Amigo’s Surf Cantina

Ventura, United States

3.5

Open now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 805-874-2232
Website:
amigosventura.com
Address:
546 E Main St, Ventura, CA, 93001
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.5 miVentura
0.7 miGold Coast Transit
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Delivery
No
Take-out
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Good For
Dinner
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Good for Kids
No
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Loud
Music
Live
Good For Dancing
Yes
Alcohol
Full Bar
Happy Hour
Yes
Best Nights
Fri, Sat, Sun
Coat Check
No
Smoking
No
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Has TV
Yes
Waiter Service
Yes
Caters
No
Has Pool Table
No

Today

Today 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Open now
Local time (Ventura) 16:14 Wednesday, 2 July 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Tuesday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Wednesday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Thursday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Friday 11:00 am – 1:00 am
Saturday 10:00 am – 1:00 am
Sunday 10:00 am – 10:00 pm

Description

Specialties

You found Amigo’s Surf Cantina. We serve Ventura, CA the tasty Mexican food and cold drinks they crave while jamming out to our favorite bands.

Welcome to it. Step in our colorful Cantina with a tropical theme that only leaves good vibes while you chow. Order up our scrumptious Fish Tacos, cheesy Enchiladas, Chile Relleno, or if you’re dying of hunger… conquer our famous Super Burrito! We always have $ 1 street tacos that are great with our Fiesta Hours! Tap your foot 7 nights a week with our blues, rock, or jazz bands that rock out!

Check out our Happy Hour, Monday-​Friday from 4pm-​7pm where our delicious appetizers and small plates are half off including $ 1 off our greatest drinks! Drop in for breakfast favorites like our Heuvos Rancheros and Egg Enchiladas with Sour Cream…

Take a break from the rush, sing with the band, and fill your belly with Amigo’s Surf Cantina!

History

Established in 2012.

In the kitchen is veteran chef Aieda «aka MAMA» formerly of Joannafina’s for the last 15 years. Her Sunday brunch there was famous, and Jon had become a frequent customer for years before their closing. Locals stop by her new kitchen at Amigo’s and scream with joy to find out she is cooking again!

With a menu covering all the favorite Mexican dishes, diners rave about Mama’s pork, chicken and veggie tamales. Top sellers are Tacos which you can get on Tuesdays with a Tecate for just $ 3.99. Available with a choice of meat and pico de gallo, you can top it off at the Salsa Bar with fresh cilantro, onions, jalapenos and your choice of 6 different flavors/​levels of salsa. From the mild Serrano avocado to the fiery hot Haberno there is a taste for everyone.

Small plates served all day are great for a lighter meal, as well as the all-​you-​can-​eat salad bar for just $ 5.95. Entrees such as Enchiladas, Fajitas, and Burritos provide a filling meal without breaking the bank with all items under $ 12

Meet the Business Owner

Jonny R.

Business Owner

Amigo’s Surf Cantina is the creation of local restaurateur Jon Reese. A surfer since he was 7 years old, he has always loved the great live music scene in Ventura County. Formerly owning Calypso Bar & Grill in Santa Barbara, and The Dash Inn at Arizona State University, his latest venture into Mexican Food is definitely a colorful one.

Located in the heart of Downtown Ventura, you can’t help but miss the colorful artwork and seating of the outdoor patio area. Formerly Charlene’s Tapas, the complete redesign is a lot less sophisticated and a lot more fun! Walls feature vintage beach posters, beer signs, & Mexican artwork. Colorful custom surfboards hang from the ceilings, and walls and brightly colored table cloths and dinnerware complete the theme.

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20 reviews of Amigo’s Surf Cantina

