Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    Taqueria Imperial

    3.2 (121 reviews)
    InexpensiveTacos
    Open • 7:00 am - 12:00 AM (Next day)
    Updated 1 month ago

    Taqueria Imperial Photos

    TAQUERIA IMPERIAL ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Dogs allowed

    You might also consider

    Recommended Reviews - Taqueria Imperial

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    Reviews With Photos

    Jake K.

    I'm extremely disappointed with my experience at Taqueria Imperial. I came in and placed an order for seven tacos to go, and when the lady at the counter took my order, she automatically added a 15% tip to my bill without asking for my consent. What makes this even more frustrating is that I normally tip, and honestly, I probably would have tipped more than 15%. But it's the principle and the fact that a tip was added without my permission that really upset me. A tip should be something the customer chooses to give based on their experience, not something automatically added without being clearly communicated or approved. Because of this experience, I personally wouldn't recommend this place. I hope management addresses this issue because automatically adding gratuity without a customer's consent is not okay.

    Pickled carrots and onions
    Alma M.

    I like the convenience of the drive through. Service was not too fast though and staff were not the friendliest. The adobada tacos are less pricey if you order the TJ style tacos. Some of the pickled carrots looked old as well as the limes. I also ordered rolled tacos and they got soggy so fast but had a good taste. They were also out of the drink I wanted unfortunately. Maybe I'll give it another try.

    Inside
    James B.

    This particular location has been at least 20 different tacos shops so best of luck to these guys. I have been wanting to try this place because they had a huge sign advertising 1$ tacos! But by the time I got to visit them, that special was done for. The tacos were good but nothing crazy. Just typical TJ tacos. The salsa bar was kind of small . Just two options for salsa and some limes. The service was good . The lady was nice . Inside was clean and bright with music playing so the vibe was cool. I would stop there again if I was in the mood for tacos.

    Carnitas street taco
    Simeko O.

    Taqueria Imperial is a delicious and welcome addition to the neighborhood. This place is buzzing with activity. When I visited, the drive-thru was packed, the inside was packed, and the music was blasting loud. People were happily munching on their freshly made Mexican food creations. Outside, a guy was making street tacos, and people were standing around with tickets in hand. It took about 20 minutes for our food to be ready, but it was worth the wait. We tried the chili relleno, fish taco, pollo, carne, carnitas street taco and a birria taco. We also ordered a massive bean and cheese burrito. Every single bite was delicious and hit the spot for authentic Mexican food. And here's the kicker: all that food was only $23.00. What a deal! Seriously, you need to check this place out.

    Charlotte R.

    There's always a line to the street for the drive thru when we pass by so we had to try it out. We went inside to place the order and there were only two other customers eating at a table. The tacos were good for $1.99 a piece. Soft tortillas, flavorful carne asada and thick chunks of birria in the quesadilla. The torta was pretty hefty and filling as well. I thought the salsa could have used more flavor/heat but that's really a matter of preference.

    Jack M.

    These ladies and gents make some pretty good tacos. I had a pair of carne asada and al pastor for .99 cent each. Both tacos were very good. The meats were well seasoned properly cooked and flavorful. I liked that they double wrapped with corn tortillas for each tacos. The quality of the corn tortillas was good, too, and so was the guacamole. I hope they offer more than one type of salsa in the near future. They only had one when I came in. It was good, but I do appreciate the variety for different items and such. They also offer breakfast here. The young lady who took my order was very nice. The place offers a lot of inside seating.

    Adobada taco with all the fixings!  $.99 each.  Can't beat that!
    Tim S.

    Had a buddy tell me about this place, and, my brother in law has also been here twice. Sounded legit so I made my way down to try out the tacos. How were they? Amazing! I went with 5 carne asada tacos and 3 adobada (my original plan was to order 10 tacos...thank goodness I did not! These tacos were fat, and I barley finished the 8!). $.99 each, you CANNOT beat that price, anywhere! Tacos are double tortilla and stuffed with meat, topped with cilantro and onions, and a nice amount of guacamole. I preferred the adobada over the carne asada, but both meats were delicious! The ONLY thing that is whack about this place, is the location. Its a bitch to get in and out of. Other than that, highly recommended, and if I still lived in San Diego, I would come back again and again. Bomb as F!

