San Jose’s Tacos & Tequila

This place was awesome! Super fast and really yummy food! If you go order the guacamole, they will have a cart come over and make it right in front of you! Staff is attentive and nice. If you are staying at the holiday inn it is an easy walk and you can get a discount! I would definitely eat here again if I was back in town. The fajitas, tacos, and chile relleno were all AWESOME! Had the fried icecream for dessert which was good too.
The atmosphere was great too, very welcoming and clean. The décor fit into the whole Mexican theme.

It’s a chain. So temper your expectations. The menu is extensive and the bar menu is also. Understand that when you’re going for ethnic cuisine near a mall or a group of restaurants, you’re not going to get a fine dining experience.
The facility is very nice. The interior and the bar area both have a bit of a more upscale feel than you would get at Chipotle or Chili’s. They try (and succeed) to have a very authentic look to the place. The place was also impeccable as far as a cleanliness level is concerned.
Our server was polite and very accommodating. There was a little confusion about the beer on tap menu and the drink menu but there are a number of choices on both so it’s not as if this was a total fail. Sometimes you just have to wait to find out about a Negro Modelo.
We had a few special order items on our order due to food allergies and these were handled very satisfactorily. The appearance of the food was excellent and overall freshness seemed to be above average. I had the Pollo Relleno and it was a spot-​on match for the picture on the menu. Two of my friends ordered the fajitas and they gave them a good review.
We went at a fairly slow time during the day. It was after lunch and before dinner. For that time of day, I would like to see the service be a bit more efficient. Refills, etc. should not require much of a wait. To be fair, our server was clearly pregnant, so that was likely a factor. She was also very gracious and checked back on us to make sure we were satisfied.
The experience was a good one. I would be likely to again if someone suggested the place. It’s not something I would put in my «must do» restaurant rotation but in this part of the country, they are performing well.

AMAZING dinner! We arrived and checked into our hotel late in the evening. We went in around 9:30 and even though they closed at 10 they were VERY nice and accommodating after our long drive. We had an AMAZING dinner of shrimp nachos, cheese quesadillas, and lobster enchiladas. The dessert was yummy too! It was all delicious and our waitress was wonderful!
After we had eaten we took a moment to notice the beautiful glass work above the tables.
Lastly since it was closing time we saw how thoroughly they cleaned each booth and table. It was more than impressive.
We will definitely be back!

Very good. Being from Southern California coming by good Mexican food is hard to come by on the east coast. I would definitely recommend.

An upscale Mexican place in a town with many Mexican places. The staff is energetic and very attentive. The ingredients in each dish are obviously very fresh. You must have the tableside guacamole it is to die for. Did I mention they have an extensive Margarita selection? Simply put, the best Mexican in town.

Good atmosphere and good cocktails. Had to send my food back though because it was cold. The plate was hot but the inside of my enchilada was cold along with my rice and beans.

Pretty good food. Service was kind of lacking. My fiancée recommended we try it while we were in town, as she enjoyed eating here previously with her mom, although her mom’s debit card # was later traced back as being taken from this restaurant. Needless to say, we brought cash. As I mentioned before, both of our meals were good, but when the waitress returned with our change after paying, she shorted us on our change, and then dissapeared. After waiting about 5 minutes we just came to the conclusion that she felt that she would take out what she wanted for her tip, so we just left.

We had a great dinner here! We both had the combo meals and they were delicious. The meal came with free chips and salsa. They also have an all day $ 2.99 house margarita special. The food came out in about 5 minutes and we sat in the charming outdoor seating. All in all it was a great experience and we were in and out in 40 mins flat.

Service was good. Food delivered quickly. Three bites in —— smokers lit up! I mean really folks, it’s 2015 for goodness sake! NO SMOKING!!! I just rushed thru the meal, not worrying about flavor or enjoying myself, just trying to finish and get out quickly.