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Place rating: 5
Concord, CA
Hands down best bar In Ventura. First time at Amigos Cantina visiting from nor cal looking for a good place to get a drink with some good entertainment. Amigos looked pretty full and had live band mixed crowd. The service was excellent they kept or glasses full. Band was sensational played a great mix of classics and fun dance music for anyone of all ages. The dance floor was a fun place! Bathrooms was clean which is important to me in a bar. Didn’t order food but what came out of kitchen looked really good.
Place rating: 5
DePaul, Chicago, IL
Under a new owner. He seems to have really turned the place around. They are concentrating on some core menu items and they are really good. Good specials and good vibes. I recommend stopping in here for live bands or a great jukebox.
Place rating: 4
Ventura, CA
Great big, dog friendly, patio. The service was very good (Stephanie). The new menu was awesome. I’ve heard it’s under new ownership so they must have hired a new chef as well because the food is definitely better. The asada tacos and asada melt were excellent. Also, the 22 oz. beers were very well priced. I’ve been here before but this visit finally rated a review. I’ll be back for the live music as well. Check it out.
Place rating: 3
Ventura, CA
This is probably one of the worst places for Mexican food you could go to in the Ventura area. HOWEVER, this is my favorite margarita ever, $ 4.50 for a margarita anytime, not just happy hour. My mom and I like to come here occasionally for margaritas and we both agree that they are the best margaritas we’ve ever had. And they are STRONG. Not too sweet, not too sour, and the perfect combination of ingredients. I also really enjoy the coronarita. The atmosphere is really cute too. Every time we come here they have live music. I recommend stopping by when you just want to grab a drink and enjoy a relaxed atmosphere. Happy hour is a great time to come because all of their small plates are half off. I would never eat a full meal here. Just grab your drinks, a couple of small plates of some gringo Mexican favorites (which are pretty inexpensive), and enjoy. For authentic Mexican food full of flavor, check out some spots on Ventura Ave.
Place rating: 2
Ventura, CA
The food here isn’t too bad, I’d say the staff needs a tuning up though.
We came here in the afternoon and I ordered the Mucho Macho Burrito — which specifies it’s «all meat burrito» opposed to the Super Burrito which has mean, rice and beans. The menu states the burrito is suppose to come with chile verde or chile colorado. The server came back from the kitchen and said they no longer make chile verde or chile colorado. Interesting, because it’s all over the menu on many items!
My burrito came out with their green salsa poured over it. It tasted pretty good, however there was rice and beans in the burrito — so I asked that I be charged for the Super Burrito instead, and they refused ($ 3 difference!). They said it had bacon in it, and the Super comes with guacamole in it — so that’s why I get charged $ 3 extra because of that switch apparently.
Again, it tasted decent — but I don’t think they get customer service and they really should be serving what is on their menu’s or make new menu’s. I get it if they happen to be out of one item, but if you change the whole menu — make a new one!
Place rating: 2
Ventura, CA
Ok, so I have to update this because I’m SAD, and hope that Amigo’s can get their act back up to speed.
I really enjoyed this place, until they changed everything recently and took out most of the happy hour and added mac n’ cheese to the menu. It’s called Amigo’s, not America’s. Never in my life have I seen my favorite cheesy carb load on a Mexican inspired menu. And also… like…where is everything else?
I believe in you guys, I know you’ll find your way back.
Place rating: 5
Los Angeles, CA
In ventura after 9pm there is not many place to have some snack. Amigo is Good spot to have late snacks!
They have happy hour! Good price, good food and good music!
Place rating: 2
Victorville, CA
We are regulars here. Decided to eat here with family out of town on Saturday after Christmas because we like the food and reasonable service. The restaurant was not full and we waited for approximately 30 minutes without even drink orders being taken. We asked if we could order and no one came. So we left and no one noticed.
I’m really not sure what happened. We’ve always tipped well here and I don’t think we’ve been rude or difficult. We used to come here regularly. I guess I’m more confused than upset.
Place rating: 5
Simi Valley, CA
Amigos brings in the cream of the crop!
Joey B’s acoustic mondays is a real hoot. I felt like singing. Along the entire time. Will be back
Place rating: 5
Piru, CA
Best place everrrrr!!! Love the food, love the vibe, the new owner Mike has really turned this place around. Cannot wait to see what else he has in store. I reccomend giving amigos a chance :)
Place rating: 2
Camarillo, CA
