Eat and Drink

Best Tacos in Cabo: My 10 Picks, and When to Go

By Cabo Wander

When a friend asks me where to get tacos in Cabo, I answer with a question: what time are you eating? I promise I'm not dodging. It's the most useful thing I know about tacos here.

The best tacos in Cabo are at Los Claros, a seafood taqueria a few blocks inland from the marina in Cabo San Lucas. Order the battered fish and the smoked marlin. If you're staying in San José del Cabo, go to Taquería El Fogón, out toward the highway, for beef grilled over charcoal.

Three ideas explain the rest of the list.

The good ones are inland. In Cabo San Lucas that means a few blocks behind the marina. In San José it means about fifteen minutes on foot out of the pretty part of town, toward the highway. San José's gallery streets are a lovely place for dinner and a poor place for a cheap taco.

They cost two to four dollars each. A taco at a real taqueria runs about 40 to 65 pesos. Old blog posts still promise dollar tacos, and those days are gone. Anything under 35 pesos is a find. Three or four tacos and a drink still come to only about US$10 to $18, so this is the cheap end of my list of the best restaurants in Cabo, and it's where a lot of my favorite meals are.

What you eat depends on the clock. Birria, carnitas and the stewed fillings are breakfast food here, and those kitchens are dark by late afternoon. Seafood is lunch. Al pastor and grilled beef belong to the evening. Nearly every disappointing taco story a friend has told me was the right taco at the wrong hour.

I ranked these by how good the taco is for what it costs. Then I made sure the ten cover every kind of taco, every time of day and both towns, with one easy sit-down for the nervous eater in your group. Cabo is a good taco town, though I'd stop short of calling it a great one. It's at its best with seafood and charcoal-grilled beef. The al pastor is everywhere, and it's good more often than it's special.

Taco stands change their hours and sometimes move, so check that a place is open the day you go.

Where They Are

Seven of the ten are in Cabo San Lucas, and most of those sit on two streets.

• Cabo San Lucas, on the main street, Boulevard Lázaro Cárdenas: Tacos Guss, Taquería El Paisa, Las Guacamayas, and Los Tacos May at the foot of Calle Morelos.
• Cabo San Lucas, on Avenida Leona Vicario: Birriería Los Paisas and Carnitas Los Michoacanos. Both are morning places.
• Cabo San Lucas, on their own: Los Claros on Ignacio Zaragoza, and Tacos Gardenias on the way to Médano Beach.
• San José del Cabo: El Fogón and Taquería Rossy, on the same street near the highway, and the second Las Guacamayas between the center and the hotel zone.

How downtown fits together is in my Cabo San Lucas guide.

1. Los Claros

Cabo San Lucas, downtown. Lunch.

Los Claros is number one because it does the thing this region does best, at local prices, in a room where even a cautious eater is comfortable. It's a Sinaloa-style seafood taqueria on Ignacio Zaragoza, a few blocks inland from the marina, with a parking lot out front.

The battered fish taco is the one to start with. The batter is light and fluffy, and it comes on a flour tortilla they make in house. Then get the smoked marlin, which is shredded and stewed, and which I think is the most local thing you can eat in a tortilla down here. The battered fish taco is an import, by the way. It comes from Ensenada, about 900 miles up the peninsula, where market stands started selling it around 1960. If they still have scallop, order that too. The octopus tends to be gone by the afternoon.

You dress the tacos yourself at a big self-serve bar of salads, chiles, salsas and sauces, and I love that, because you decide what goes on. The hibiscus drink is made from real flowers and it's very good. There's flan if you have room.

Tacos are about 45 to 60 pesos and a margarita is about 100. Lunch with two drinks cost me around US$20.

What I'd change is small. It's plastic chairs and no atmosphere to speak of, and I don't mind that at all. There's an air-conditioned room inside, which matters a LOT from July to October.