    99cent  tacos!!!!!

    Nope tacos are not the same! They are literally 2 bite tacos .. Super small! Mini tacos !! Disappointed !!! I must say, their salsa is the best!

    Selena R.

    Disappointed to say I drove through this area and ordered campechana fries and the fries were so hard to bite. It just makes me think the fries were sitting there and were double dipped in oil and served, the portions were very poor served, theres new signs that its under new management well they did a terrible job.

    TJ Street Tacos
    Paul S.

    Taqueria Imperial is a newer taco shop on Campo Road. On opening day. They started with 99 cent promotional street tacos but have since changed the price to 1.25 each. Still a great price for a delicious filling taco. A great way to eat good on the cheap. I have written reviews on taco shops before. Residents in my area have many options when it comes to Mexican cuisine especially taco shops. We have them on almost every corner. So why come here? You can taste the difference with their food. Everything tastes fresh and of good quality. Prices are also affordable. You can eat here cheaper than many fast food places. The food in my opinion is also a healthier option. The service and ambiance is what you would expect from a restaurant. It's a wide open dining area that fits many. The employees that work there are super nice. They are also friendly at the drive thru. You can tell the food is good because during lunch hours. There is usually a line of cars at the drive thru. If you got the time. It wouldn't be a bad idea to dine inside the taco shop. Again, plenty of indoor seating. Overall a must try if you're a fan of Mexican food. Definitely a taco shop that separates themselves from other places. Everything I have tried so far is great from the tortas to their tacos. Delicious. Support local businesses especially the good ones. Taqueria Imperial is excellent. Eat here.

    Fish Tacos

    See all

    3 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 month ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 month ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    3 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 3
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    2 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 1

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 6
    Thanks 3
    Love this 4
    Oh no 3
    Photo of Tim S.
    105
    1799
    2752

    2 years ago

    Helpful 6
    Thanks 1
    Love this 3
    Oh no 2

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    2 years ago

    Helpful 8
    Thanks 1
    Love this 4
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Kate N.
    508
    56
    62

    11 months ago

    They have the best 99 cent taco ever. My favorite Mexican food in all of San Diego county

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 2
    Love this 3
    Oh no 3

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    5 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Max S.
    0
    34
    2

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Cynn M.
    19
    91
    113

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 2

    1 year ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Lola M.
    21
    8
    14

    1 year ago

    Good street tacos give you a lot of meat good salsa very good price fast service sometimes a line there fast tho

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 2
    Love this 1
    Oh no 1
    Photo of J S.
    0
    1
    0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Very tasty well priced tacos but definitely get them to go. They have no air conditioning

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of M T.
    49
    22
    12

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    10 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    Page 1 of 4

    Taqueria Imperial Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Taqueria Imperial

    What are the business hours?

    They said 8 am to 3 am

    View All 3 Questions

    You might also consider

    Verify this business for free

    People searched for Tacos 51,758 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

    Verify this business

    El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria

    El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria

    4.3(599 reviews)
    10.2 mi
    •$$

    1000% awesome sauce !! We are back in San Diego for comic…read morecon. And checked into our hotel. Let's get tacos. We had the asada, suadero, carnaza campechano and lengua . All of the were great but the suadero tacos and Campechano were my favorite. They bring you a big salsa display also I love the peanut salsa OMG!!! Come get yours asap!!!

    Came in to check out El Pastor Del Rica on Broadway. The atmosphere inside is vibrant--great music,…read morefestive papel picado hanging, and the trompo mural gives it a cool authentic touch. Having the rotating salsa carousel right at the table is super convenient, and the peanut salsa (salsa cacahuate) was a standout. As for the food: * Pastor: Definitely the highlight. Shaved thin with crispy edges and great seasoning. Getting it as a Gringa with melted cheese in a flour tortilla is the way to go. * Carne Asada: Solid street taco, good char, and topped generously with cilantro and onion. * Lengua: Disappointing. It had a strong, off-putting smell right out of the gate that we couldn't get past, even trying to mask it with lime and salsa. The biggest downside of the visit was the flies inside the dining room. There were way too many buzzing around the tables, so half our meal was spent swatting them away from our plates and the open salsa containers. The trompo and salsas show a lot of promise, but management needs to address the fly issue and tighten up quality control on the specialty meats like lengua. Stick to the al pastor and gringas.

