Still blazing, they pour it into your glass. Then comes the hot coffee. And lastly, a generous topping of whipped cream and a cherry. What fun. And how delicious. After all this great food and several spectacular shows, each couple only paid $75. Total. Where can you do all this in the states? And where can you find kinder hospitality?

    Shrimp Echilada

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    7 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    9 years ago

    Lobster Bisque was really good, but could of used a lil bit more lobster. Place was good and I will be going back.

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    10 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    9 years ago

    Rubens has one the Best Lobster Bisque I've ever had. Going this morning for our first Sunday Brunch.

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    9 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    12 years ago

    Sunday brunch is awesome here. Live music, great service and good food. The serve paella, prime rib, chili replenish, bbq ribs, etc.

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    9 years ago

    Great food. Great dinner. Had garlics shrimp for dinner and octopus in chipotle sauce. Flavors were amazing.

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    12 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    Page 3 of 3

    Ruben's Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - Ruben's

    I've been coming to Ruben's Sunday brunch for about 10 years now.

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    Colectivo Surf

    Colectivo Surf

    4.6(133 reviews)
    2.4 km
    $$

    This is a top notch Sushi Restaurant and Brewery, and they have other great dishes (come for the…read moreGuacamole - stay for the Scorpion!). The Margaritas and the beer are excellent! The Yellowfin tuna we had was swimming just a few hours prior. So good!!! They use locally sourced and only the highest quality and freshest ingredients. The staff is super friendly and fun - we spent 2 afternoons there and they were awesome! My two teen-aged daughters and my wife and I really enjoyed it. It's a good size place with beautiful inside and outside areas - good for families and the party crowd. I hope we'll be able to come back one day soon!!!

    Where to start...well here goes, we parked and waked in to this establishment and noticed that most…read moreif not all people in this place where glued to the television as the World Cup game (Mex vs. Kor) was on, understandably as in certain places Football is life. We waited by the Bar near the entrance for 25 minutes while all three waiters ignored us, made eye contact, checked their phone and took pics . Another Paton at the bar walked over to us and said they her grandchildren were sitting at a table which was empty except for a few sweatshirts so she removed them and said we could have the table, which was a very nice gesture that we appreciated. We continued to wait for another 10 minutes or so until we had enough with being ignored we left and went to another place and were seated and not ignored, a great meal by the way. My Brother in law was with me along with my son and my nephew. I had seen this place recommended by "The Boredom Report " ( JT my apologies but your guy here is out of line) many times and was excited to try this place as I always am when in Baja. Unfortunately, this place dropped the ball. My Brother in law left a review on yelp approximately 20 minutes or so after our visit and was sent a rather rude and racist message by someone named "Noel' stating that Mexico was in the World Cup and that they were playing in Mexico along with that we were I can't remember if it was Dumb or Dirty Americans so I'm going to go with Dumb for this one, "Dumb Americans" that need to educate ourselves on the Mexican culture and such. Well I'll say this, I too have been in Baja for over 40 years, Noel and never have I had any establishments in Baja ever ignore any customers until last night. If myself and my family didn't love, respect Mexico or its people and culture we would never go south of the border and be ignorant to anything having to with Mexico. But, since you are obviously more focused on Football instead of your business I would imagine that you might not last long with that mindset. Also Noel, please feel free to explain to me or anyone for that matter why you choose to run an American style Microbrewery and Sushi Restaurant and not a traditional restaurant in Baja? Could it be you're were attempting to attract a certain Dirty and or Dumb Americans? Also, please explain me and all that read this how to educate myself on "Mexican Culture'' when you're attempting to mimic two different cultures and yet have no idea on anything related to customer service. Please continue to Just throw out something racial and derogatory to cover up for you and your staffs shortcomings because racism has become a form of needing attention and not truly the issue at hand these days. Perhaps next time any "Dumb Americans" walk in to your place why don't you just refuse service, oh wait you do that by ignoring them and giving a racist rant on culture and education. instead of actually dealing with your staff/business issues. Now I've made some mistakes before with reviews and I generally give a place a few chances to rectify things as I know running a restaurant/business isn't easy and there are things that are out of people's control so I will update things when I return. As I believe this is the only true way of giving a honest and legitimate review. Perhaps next time you post a response you should also remember that there is an e-mail that is sent with your same response to the person that posted the review.Simply changing your response online doesn't change the initial email, and saying "you were busy" isn't an accurate description in this instance. Nice try. TO NOEL I WILL NEVER PATRONIZE THIS PLACE AS LING AS I LIVE! I WILL MAKE IT MY MISSION TO TELL EVERYONE I KNOW THAT VISITS BAJA TO NEVER GIVE YOU ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO TREAT PEOPLE THE WAY YOU TREATED US. SIGNED: "THE DIRTY AMERICANS'

