Taqueria Cardenas
Order Taqueria Cardenas Takeout or Delivery
Taqueria Cardenas Photos
Business Info
Taqueria Cardenas Popular Dishes
TAQUERIA CARDENAS ATMOSPHERE
You might also consider
More like Taqueria Cardenas
Recommended Reviews - Taqueria Cardenas
Start your review...
Reviews With Photos
My go to spot downtown for Mexican food. Staff is super friendly and always comes through with great service. Plenty of seating available if you'd like to dine in but I'm typically calling in my order for a lunch break. Everything I've had here is great, all the meats are seasoned with great flavor and cooked to perfection. My top three in rotation would be the super burrito with carnitas, asada fries and avocado chicken salad.
Service was really fast! The nachos were really good and we enjoyed the chile colorado. They serve beer as well which would be nice for when you're out with friends.
Had to run an errand at the Supreme Court in Modesto and decided to grab some Mexican food nearby. I found Taqueria Cardenas on Yelp -- it was just a short walk away. The bright, colorful exterior caught my eye -- always a good sign at a Mexican spot. The place was small but packed, with a fast-moving line despite only three employees working. They handled DoorDash, takeout, and dine-in orders efficiently. I placed my order, used the restroom (immaculately clean -- rare for small spots), and found a seat. They brought the food straight to my table without needing a number. Carne Asada Plate:The meat was thicker than most places but very flavorful. The rice, beans, and salad were well-seasoned, making the plate a hearty, satisfying meal on its own. Crispy Shrimp Taco:Good flavor but overpriced at $9. It only had about three shrimp -- not worth the extra $3.50 compared to a regular crispy taco. Overall, I'd definitely recommend Taqueria Cardenas when in the area. They handle rush hour well, the food is tasty, and the salsa bar is a great bonus.
Time for some pre-show dinner. Tonight? The Temptations & The Four Tops! We had time to kill, needed dinner and didn't want to lose our excellent parking space close to the Gallo Center. We did a minor bit of walking and looked at yelp as we walked. This led us to Taqueria Cardenas. Honestly, it wasn't much to look at. Small store front with an enclosed patio area in front with maybe two or three small tables. It was a little wider inside than I had expected. There was one person placing an order to go, otherwise it was empty. The menu is behind and above the counter. We waited our turn and placed our order. We each got an entree, and I ordered an extra Chile Relleno to share. We grabbed a Diet Pepsi from the self-service fridge. There were fountain drinks as well, but we didn't ask about them. We did have our Gallo Center cup with us, and our order taker/server was kind enough to fill it with ice for us. We paid for our food, received some napkins, flatware and a plastic basket of tortilla chips and went to choose a table. There was a Salsa Bar for salsas, limes, and radishes. There is a public restroom for guests. You do have to ask the cashier to open it for you. That's a good thing because that meant that the restroom was very clean. The order taker/server brought our food to our table and checked with us a couple of times to make sure that we were happy and didn't need anything else. It was a small wait for our food from ordering to serving but it was a wait worth waiting for. The rice and beans were as expected. The Chile Rellenos were perfect! Excellent temperature, texture and flavor. She got an Al Pastor Enchilada with Green Sauce and a Carnitas Street Taco. Both were devoured in no time. We have four more shows to attend at the Gallo this season. No doubt, we will be returning.
Felt the food was pretty skimpy. Ordered carna asada fries but felt the fry to topping ratio was off. Definitely should have had more fries for the dish. Definitely not worth the $15. Could have been a busy night so they were rushing thru and were trying to spread their fries across several dishes instead of making enough for all their orders.
Great location. Plenty of seating and a kitchen area had a ton of taco toppings choices. The pollo taco was ok and the the Chile Colorado didn't have a ton of flavor. Perhaps I didn't choose the right toppings. The "mild" salsa was pretty spicy but didn't add much to the taste.
The Yelp rating is legit. Nice little family run restaurant. The food was fresh, served fast, and delicious.
So I really liked Cardenas and I wanted to bring my wife to enjoy their food. I am going to soon realize this was a bad idea. We arrived at the restaurant to find no one enjoying dinner. No biggie right. I ordered the quesabirra taco plate, the wife went with the enchiladas. My little brother also ordered his meal. He too got the quesabiria taco plate. The food came out and it was time to eat. First impressions, the rice was mush. I had a feeling this dinner was going south quick. I grabbed my first taco and instead of being firm and crisp, my taco was soft and flimsy. I took my first bite and i knew this was not the same meal I had a couple of weeks ago. What a bummer. Lack of flavor even with the dipping juice. I actually regret coming here now because this dinner wasn't what I had weeks prior. The wife said her enchiladas were ok but the rice was mushy and the beans were no bueno. I totally agreed. My brother wasn't impressed either. He too has had a great meal here in the past but tonight's meal fell really short. My original score was five stars a few weeks ago but this meal dropped it to three stars. Should be a two and a half star really.