    Photos
    El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria - Interior mural

    Interior mural

    El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria - Taco de tripa and sudarero

    Taco de tripa and sudarero

    El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria - Taco Pastor Taco Asada Taco Asada Taco Campechano

    See all

    Taco Pastor Taco Asada Taco Asada Taco Campechano

    Chuy's Taqueria y Burritos - Campechana Fríes

    Chuy's Taqueria y Burritos

    4.4(347 reviews)
    3.1 mi•Cajon Heights
    •$
    Vegetarian friendly
    Grab-and-go

    first time ordering here (always looking to try breakfast burritos from different places) and…read moreWOW!!!! i ordered a steak and bacon breakfast burrito and it was 10/10, it was so delicious and it had hashbrowns which added good texture! my partner got another hashbrown and we requested dairy free and they did it perfectly :) i also always care about the salsas and their red and green salsas were GOOD! everything was so good and the service was great and friendly, will definitely be ordering here again!!

    This small business is in the middle of a strip mall next to a Little Cesar's and some other shop…read more No tables inside just tall barstools along two walls. They definitely get a lot of to go and order ahead business as a lot of people came in after us and the phone Rand constantly while we were waiting for our order. Once we tried our food I can see why it was so busy. I had the tequila lime shrimp burrito and subbed Serrano pepper for a bell pepper. It also came with grilled onions, delicious rice and other items. It didn't have salsa and didn't need it. The peppers were spicy and added a nice heat. So good. Family had pollo asado tacos with guacamole that could've used a little more placer, but the chicken was flavorful. Hubby tried shredded beef rolled tacos packed with meat and covered in cheese, sauce and guacamole. Hubby also had a surf and turf quesetaco with carne asada and shrimo. All of the food was delicious, made to order and piping hot. Kind of a whole in the wall and a hidden gem. Thanks for the heads up Yelpers.

    Photos
    Chuy's Taqueria y Burritos - Pork belly tacos

    Pork belly tacos

    Chuy's Taqueria y Burritos - California Burrito

    California Burrito

    Chuy's Taqueria y Burritos - QuesaBirria Taco

    See all

    QuesaBirria Taco

    City Tacos

    City Tacos

    4.1(1.1k reviews)
    2.1 mi
    •$

    La pesca is one of the best Mexican seafood restaurants that I have tried. You can tell the…read morerestaurant is very clean and the staff are always super welcoming. The horchata tastes great and is homemade which is why I always order it as it's not too sweet. My favorite dish has been the 7 Mares soup and their green hot sauce which is super good. The salsa always tastes fresh and spicy and tastes great with the chips. Another thing was that the food came out pretty fast. I definitely recommend it to anyone trying to find a new place to eat at.

    (Edit: thanks to the kind response from the owner I realized this was just an unintentional error…read moreand not a menu change. I would never complain about a truly honest mistake. We love City Tacos and will continue to visit on a regular basis.) We love City Tacos in La Mesa. We come here often. Normally when you order the carne asada tacos they are made from perfectly charred seasoned beef. I recommended them to my husband and said everything else pales in caparison as a beef eater. What we received tonight was a shredded beef taco with pieces of pork rinds on top. I was so disappointed. If this was an attempt at a replacement or trying something new the cashier should have said something. Please just be honest as to what you are serving for the night so we have the opportunity to make different choices if needed. I'll be back, but now I'll have to ask a lot of questions before ordering since I don't trust the menu.

    Photos
    City Tacos - 16Jul2024

    16Jul2024

    City Tacos - Surf and Turf on the left  Crunchy Shrimp on the right

    Surf and Turf on the left Crunchy Shrimp on the right

    City Tacos

    See all

    Taqueria Imperial - tacos - Updated October 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...