Find it by name on Zaragoza. At least one online listing has it at an address in San José, which is the wrong town. I haven't pinned down whether it takes cards, so bring pesos. It's open from late morning into the evening, and I'd go at lunch, when the fryer is busiest.

2. Taquería El Fogón

San José del Cabo, toward the highway. Morning until around midnight.

El Fogón has the best meat taco I've eaten in either town, and it's the reason to leave San José's gallery district. It's on Manuel Doblado near Avenida México, close to the highway, about fifteen minutes on foot from Plaza Mijares. Look for the charcoal smoke.

Order the carne asada and the arrachera, which is marinated skirt steak. Both come off the charcoal so tender they hardly need chewing. The tacos are generous and the salsas are made fresh every day. If you're sharing, add a papa rellena, a baked potato mashed with butter, cream and cheese and topped with grilled meat. It's called a side dish, and it's big enough to be a meal.

Tacos start at about 40 pesos. Two of us had nine tacos for around US$20.

It's plastic tables next to a busy road, though, and it's noisy. It's cash only, and there's no beer. I was short-changed here once, so I count my change now. None of that would keep me away.

If you're staying in San José's hotel zone, don't try to walk it. Take the Uber, which is about US$5. The rest of the town, and which part of it you're really booking, is in my San José del Cabo guide.

3. Taquería Rossy

San José del Cabo, toward the highway. Morning until early evening.

Rossy is San José's seafood taqueria, and it's on the same street as El Fogón, so I do the two in one outing. It's on Manuel Doblado where it meets the highway.

Any seafood taco here is fresh and good. The smoked marlin and the scallop are the two I'd order first, either battered or grilled. Then you take your plate to the topping bar, which has coleslaw, pico de gallo, guacamole, three salsas, a cream sauce, cucumber and limes. The coleslaw is better than it has any right to be.

Tacos start at about 40 pesos. I don't know for sure whether they take cards, so bring pesos.

I wish the room were nicer. It's open on the sides, so there are flies. When it's busy I've waited twenty minutes and it gets messy. And the steak tacos are only okay, so stick to the seafood. Parking is a struggle if you drive.

Go here before El Fogón, because it closes first. I'd be eating by 7 at the latest. And I'm only vouching for this one on Manuel Doblado, so don't go by the name alone if you see it somewhere else.

4. Tacos Guss

Cabo San Lucas, on the main street. Mid-morning until nearly dawn.

Guss is the late-night one, and it's the easiest real taqueria in town to find. It's on Boulevard Lázaro Cárdenas at the corner of Melchor Ocampo, right on the lit main street near the bars, and it's open something like 21 hours a day.

Al pastor is the order. It's carved from a spit that faces the street, and the tortillas are made where you can watch. A tray of toppings comes to your table with five salsas and a basket of chips. The asada is good too, the torta is huge, and the watermelon juice is the thing I didn't expect to like as much as I did.

A taco is about 40 pesos, and it's cash only. Whether you can get a beer has gone both ways for me, so I wouldn't count on it.

Guss used to be a local favorite, and these days it's the stop on every food tour. I think it's coasting a little. I've had nights when the tacos were just average, the service was rushed, and my pastor came without its pineapple. I've also watched a topping tray go from one table straight to the next. If that bothers you, pick a place where you serve yourself from a bar.

I'd still go. At 3am after the bars, it's exactly right.

5. Birriería Los Paisas

Cabo San Lucas, downtown. Early morning until late afternoon.

This is the breakfast taco, and the most local-feeling place on the list that a visitor can still walk into comfortably. It's on Leona Vicario at the corner of 16 de Septiembre, deeper into the downtown grid than the others. Go by day, which is the only time it's open anyway.

Birria here is stewed beef. A lot of people expect goat. Get a quesabirria, which has cheese melted into it, and dip it in the cup of broth that comes alongside. The broth is called consomé, and a squeeze of lime in the cup is the move. The stew has been ready since before you woke up, so my plate has landed in under a minute. There's usually a line, and it moves.

