Cafe Coyote - S San Diego

My wife and I decided to wander down to Old Town on the trolley this past weekend. The plan was to walk around for a while then find a restaurant/bar to have a couple margaritas and something to eat. After we wrapped the walking around part of our trip to Old Town, we landed at Cafe Coyote at around 3PM or so. The line wasn't too long, and we were seated at a nice table for two within 5 minutes. Ordered margaritas (of course! and guac for our chips. I ordered some of the freshly made tortillas excellent rice, black beans, and some of the top secret super duper xxxtra hot salsa that Cafe Coyote makes fresh each day (ask for it! . The margaritas (a Cadillac and the house special were powerful and tasty. Service was very good. We took our time nibbled away on our food, ordered more margaritas, and finally hit the road. Enjoyed the afternoon we'll be back.

Came here for lunch on a Saturday. Parking in a lot for $12 for 2 hours because there was no street parking. The restaurant was crowded, but we were able to get a patio table pretty quickly as a walk in. Service was ok, as expected for such a touristy and busy place. Margaritas looked huge but were full of ice chips. Still surprisingly strong though, and tasty, not too sweet. The complementary chips and salsa were above average, but messy because they did not give us share plates until we asked. The guac app was more like a side, it was that small, and not worth the money. The pork pozole was probably my favorite part of the meal. Absolutely loved that it came with a platter of all the toppings (lime, raw onions, oregano, chili flakes, cilantro, and cabbage) so you can adjust to your taste. A bowl was more than enough to share for two people. All the tacos were underwhelming. They were large, so you really only need 2 for a meal, but I got 3 to try: California (beef with fries and cheese), carne asada, and baja fish. Took two bites of each and really could not eat more. Super bland, unpleasant texture to the beef, soggy battered fish... Just screaming for a better sauce. I desperately tried to top it with the salsa meant for the chips and still couldn't salvage them. This is what I thought Mexican food was like when I lived on the East Coast, so I never really loved the cuisine. Having lived in Socal for 7 years now and traveled to (non resort) Mexico multiple times, I definitely realized how wrong I was. True Mexican food is amazing and vibrant, with great depth of flavor. This is more of a tourist trap in Old Town. Don't think I'll be back.

Very good food. Margaritas are amazing. I had The Boss and it was awesome. Would recommend. Next time I 'm in San Diego I will definitely come back here.

The location of this restaurant is great. It's located in Old Town San Diego. The overall vibes amid this place are pretty cool, it's like a small amusement park with tons of shops and restaurant areas. They even have their own underground parking lot and elevator to get to the main area. The parking situation is poor because all the spots are always taken and the street parking situation is not much better. The bathrooms are quite a ways away from the main dining area Alejandro was so nice, probably the nicest server I have ever had. Our service was fast and friendly. I have no complaints towards the service at all. The salsa and chips were also great. Not too spicy but just enough for a kick of heat. I thoroughly enjoyed the bean and avocado dips. The handmade tortillas were the reason we came to eat here and they did not disappoint. The food was so-so. It reminded me of a Chevy's if you're familiar with that chain . Definitely not authentic Mexican food. Cafe Coyote reminded me of more of a tourist spot that they want people to think is Mexican. The food just lacked a spark and was pretty flavorless. It wasn't anything special or memorable. The prices were decent. I would say you can expect to walk out of here for under 50 for a meal for two making this a for me. The portions are average size which I guess make up for the prices in a way. Bottom Line/TLDR: tourist trap Mexican-ish food in a good location

I wanted to come out to get my flour tortillas. But convinced my sister to stay for dinner. It was not a good experience, our server (Shawna) was a little in the rude/ condescending side. I was over charged (meals I did not order). The food was not the greatest, beans tasted burned. Meat was burned. Guacamole on the side was missed, i asked for a sharing plate, never came. And to top it off, I asked the tortilla making lady if she had change for a $10 dollar bill, very rudely said NO. I went to the bar tender to ask for the change, he was also very rude, saying we don 't do change I did not have a good experience. I will not be returning. Not nice people