For my 81st review I wanted to do something special, so I’m taking this opportunity to report that Beto’s Grill has closed the San Gabriel location, but this one as well. The TC space is now another Mexican place, and I’ll review it once I give it a try.
Dave H.
Place rating: 3 Pasadena, CA
Beto’s is no longer there. Both locations closed down in temple city and san gabriel.
Rachel A.
Place rating: 1 Temple City, CA
I have been here a few times and the food was average. The one thing I previously had and really enjoyed was the chorizo, which was better than average. My understanding is that they recently changed management, so I figured I would give it another shot with the hopes that it had improved even more. I was wrong. The spanish rice was really dried out. The beans did not appear to be fresh. The meat(chicken, el pastor, carne asada — soft tacos) was dried out. I had a hard shell taco with shredded beef, which was moist but not flavorful. My family and I will not be returning. It’s really unfortunate.
Mikka M.
Place rating: 5 Temple City, CA
Today was about the shrimp tacos. Let me tell you this, they were huge and the shrimp inside were flavorful, firm and perfectly colored… no funky fillers lol. They were delicately drizzled with a lightly sweetened spicy sauce. Everything was perfectly put together and they don’t drown the food in sauces and salt. It was a short lived love affair. I’ll be back for more. I live close to this place so I can go stalker on the tacos if I want… I just might. MMH626
Amy F.
Place rating: 5 Irvine, CA
Comfort food if there ever was any. I’ve been to both the San Gabriel and Temple City location, and I think they’re about the same. Delicious, juicy tacos, yummy quesadillas, gigantic beefy burritos, and horchata, MMM. Oh and free lollipops for every meal, haha. Plus, chips and salsa before you start your course, that me and my sister always devour. I’ve never had a problem with the food, and I always finish what I have to take home. Always craving Beto’s. :) It’s not cheap, but they give you A LOT, so it’s super worth it. Customer service is typically really good too. The staff are super friendly with pretty good English, and not only that, they’re extremely helpful to the community. My water polo team asked them for a donation and they actually convinced Bank of America or something to donate $ 1000 to us. Family owned, and if you read enough TC papers, they’re always mentioned really favorably. These guys are awesome. I think the only downside to the food is that it’s so comforting that I just fall asleep after eating. Haha, so I have to be careful. This place is typically kind of empty despite the deliciousness of their food, so I hope they manage to stay in business for years to come! :)
Matthew M.
Place rating: 2 Monrovia, CA
I’m baffled to the logic behind how someone can give this place five stars. First off, on each table, there is a sign that reads: «Freshly made chips and salsa, 1st round is on the house, Additional orders = $ 1.50» I could understand if the salsa was from organic, rare tomatoes or if a critic named it the best salsa in all of southern California, but it’s not. The salsa was mediocre and tasted like ketchup drowned in Tapatio with chunks of green onion and cilantro, because I would not have been pleased to have to order a second round. Plus, the chips tasted burnt and left a charred taste in my mouth. I had two carne asada tacos which were pretty typical for a family owned Mexican restaurant. The meat was a little salty and over cooked. The guacamole was okay. All of the ingredients seemed to be fresh, so that was a pretty big plus. The presentation was probably the best part of the plate. The girlfriend ordered a chicken enchilada dish. The beans were good, the rice was dry and tasteless and enchilada was pretty decent. The service wasn’t too bad; there was one server for all tables and she seemed a bit stressed out, but I guess I couldn’t blame her. The owner was there and he seemed pretty nice and inviting. He seems to have a pretty good relationship with all of his customers, even greeting some by name as they walked in. He came over to our table to ask how everything was. It makes me sad that I have to write a poor review on a restaurant whose owner is such a nice guy. Hopefully this will influence him to not charge for a second round of chips and salsa and maybe improve on the recipe.
Jones T.
Place rating: 3 San Diego, CA
Steak($ 2) and shrimp tacos($ 3) were pretty big. They tasted ok. A lunch buffet is also available for $ 9. Service was ok. Its a decent option for Mexican food, but most likely won’t satisfy any cravings for good solid mexican food.
Jonathan K.