    Photos
    Colectivo Surf
    Colectivo Surf
    Colectivo Surf - Yellow Tail roll

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    Yellow Tail roll

    Splash Baja - Camarones empanizados

    Splash Baja

    4.2(240 reviews)
    8.3 km
    $$

    Food was amazing, service was great . We were a party of 12…read moreand they made it nice and smooth. Place has beautiful views with live music . Definitely will go again!

    there are two entrances to this restaurant. There is the older restaurant in the newer side of the…read morerestaurant. They appeared to be operating separately, but we chose the newer restaurant. It was a Saturday night and there was a band playing. We sat in the bar past the entertainment, which was good because we were not overwhelmed with sitting right next to a live band and speakers. We were able to talk and enjoy your evening. They sat us next to a window and the view was five stars + . It was absolutely beautiful to hear the ocean and see the sunset. I ordered a pepino margarita and it was delicious. We ordered fried oysters ( had never had these before) and a ceviche for appetizers. Both appetizers were well done and tasted good. My main entrée was the seafood soup/caldo de mariscos. The broth had a little kick to it and there was a large assortment of the seafood. It was really good and I would order it again. There was a LARGE crab leg and a portion of lobster as well. I was really impressed with the crab leg. I have never had that much meat from a crab leg. It was delicious . We also ordered a fish dish, which was recommended by the waiter. It was good and the fish (curvina) was excellent, not overcooked or undercooked. The only setback on the fish dish was the mashed potatoes. They seemed a little cold when the dish came out. The only other setback were the corn tortillas. Somehow they didn't hit the mark on freshness and taste. We travel a lot to various restaurants in the region and most of the time the tortillas are freshly made. We do have a high standard when it comes to homemade tortillas. These tortillas did not impress. The dessert- chocolate cake. Stater Bros. or CaliMax would have been better. No rating for the dessert The waiter was attentive and provided space which I like. He made sure we had everything we needed. Visit Splash and post your experience

    Photos
    Splash Baja
    Splash Baja
    Splash Baja - Captivating sunset view

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    Captivating sunset view

    Encanto - Hot molcajete

    Encanto

    3.8(336 reviews)
    8.2 km
    $$$

    This place is cool! It's resembles a brick castle of sorts. There is lots of parking and lots of…read morephoto ops set up. The restaurant is huge and set on several level right on the coast. Great views and a few splashes depending on where you are seated. There was solo guitarist sing during lunch. It was a very nice touch. The food was good. The tortillas were hot and freshly made. The service was friendly and efficient.

    I recently visited Encanto in Ensenada and unfortunately had a very disappointing experience…read more When the bill arrived, I noticed that one of my dishes was priced incorrectly. I politely pointed it out to our server, Daniel, expecting it to be corrected. Instead, he casually dismissed it and said, "It's only 100 pesos more," which I found unprofessional and disrespectful. It's not about the amount it's about accuracy and customer service. Because of this interaction, I decided to remove the $20 tip I had initially left. When I did, he took the receipt to his manager and claimed that I hadn't tipped at all. I explained the situation, but he responded with a smirk, which felt mocking and made the situation even more uncomfortable. Additionally, the service overall was slow. We asked for water multiple times before ordering, during the meal, and even after finishing and it still took a long time for it to arrive. Unfortunately, this experience left a very negative impression, despite the setting. I hope management takes this kind of behavior seriously and works on improving both service quality and professionalism.

    Photos
    Encanto - Second story seating- the views are beautiful

    Second story seating- the views are beautiful

    Encanto
    Encanto

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    Ruben's - mexican - Updated August 2026

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