1 month ago
Caught a matinee movie and the State Theater Down the street from this nice little Taqueria . Not busy in the mid afternoon on a Saturday. I ordered 2 crunchy tacos - Carne Asada plate w/ Beans and Rice . Our Son ordered a Quesadilla w/ Carne Asada. Hubby ordered a Burrito Bowl - Shredded Beef . Everything super fresh and flavorful! Fair Prices :) Friendly staff :) Salsa Bar, had a really great Spicy Salsa w/ really liked . Chips came with each meal . Great little place in downtown Modesto ! read more
10 days ago
3 months ago
My go to spot downtown for Mexican food. Staff is super friendly and always comes through with great service. Plenty of seating available if you'd like to dine in but I'm typically calling in my order for a lunch break. Everything I've had here is great, all the meats are seasoned with great flavor and cooked to perfection. My top three in rotation would be the super burrito with carnitas, asada fries and avocado chicken salad. read more
9 months ago
Service was really fast! The nachos were really good and we enjoyed the chile colorado. They serve beer as well which would be nice for when you're out with friends. read more
Had to run an errand at the Supreme Court in Modesto and decided to grab some Mexican food nearby. I found Taqueria Cardenas on Yelp -- it was just a short walk away. The bright, colorful exterior caught my eye -- always a good sign at a Mexican spot. The place was small but packed, with a fast-moving line despite only three employees working. They handled DoorDash, takeout, and dine-in orders efficiently. I placed my order, used the restroom (immaculately clean -- rare for small spots), and found a seat. They brought the food straight to my table without needing a number. Carne Asada Plate:The meat was thicker than most places but very flavorful. The rice, beans, and salad were well-seasoned, making the plate a hearty, satisfying meal on its own. Crispy Shrimp Taco:Good flavor but overpriced at $9. It only had about three shrimp -- not worth the extra $3.50 compared to a regular crispy taco. Overall, I'd definitely recommend Taqueria Cardenas when in the area. They handle rush hour well, the food is tasty, and the salsa bar is a great bonus. read more
3 months ago
Excellent food. The delivery was quick and arrived hot. Utensils were also included as requested. read more
6 months ago
6 months ago
4 months ago
Time for some pre-show dinner. Tonight? The Temptations & The Four Tops! We had time to kill, needed dinner and didn't want to lose our excellent parking space close to the Gallo Center. We did a minor bit of walking and looked at yelp as we walked. This led us to Taqueria Cardenas. Honestly, it wasn't much to look at. Small store front with an enclosed patio area in front with maybe two or three small tables. It was a little wider inside than I had expected. There was one person placing an order to go, otherwise it was empty. The menu is behind and above the counter. We waited our turn and placed our order. We each got an entree, and I ordered an extra Chile Relleno to share. We grabbed a Diet Pepsi from the self-service fridge. There were fountain drinks as well, but we didn't ask about them. We did have our Gallo Center cup with us, and our order taker/server was kind enough to fill it with ice for us. We paid for our food, received some napkins, flatware and a plastic basket of tortilla chips and went to choose a table. There was a Salsa Bar for salsas, limes, and radishes. There is a public restroom for guests. You do have to ask the cashier to open it for you. That's a good thing because that meant that the restroom was very clean. The order taker/server brought our food to our table and checked with us a couple of times to make sure that we were happy and didn't need anything else. It was a small wait for our food from ordering to serving but it was a wait worth waiting for. The rice and beans were as expected. The Chile Rellenos were perfect! Excellent temperature, texture and flavor. She got an Al Pastor Enchilada with Green Sauce and a Carnitas Street Taco. Both were devoured in no time. We have four more shows to attend at the Gallo this season. No doubt, we will be returning. read more
8 months ago
The lady was super nice. The food was spectacular. She gave the food asap. 10/10 no complains. I WILL be coming back. read more
9 months ago
6 months ago
1 year ago
1 year ago
2 years ago
Felt the food was pretty skimpy. Ordered carna asada fries but felt the fry to topping ratio was off. Definitely should have had more fries for the dish. Definitely not worth the $15. Could have been a busy night so they were rushing thru and were trying to spread their fries across several dishes instead of making enough for all their orders. read more
3 years ago
Great location. Plenty of seating and a kitchen area had a ton of taco toppings choices. The pollo taco was ok and the the Chile Colorado didn't have a ton of flavor. Perhaps I didn't choose the right toppings. The "mild" salsa was pretty spicy but didn't add much to the taste. read more