Place rating: 3 Aliso Viejo, CA
Beto’s Grill is a neighborhood eatery specializing in traditional Mexican and seafood dishes. The restaurant is family owned and operated and, judging from the taste, you certainly get the impression that the food could have been prepared by someone’s beloved grandmother. Like a good home-cooked meal, the dishes are simple, yet pleasant and rely on a combination of fresh ingredients and giant portions to win over hearts and minds. I find that the tacos are a strong point here. Having sampled every one, I can confidently say that the Pescado(fish) taco is among the better ones I’ve had. It’s a succulent, white fish filet served near blistering hot with all the heat and sizzle from it being plucked right off the grill and then lovingly wrapped in a warm tortilla. It’s savory and delicious with every bite. After that, I recommend trying the beef and carnitas tacos, which are both tender and flavorful. The rest of the taco selection is decent, but I personally don’t care for the sauce used in the chicken one and I find the shrimp taco to be regrettably dry, but other people’s experiences may vary.
Kenny O.
Place rating: 3 Chicago, IL
I came here last week for $ 1 Taco Tuesday! Parking was pretty easy — there is a free public lot about 100 yards from the restaurant. The tacos were decent. You have your choice of Chicken, Carne(Asada), Lengua(Tongue), and … Beef? I forgot what the fourth was. They were served the traditional way with double-tortilla and a wedge of lime on the side. They’re the same size as most ‘al carbon’ tacos I’m used to. I also ordered a glass of the sangria. I don’t know what they did with it, but mine tasted a little like wine mixed with cough syrup. It definitely isn’t something I’d order again. All in all, this place is a nice dive in the heavily Asian/conservative TC and is a nice place to get some cheap tacos on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Stacy B.
Place rating: 3 Montebello, CA
Went in for a quick bite, literally 20 – 30 minutes from ordering to paying the bill. Ordered a sampler, it had more than enough for 2. Ordered rice and beans on the side everything was good. Service was definitely 4 Stars. The food itself though was just pretty good, hence the 3 Star rating. The ambiance was nice! I would definitely come back and might even change to a 4 Star rating depending on my next experience.
Deserie H.
Place rating: 2 La Puente, CA
Went in because it was close and had good ratings on here. But was not impressed. Place was dead, no one was in there. Didn’t even look like anyone had just left. Food was ok. Nothing that I haven’t had before. The same boring Mexican food you find everywhere. But food came out quick. Place was clean. Looked nice. Cliché Mexican decorations. Server, maybe owner or manager, was the only one work in front. Saw a cook come out so I know there was at least 2 people working there. The server kind of just left us to eat. Only checking in when he dropped off our food. Had to go get check and paid at counter, but it was because we needed to leave asap. Oh yeah they have a buffet Mon — Fri for lunch but cant remember the times. Didn’t have anything posted about times, I had to ask.
Danny L.
Place rating: 3 Arcadia, CA
I tried this place with my wife on a Thursday evening. It was good to see that the restaurant had a steady flow of clientele dining. We came to dining her by way of either Groupon or LivingSocial where we paid half price for a meal over 20. We ordered tableside guac(which was excellent, but a little pricey) with chips, enchiladas, and a steak plate. The enchiladas were good but we found the steak to be a little rubbery and thin. The selection of entrees were decent. I don’t know if I would come back again if not for another Groupon coupon. There are plenty of other Mexican places that I still need to try before coming back to Beto’s for a repeat performance.
Tony L.
Place rating: 3 Los Angeles, CA
Their chorizo queso fondito is so unhealthy but soo good. I typically order their fried Talipia here. Everything else is just okay. Their meats are not good quality. Their rice is dry and plain. Their refried beans are just okay. Man I miss Baja Fish taco in Santa Ana. If we had that here in SGV that would be the only Mexican restaurant i go to.
Mel S.
Place rating: 3 Arcadia, CA
Ive come to this place many times, but Im barely writing a review about it now. It use to be really good. but now it kind of went down hill. but not bad, just not great. I ordered a side of rice, and half the bowl was hard crunchy rice =(It made it a bad experience, since I had to constantly pick the rice out of my teeth. The owner,(didnt catch his name) was super friendly. Took his time to go to each table, ask us how everything was and made some effort to chat a little. That made the rice situation forgivable. I had an order of shredded beef taco, and it tasted like it belonged on the menu from Jack in the Box. There was more lettuce and cheese than actual meat. Maybe it was just a bad day for the cooks… but this bad day of theirs made me want to write a unsatisfied review. =/
D J.