A taco is about 40 pesos, and I spend US$10 to $13.

The catch is that there are no prices on the wall, I didn't get an itemized check, and very little English is spoken. I'm fairly sure I paid a little more than the people next to me. So ask before you order: "¿Cuánto cuesta el taco?" Assume it's cash.

Several places on this street have Paisa or Paisas in the name. The birria one is on the corner of 16 de Septiembre.

If you have kids with you, a quesabirria is about the most kid-friendly thing on any taco menu in town. Go before noon.

6. Carnitas Los Michoacanos

Cabo San Lucas, downtown. Early morning until late afternoon.

If you want carnitas, this is the place, and nobody else on the list competes with it. It's on Avenida Leona Vicario, the same street as the birria, in an open-air room painted pink and orange with plenty of space.

Carnitas is pork simmered slowly in its own fat, and here it's tender, juicy and well seasoned. You order by the taco, in a torta, or by the kilo for a group. They hand you fresh chicharrón while you wait, and the tortillas are made on site.

The word to know is "maciza", which gets you the lean meat. I'd order that for kids and for anyone who's unsure. "Surtido" is the mix, with skin and offal in it.

A taco is about 40 pesos. A kilo with tortillas, salsa and everything else is about US$20, which is less than two cocktails at a beach club.

There's not much to complain about. It's Spanish only and pesos only. And like the birria, it's a breakfast and lunch place. Show up at 6pm and it's dark.

7. Tacos Gardenias

Cabo San Lucas, between the marina and Médano. Morning until about 10pm.

Gardenias is the easy one, and that's why it's on the list. It's on Paseo de la Marina by the McDonald's, about two and a half blocks from the sand, so it's the taco you can walk to in flip-flops on a beach day. It's also the most restaurant-like of the taquerias, which makes it a good first stop if street food makes you nervous.

The battered fish and shrimp tacos are the reason to come, and they're still good. Your toppings come to the table on a stand. I'd skip the beef, which has been dry and chewy for me.

Gardenias has been around for decades, and I think it's priced on its name these days. A taco is about 65 pesos, and four of them cost me around US$17, which is close to what I'd pay at home. Service can be short with you, and it's open-air, so there are flies. One check came to me in dollars after I'd agreed to pay in pesos, and there's a fee if you use a card. So say "en pesos, por favor" when you order, and pay cash.

It closes one day a week. It's been Monday when I've gone, so check before you walk over. On a cruise ship day it fills up at lunch.

Which end of the beach to walk back to is in my Médano Beach guide.

8. Taquería El Paisa

Cabo San Lucas, on the main street. Morning until about 2am.

El Paisa is here for the al pastor and the stuffed potato, and because it's open late. The one I mean is on Boulevard Lázaro Cárdenas. There's a second one on Leona Vicario, and other places nearby share the name, so check the street before you sit down.

The pastor and the asada are both good, and the tortillas come off the griddle hot enough to burn your fingers. The dish I'd make sure to order is the papa rellena with asada. The guacamole is thick and real, which isn't a given at a taqueria.

A taco is about 50 pesos, and I spend US$10 to $15.

My complaints here have nothing to do with the food. When I went it was cash only, and when I didn't have enough pesos I was offered a poor exchange rate on my dollars. So bring pesos, and don't hand over a card. There's no air conditioning, the grill smoke drifts through the room, and the timeshare sellers work the sidewalk nearby.

Bottom line: good tacos, and a place where I get the money part sorted before I order.

9. Los Tacos May

Cabo San Lucas, downtown. Early morning until mid-afternoon.

Tacos May is the place for tacos de guisado, which are home-style stews spooned into a tortilla. It's a hole in the wall at the foot of Calle Morelos, where it meets Lázaro Cárdenas, and it's been feeding people on their way to work for decades.