So I really liked Cardenas and I wanted to bring my wife to enjoy their food. I am going to soon realize this was a bad idea. We arrived at the restaurant to find no one enjoying dinner. No biggie right. I ordered the quesabirra taco plate, the wife went with the enchiladas. My little brother also ordered his meal. He too got the quesabiria taco plate. The food came out and it was time to eat. First impressions, the rice was mush. I had a feeling this dinner was going south quick. I grabbed my first taco and instead of being firm and crisp, my taco was soft and flimsy. I took my first bite and i knew this was not the same meal I had a couple of weeks ago. What a bummer. Lack of flavor even with the dipping juice. I actually regret coming here now because this dinner wasn't what I had weeks prior. The wife said her enchiladas were ok but the rice was mushy and the beans were no bueno. I totally agreed. My brother wasn't impressed either. He too has had a great meal here in the past but tonight's meal fell really short. My original score was five stars a few weeks ago but this meal dropped it to three stars. Should be a two and a half star really. read more
5 years ago
Went to a wine tasting event at the taste studio fashion house across the street but needed some carbs in me quick haha so went here for a veggie burrito and it was soo good!! Their beans are delicious which makes all the difference in a veggie burrito. They have a salsa bar which was legit, I loved the green salsas. The red is the spicier one but I like the flavor of the green salsa. My friend ordered a taco salad and she really liked hers too. They were fast and really good quality food. Will definitely be back next time I'm in town. read more
2 years ago
6 years ago
Found out about this place because I have a RAD Card -- I would have otherwise never tried this place. I called in my order for camarones rancheros, chile relleno, a quesabirria and large jugo de jamaica. My order was ready on time. It was some man show -- the cook was very friendly! The quesabirria was the best thing. All the food was tasty but was missing that homemade touch. The chile relleno was just dipped in egg -- not that puffy egg white batter. The rice was good, beans were good but canned I think. The camarones rancheros were tasty, spicy sauce, but lite on shrimp. Salsas bar had a good variety with sliced radishes, lime wedges, and four salsas. Plus: food came in recyclable paper board containers. Negative: food didn't hold temperature and boxes got soggy by the time the food got home. Conclusion: I'll give it another try -- especially for the quesabirria. read more
4 years ago
I asked can you make me a shrimp taco but fried, kinda like a birria taco? His response "YES". And he understood the assignment! This fried shrimp taco was the best I've had! Thank you sir who's name I didn't catch read more
5 years ago
5 years ago
We needed a place near our hotel so we walked over here and we were surprised how great the food is. Very kind service very good tasting food and there were vegan options. Highly recommend we will be coming back. I had the falafel with fries and we also ordered burrito . bowls Were delicious Great selection of sauces. I wanted to take more pictures but they eat it so quickly I only have a picture of mine read more
5 years ago
Spicy Falafel is perfectly seasoned, not too bland but not too spicy. This is difficult to achieve. I hadn't had one in a long time and forgotten how good. Not over-dressed with lots of crunch. Fries seasoned well even after taking home and stone cold. read more
6 years ago
Disappointed is an understatement. My taco lady's tacos are bigger than what I just paid $11.25 for 2, rice and beans + $0.75 for cheese each taco and $0.50 to use my card. The rice taste like straight tomato sauce. Would not recommend. read more
4 years ago
2 years ago
3 years ago
I liked Taqueria Cardenas. It wasn't amazing, but I was impressed when I saw them taking out raw, marinated meat to cook for our order. There were a few good bits of char on the carne asada. It's kind of a small place, not teeny tiny, but it was sad to see a stream of 40+ people slowly leave Cardenas and then go across the street to another place one morning. I'm not sure why they all left. They probably couldn't handle that many customers at once. read more
4 years ago
3 years ago
6 years ago
Yum!! I have been wanting to try this place. I always go to Jalapeños as my "go to" Mexican eatery. The guacamole was super fresh & delicious!! The super veggie burrito was perfect. And loved the salsa bar.... clean, no cross contamination. The ONLY reason I'm giving 4 stars, is you are forced to buy a drink w/ your food or you will be drinking warm city water. I would give 4.5 but that isn't an option. I would take 1/2 point for the water. Staff even came out to ask how everything was even though it's a seat yourself taqueria. Will definitely be going back! read more
Page 1 of 4
More info about Taqueria Cardenas
1017 J St
Modesto, CA 95350
Directions
(209) 529-1461
Call Now
Order Takeout or Delivery
Start Order
Full menu
Hours
Payment methods
Food & Alcohol
Indoor Amenities
Outdoor Amenities
Other Amenities
From the Business
More Info
Health Score
Taqueria Cardenas Reviews in Other Languages
Ask the Community - Taqueria Cardenas
Do they have vegan rice and bean options?
I'm sure they will cater to your requests. 🙂
You might also consider
Why does Yelp recommend reviews?
13 reviews that are not currently recommended
The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.
12 years ago
8 years ago
2 years ago
9 years ago
8 years ago
13 years ago
3 years ago
8 years ago
9 years ago
8 years ago
10 years ago
10 years ago