Place rating: 2 San Gabriel, CA
Service 1 star. $ 1 tacos, I star. I mean you get what you pay for so if you want cheap tacos, better off getting them from Del Taco or Taco Bell. Waited 15 mintues to get 4 tacos and was it worht the wait. Hell nah… Asada tasted nothing like asada and the pastor was very plain and bland whith no tatste what so ever. If you live around TC, better off going to Super Burrito. Trust…
Cari O.
Place rating: 2 Whittier, CA
Our favorite taco truck wasn’t around so we Unilocaled and this place came up. It looked very cute from the outside and inside so I was hopeful. I ordered 4 different tacos: fish, beef, carnitas, and chicken and the b/f also ordered 4 different tacos: fish, asada, carnitas, chicken. The picture showed small tacos and that’s why we ordered so many, but we got the food and they were full size tacos which was a nice surprise(especially for $ 1.95 each). However, the order was wrong. The lady gave me 3 chicken and 1 beef. They gave the b/f 2 fish, 1 carnitas, and 1 chicken. I was pissed. If a waiter is confused about the order they should by all means ask the customer for clarification, because it’s much worse to completely mess up the order and act like you don’t care about what the customers end up getting than to ask for clarification. The service was also horrible. Our waiter took a break right when we were finished eating and we had to ask the owner of the place to get us our check. Service is slow and the owner isn’t familiar with the prices of his meals so it makes things awkward. Parking is good, portions are big, it’s clean and the place doesn’t look over the top in terms of Mexican décor. Those are the only positives. I know the owner is trying hard to keep his restaurant going, but he needs to have a talk with his staff and needs to become more familiar with his prices.
Lori C.
Place rating: 5 Los Angeles, CA
Temple City is blessed to have two Beto’s Grills around here! :) I’ve only tried this one and I thought it was really amazing. I found this place looking for a date place and I do not regret my choice! I tried the molcajete, which has chorizo, steak, chicken breast, cheese, and cactus in this fantastic salsa sauce, all in a stone bowl. Their enchiladas are also really great! I wanted to like their tacos but I was full at the time and couldn’t really appreciate them. I will try them next time and update! The food is very filling and the staff is friendly. The décor is very cultural and cute, with fake flowers at the tables and paintings and hats on the walls. It doesn’t get too crowded in here and at the end, they have these Mexican lollipops at the cash register, and they’re really good!
Tuan T.
Place rating: 4 Los Angeles, CA
We were craving tacos and after driving by this place a couple times, we decided to give it a try a couple weeks ago. We ordered the carne asada, al pastor and fish tacos. Their tacos were absolutely delicious. They weren’t overly greasy and seasoned very well. I don’t know if the residents of Temple City know about this place, but they should! The owner was very nice, he greeted us, told us about his new shop and at the end, he even gave us some complimentary chips & guacamole. And judging on the amount of recognition on the wall, the owner gives a lot back to the community, so that’s a plus in my book. The molcajete looked pretty/smelled fantastic, I will probably get that next time. Recommendation: Carne Asada Tacos
Pancho V.
Place rating: 3 Los Angeles, CA
While I was driving up Temple City Blvd I saw a sign on the sidewalk TACOS and I quickly pulled over, it happened to be in the morning so after looking over their menu I opted for a Breakfast Burrito, which has eggs, beans, and your meat choice of chorizo, ham or machaca and hash browns on the side, I chose ham and also asked them to put the hash browns inside. When the Burrito arrived the first thing you notice is it’s slightly longer but also considerably smaller in diameter than most breakfast burrito’s you’ll find, the burrito was OK, a little lacking in the flavor dept. I think since this is a restaurant they spend too much time trying to make the plate fancy with the lettuce and little cups of sour cream & guacamole, but should take some time to make a better tasting breakfast burrito. I will return to try some tacos and also their Molcajete!
Jonas T.
Place rating: 5 San Francisco, CA
Quality Mexican food at typical taqueria prices(cheap!). Complimentary chips come warm, guacamole is made fresh in front of you(so you can customize it), and as everyone has been saying, the tacos are a must order, though nothing else could fail. JONASAPPROVED!