At about 35 pesos, it's the cheapest taco on this list.

The stews are the gentlest food in the whole post. Bistec con papas is beef and potato, and it's where I'd start. There's also chicken in mole, chorizo and barbacoa. If you don't eat meat, the rajas con queso y crema, strips of roasted chile with cheese and cream, is one of the few real vegetarian tacos in town. And if you're curious about the other side of the menu, which is tongue, head and heart, the heart is the mildest of the three.

This is the entry I know least well. It's gone by mid-afternoon. Bring pesos.

10. Las Guacamayas

Both towns. Late morning or early afternoon until about 1am.

Las Guacamayas is the sit-down taqueria, with a menu, margaritas, music and a card machine. It's my pick for a group that can't agree about street food. In Cabo San Lucas it's on Lázaro Cárdenas beside Cerrito del Timbre, open to the air with trees growing up through the dining room. The San José one is on Paseo de los Marinos, between the center and the hotel zone.

What to order matters more here than anywhere else on the list. The best things are the ones with griddled cheese and grilled meat. Get the chicharrón de queso, a crisp sheet of griddled cheese, and a volcán, which is a tortilla toasted crisp over the grill with melted cheese and meat. The stuffed potato with beef rib is very good, the molcajete is the thing to share, and the churros are made to order. If someone doesn't eat meat, there are mushroom and squash-flower quesadillas.

I'd skip the fish and shrimp tacos, which are mediocre. And I don't think the plain tacos are as good as they once were. I've had a plate come out burnt and fatty.

It's last on the list because of the check. Chips and dips landed on my table without my asking, and they were on the check at about US$15. So when something arrives that you didn't order, ask "¿es cortesía?", which means "is it free?" Paying at the house exchange rate added about US$20 to another check, so pay in pesos. The music can also get too loud to talk over.

I didn't note a price per taco here, so look at the menu before you order. Tip the way you would at a restaurant, and look for a printed "propina" first.

Others Worth Knowing

These didn't make the ten. Some of them are good, and each one is the right answer for somebody.

Claro Fish Jr, San José. It's the seafood taqueria closest to San José's center and hotel zone, on Leona Vicario in the Chamizal district, with parking. The smoked marlin and the coconut shrimp are the order. Tacos start at about 60 pesos and the premium fillings cost more. Go at lunch and look over your check.

La Lupita Taco & Mezcal, both towns. This is the chef's version, and it's a restaurant that serves tacos, priced like one at about 60 to 120 pesos each. The pastor with a crust of griddled cheese and the duck with mole are the two to get. In San José it's in the gallery district next to Baja Brewing, and in Cabo San Lucas it's on Calle Acuario near Médano. It's closed on Mondays. Book ahead, especially on a San José Art Walk Thursday, when the wait without a reservation can be an hour.

Los Tacos Locos, San José. It's in the craft market on Boulevard Mijares, in the old town, and it's friendly and built for visitors. The tacos come under a layer of caramelized cheese. I'd use it when I want a casual taco without leaving the center, during the day.

Tacos El Memo, San José. The cheapest seafood tacos I've found, from about 35 pesos. It's out of the way and awkward on foot, so take a ride. Lunch only, and never on a Sunday.

Así y Asado, Cabo San Lucas. The famous one from TV, out on the highway in El Tezal, so it's a ride. It's still the place for a vampiro and it has a huge salsa bar. I just don't think it's a bargain anymore, with some tacos near 100 pesos.

Taquería El Zarape, Cabo San Lucas. Good al pastor at the lowest price I've found, five tacos for a little over 100 pesos. That's on the peso menu. There's an English menu in dollars that costs more, so ask for "la carta en pesos". It's several blocks inland and it's an evening place, so I take a ride.

Cuatro Marías, at the food truck park north of San José. The only evening birria I know of on that side, from about 30 pesos. It's about fifteen minutes' drive toward the airport, so it only makes sense with a car.