This was a great place and location next to our overnight stop in Florence on our way home from Florida. We got checked in at the Holiday Inn Express next door and then came over for dinner. The food was good and plentiful, the margaritas were great, though I would suggest on the rocks over frozen as I got frozen and it had more ice than alcohol! It ended up being like one of those snowballs where the mix settled on the bottom and there was just an icy mound on top. I had the chicken fajita which was good and had a lot of food. The restaurant was really nicely decorated and the service was rather quick considering two large parties were seated right after us. If we’re ever in Florence again, I’d definitely go back!

I went for lunch, and they had a great selection. Service was a bit slow, but then again we were a big group. Also it is a bit pricey for lunch.

Enjoyed the sizzling fajitas for two with a pitcher of hose Margaritas. Nice service & tasty cuisine.

Pretty restaurant, calm atmosphere. Food was decent, run of the mill Mexican. Dessert was delicious — had the fruit/​chocolate cake (I forget the actual name). Waiter was very attentive but he kept hitting on my colleague so that was probably why… All in all not a bad experience, would consider going back if I ever ended up on a future business trip in the area.

I love this place! Atmosphere is wonderful and the food is fabulous. Best Mexican food in Florence.

I’ve been here 2 days in a row while staying at the hotel next door. I haven’t had good Mexican food like this since I lived in L.A.!! Great food, great drinks, and excellent service. I highly recommend coming in for a great meal while you are in town!

There a few times in dining while traveling that you read the reviews, consider the comments and due to proximity make the decision to try it anyway. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED
The radio channel sporadically playing Mexican music was the first clue. The bar being unable to make a frozen margarita that on the menu clearly said «frozen» was another. Bad chips and salsa, but the decent table side guacamole gave me false hope! The enchiladas Rancheros had no shredded pork but were microwave cheese enchiladas with some chunks of pork thrown on top.
Go to Chipotle across the highway, eat better and fresher food.

Well, my experience was pitiful to say the least. I’m sure this restaurant has potential but definitely needs to learn a thing or two if they plan on staying in business.
I arrived in Florence on a business trip with a group of co-​workers. San Jose’s was semi-​walking distance from our hotel so we decided to act like New Yorkers and walk over.
Upon arriving, we were seated immediately and greeted by our waitress who I have to assume (for her sake) was very new and possibly never had a job in the restaurant business before. We were asked about drinks and we decided on beer. When asked what they have on tap, she gave us a bewildered, deer-​in-​headlights look. After a pause she said «…on tap??». We gave her a few more synonyms and played a quick game of charades and she finally understood.
Once we got over that hump she proceeded to tell us that they had «Budweiser, Budweiser Light and the beer with the two X’s on it» on tap. This is what we were told, verbatim.
I responded: «Do you mean Dos Equis?». Yes… she did. I then repeated the list back to her «So, you only have Bud, Bud Light and Dos Equis?». Her response: «No, Budweiser, Budweiser light and, yes, Dos Equis».
Um…Ok…got it…
We geared up for an interesting meal of confusion.
Don’t even get me started on the debacle we had based on the simple question of which Dos Equis they offered (Amber or Lager)…
Finally our beers arrived… but, alas, they weren’t what we ordered.
We re-​explained our order and the waitress got us what we had originally asked for.
Now, on to ordering our meals. I’m exhausted already.
We ordered the guac and cheese dip to start. I will say, these were both great!
For my dinner, I opted for the chipotle chicken salad. I wanted to ask the waitress for no corn in my salad but figured that would probably prove to be a bit too complicated and decided against it.
Our food showed up and before taking one bite of my salad I noticed that the chicken on the plate was basically raw. Even if the chicken had been cooked correctly, this dish was a pathetic excuse for a salad. About 4 – 6 ounces of (semi-​raw) chicken on a bed of sad-​looking iceberg lettuce and a light sprinkle of corn. Yum.
Once I got a hold of the waitress, I explained the situation and told her I wanted to change my order to shrimp fajitas. She repeated it back to me «Ok, shrimp fajitas». I assumed all was understood. Boy, was I wrong.
While my co-​workers started trying to force feed me from their plates out of pity, I waited patiently for my new meal.
Finally, the runner arrived at our table with my food. «Chicken fajitas?» he said. «um…no, I ordered shrimp». With a very panicked look on his face, he took off with the chicken and headed for the kitchen.
After about 3 – 5 more minutes, my shrimp fajitas arrived! Time to celebrate!
The shrimp fajitas weren’t bad but at that point, I barely had an appetite.
Once we were done eating, our check was promptly dropped on the table with no mention of whether or not we wanted dessert.
Good luck, San Jose! You’re gonna need it!