Tacos George's, Todos Santos. If you're doing the Todos Santos day trip, this is the battered fish and shrimp stand. It's cash, and it sells out by mid-afternoon.

How to Order, and How to Pay

Okay, now the part that makes the first visit easy.

Order by the piece. "Dos de pastor y uno de asada, por favor" gets you two pastor and one asada. Meat tacos are small, so three or four is a meal. The battered seafood ones are bigger, and two or three will do it.

Corn or flour. You'll be asked "¿maíz o harina?" Corn is the usual for pastor, birria, carnitas and the stews. Flour is normal here for asada, smoked marlin and at the seafood places. Nobody is giving you the tourist version.

Say yes to "¿con todo?" It means with onion and cilantro, plus a sliver of pineapple at a pastor stand. It doesn't mean lettuce and cheese.

Battered or grilled. "Capeado" is battered and fried. "A la plancha" is grilled.

Taste the salsa first. Color won't tell you how hot it is. The orange or yellow one is usually habanero and the hottest on the table. The dark red oily one with seeds is hot. The smooth pale green one that looks like guacamole is usually blended chiles, and it's hotter than it looks. Chunky pico de gallo is mild. I put a drop on the edge of a tortilla before I commit. "¿Cuál pica menos?" asks which one is mildest.

Pay at the end. They keep count, or you tell them what you had. "¿Cuánto es?" works.

Then there's the money, and this is where the famous places get people. Some of the well-known taquerias will hand you an English menu at higher prices, or bring the check in dollars. Here's what I do everywhere:

• Bring pesos, in small bills. Most stands are cash, and a stand may not be able to break a 500. I break mine at a convenience store first.
• Ask for the peso menu. "La carta en pesos, por favor."
• Ask the price where nothing is posted.
• Send back what you didn't order. "No, gracias, no lo pedí."
• Keep your card in your pocket at a stand.

For a tip, leave your small change or about 10%, and at least 10 pesos. More on pesos, ATMs and tipping is in how much Cabo costs. And if you're trying to decide whether to pay for a meal plan, a US$15 taco lunch a short walk away is a big part of my math in whether a Cabo all-inclusive is worth it.

Stomach Sense

I'd bet on a busy taco stand over a hotel buffet that's been sitting out, and I eat at these places without worrying much.

The good bet is a stand with a line or full tables at local mealtimes, where the meat is cut and cooked in front of you and the tortillas are coming off the griddle. I like to see salsas in small containers that keep getting refilled. Anything straight off a grill, out of a fryer or from a simmering pot is the safe order. That covers asada, pastor, battered fish, birria and carnitas.

Where I'm more careful:

• Raw seafood. I hold off on ceviche and aguachile tostadas for the first day or two of a trip.
• The self-serve bar late on a hot afternoon. Cream sauces, coleslaw and cut vegetables that have been out for hours are the part I skip.
• A topping tray that's just been on someone else's table.

Eating each taco at its proper hour helps here too. Seafood at lunch is when the turnover is highest. Birria and carnitas in the morning is when the pot is fresh. Pastor at night is when the spit is being carved nonstop.

The hibiscus and rice drinks at established places are made with purified water, and I drink them. I still pack rehydration salts and an anti-diarrhea medicine, the same as on any trip. The water, the ice and everything else are in is Cabo safe.

Which Taco at Which Hour

If you only remember one section, make it this one.

• Early morning to about noon: birria at Los Paisas, carnitas at Los Michoacanos, and the stews at Tacos May. All three are in downtown Cabo San Lucas, and all three are done by mid to late afternoon.
• Late morning to mid-afternoon: seafood. Los Claros in Cabo San Lucas, Rossy in San José. Scallop and octopus sell out, so earlier is better.
• Early evening: charcoal beef at El Fogón, and Gardenias if you're coming off the beach.
• After dark: al pastor, when the spit is fresh. Guss and El Paisa on the main street, or Las Guacamayas if you want a table and a margarita.
• After midnight: Guss runs until nearly dawn. El Paisa goes until about 2am and Las Guacamayas until about 1. In San José, El Fogón is open until around midnight, and after that I don't have a late taco I'd send you to.