My new favorite Mexican restaurant in town! My husband and I have been here twice now and both times, the food was great. The first time we decided to try a couple of their combos to get a feel for their menu. I ordered a number 9 that had a chicken burrito, chicken quesadilla, and a chicken tamale. All 3 were delicious but my favorite was definitely the quesadilla.
The second time we decided to try the table side guacamole and it was delicious. The guy brought a cart around and made it in front of us after asking whether we liked it mild, medium or spicy. He added a nice spoonful of chopped jalapenos when we asked for spicy. The food is reasonably priced and came in large portions. I definitely recommend trying this place. They have a website with their menu but last time I looked they also had a printable coupon.

San Jose’s is a new-​ish Mexican place in Florence, and I visited on a business trip. It’s pretty good and very convenient to the interstates and to local hotels.
I visited for dinner and ate the shrimp and potato enchilada, which came with creamy cheese sauce on top of it and a side of rice. Lots of the menu options were new to me, as I haven’t seen them on other Mexican restaurant menus.
The food was delicious and the enchiladas were very rich (3, but small). I didn’t quite eat all the rice, but the portions aren’t huge for the price. Most entrees are over $ 10, so it’s a little pricier than your typical Mexican restaurant.
The guac they make at your table looks interesting and tasty, but I didn’t get it. The salsa and chips are good, but the salsa is a bit spicy and smokey, almost overpoweringly so at first. I wish they’d brought out a milder option.
Service was pretty good. I’d definitely give it another shot the next time I’m in town. It’s still pretty new, so I think they may have some kinks to work out.

Located next to the Swamp Fox, San Jose’s Tacos and Tequila is pretty conveniently placed. The building has been a few other places, so I was interested to see how they would use the space.
The outside is clean and well maintained, and the inside is lovely. Only one thing bothered me when we walked in, and that was an overpowering scent that reminded me of scented candles or air freshener. It wasn’t back in the dining area, so it quickly became overlooked. The scent wasn’t present when we were leaving, however.
The dining area is beautiful. The tables are elegant, and seeing how nicely decorated it was inside, I wasn’t expecting it to be a normal Mexican Restaurant. The menus are lovely, but there are some typos (that can be amusing. Check the back of your menu and look near the bottom of the page. It made me chuckle.) The layout of the menu is lovely and it’s quite easy to read and find what you’re looking for. They even have a decently sized vegetarian section, which is always nice.
For those who don’t like hot salsa, or just really prefer more mild salsa, you’ll probably consider their house salsa to be a bit hot. I don’t mind the heat, and the flavor of it was extremely fresh and well balanced.
The waitstaff is very pleasant and nice, and were extremely attentive.
It was a bit disappointing that the Tamales weren’t available on this visit, but I am looking forward to try them the next time I head in.
Moving on, I got the Fajita Nachos on this trip. The plates weren’t your average burn your fingers off if you try and move them, instead they were easy to touch and adjust. The chips were crispy, not soggy. The steak was delicious! Cooked beautifully and very tender without being too fatty. The onions and red/​green bell peppers were cooked just enough (not reduced to mush or crunchy from being undercooked) and amazingly delicious as well.
Overall it was a good first experience, and I’m looking forward to visiting again and trying their tamales!