Cabo San Lucas is much stronger in the morning and late at night. San José holds its own at lunch and dinner. I wouldn't cross between the towns just for tacos, though. It's 35 to 45 minutes and about 600 pesos by Uber each way, and both towns can feed you well.

A few things change with the calendar. From July to October the open-sided places are hot at lunch, so I go early or late, or I sit in the air conditioning at Los Claros. In mid-March, Guss and El Paisa are packed at 2am with spring break.

After dark in Cabo San Lucas I stay on Lázaro Cárdenas, which is lit and busy. For anything more than three or four blocks inland at night, I take a ride. The fares are in getting around Cabo.

The Verdict

The best tacos in Cabo are a few blocks from where most visitors eat, they cost a few dollars, and each kind has its hour. Get the hour right and it's hard to have a bad one.

If you only have time for one, go to Los Claros at lunch.

Here's what I'd pick for you:

• In Cabo San Lucas: Los Claros.
• In San José del Cabo: El Fogón, with Rossy on the same street if you want seafood too.
• It's your first time and you're a little nervous: Los Claros, because everything is cooked to order and you dress it yourself. If you want a full restaurant around you, Tacos Gardenias by day or Las Guacamayas at night.
• Late at night: Tacos Guss, with cash.
• Breakfast: Birriería Los Paisas for a quesabirria, or Carnitas Los Michoacanos.
• With kids: a quesabirria at Los Paisas, or a table at Las Guacamayas. You can get a plain quesadilla pretty much anywhere.
• You don't eat meat: the rajas taco at Tacos May, or the mushroom and squash-flower quesadillas at Las Guacamayas.
• You want a night out with your tacos: La Lupita, with a reservation.

If you're staying deep on the Corridor and you'd need a taxi each way, I wouldn't make a special trip for a US$3 taco. Save it for a day you're in town anyway.

If tacos are a real part of your trip, Cabo San Lucas is the better base for them, because it has the breakfast places and the late ones. I weigh that against everything else in Cabo San Lucas vs San José del Cabo, and which areas put you within a walk of lunch is in where to stay in Cabo. Where a taco lunch fits into a full week is in my 5-day Cabo itinerary, and what to do between meals is in things to do in Cabo.

And here's how I'd text it to a friend: Los Claros for lunch, it's on Zaragoza, get the battered fish and the smoked marlin. Birria at Los Paisas before noon, ask the price first. Guss after the bars, cash only. In San José, El Fogón for the asada, also cash, and Rossy down the street for seafood. Bring pesos in small bills, ask for the peso menu, and check the place is open before you walk over... stands move.

Quick Answers

Where are the best tacos in Cabo San Lucas? A few blocks inland from the marina. Los Claros for fish, shrimp and smoked marlin at lunch, Los Paisas and Los Michoacanos in the morning, and Tacos Guss or El Paisa for al pastor at night.

Where are the best tacos in San José del Cabo? Out toward the highway, about fifteen minutes on foot from Plaza Mijares. El Fogón for charcoal-grilled beef and Taquería Rossy for seafood are on the same street.

How much is a taco in Cabo? About 40 to 65 pesos at a real taqueria, so two to four dollars. The chef-style places charge about 60 to 120 pesos, and three or four tacos with a drink is about US$10 to $18.

Is it safe to eat at taco stands in Cabo? I think so, and I do. Pick a busy stand where the food is cooked in front of you, and be more careful with raw seafood than with anything off the grill.

Do taco stands take cards or dollars? Plan on cash in pesos. Tacos Guss and El Fogón are cash only, and where dollars are taken the exchange rate is poor.