Went for lunch on a Monday. They have a Monday margarita special but I didn’t have one so I don’t. Service was good and prompted. I was told first thing about all the specials. The chips and salsa bar look ok but I didn’t try it. I ordered a chile relleno with rice and the person I was with ordered cheese enchilada. I know that chile relleno’s are fried but I didn’t need all the oil from the pan poured onto my plate. My food was a greasy mess with little flavor. My friend said the cheese enchilada was ok not worth having again. I think it’s over priced for the quality of food served. If the food matched the service I would have given more stars.
Place rating: 5
Sandy, UT
Always fun here. Open late, live music every night of the week. Karaōke Sunday’s. Food is good, the staff is friendly, full bar with good prices. Under new ownership, Mike is great! Treats employees very well and has a fun vibe.
I always enjoy myself when I come here.
Place rating: 2
Culver City, CA
Great Live Music.
Fun Crowd
Food looked terrible so didn’t get any.
Ordered an IPA last night, listened to the band, people watched.
Service– didn’t get any so went to the bar to order.
Will I stop in again? For the music, yes. Not for the food or great service…
Place rating: 2
Oxnard, CA
I give amigo two stars on their service and quality of food. I went there to pick up some food for a friend and as I walked in, the girl with blue hair didn’t greet me just immediately and rudely told me I couldn’t have my dog indoors. She was rude unprofessional and had an attitude. Personally I would have greeted someone and kindly suggest they use the patio and if they weren’t responsive then I’d be a little more aggressive about the dog being indoors. Afterwards I got a very kind server and she really was on top of everything and very professional. . The food was okay but I defiantly will not be returning. I would encourage better attitude and customer service
Place rating: 5
Ventura, CA
A great cozy spot in downtown to enjoy happy hour. I had a great assortment of street tacos during happy hour that left little room for dinber! Fantastic flavor!
I dropped by Wednesday to check out the live music, I enjoy he ‘coziness” of the venue that got you close to the artists as they sang.
The front «porch» is nice to sit at as well, have a cold beer and watch the happenings of Main Street. I really enjoy this place with it’s nice local feel.
Place rating: 3
Ventura, CA
Amigos is a chill place. I only go there for the awesome live music and sometimes open mic on Tuesdays. I was just there tonight watching rich Sheldon & Sean play and they’re great! I was wondering why the bartender and another man that worked there told them they had to turn it down. Everybody was enjoying the music!
Anyways besides that, the price range isn’t bad, food okay.
Place rating: 4
Ventura, CA
You should come in and meet the new owner. You don’t get many opportunities, especially in a small town like Ventura, to get in on the ground floor so to speak. And I mean is there a better patio to sit at than Amigo’s? My wife and I, she passed away, came her all the time. When it gets to be sweater weather the fireplace out side makes it totally comfy. But sitting by the railing for lunch, saying hi to everyone, I mean everyone knew her and so loved her it was like Ventura The Ride. Try the grilled chicken bacon avocado salad, two people can split it easy, with the lime dressing on the side. Omg just the best. So the new owner is all in on you enjoying Amigo’s. I still come for all the same reasons I just don’t laugh as much as I used to. But that will get better. I know you’ll be glad you chose to come. And ask to meet the new owner. You’ll be stoked.
Place rating: 2
Temple City, CA
Got a super burrito with red sauce. The sauce was really salty and i ended up getting the runs for the rest of the night.
Two stars for the friendly service. I wouldn’t really recommend this place though.
Place rating: 5
Ventura, CA
The food here is fresh and most is from scratch. Not what I expected from a Mexican bar type setting. The prices are reasonable, lots of TV’s, bar, and outdoor seating off Main Street. Great lunch or dinner stop, but they have a breakfast all-​day menu too.
Place rating: 2
Charlotte, NC
Came here late Saturday night expecting their street taco special. The music was really good, a live 40s like band and there was a crowd too. The crowder is older but the staff was young.
We were disappointed to hear from our server that the street taco specials, and the rest of the late night menu, is super outdated. The prices have risen and some of the menu items weren’t even offered anymore. We were forced to order the taco platter and made all the tacos chicken for $ 6 – 7, not cool. What was even worse, the chicken was the chewiest chicken we’ve ever bitten into in our entire lives. GROSS. The meat must have been steeping in water for quite some time. It was hard work to chew. After a while, I just took out the meat and put a lot of onions and cilantro and ate the small corn taco like that. Seriously sad. Won’t ever these tacos again. On the plus side, they have a legit salsa bar.
We also had a couple of vodka shots with a pickle back which the bartender invented himself in Maui. It was surprisingly good, it had a spicy, cucumber and gingery taste to it. (the music and the pickle back got stars, nothing else). The service was pretty bad too, we tried to wave the server down like 6 different times, took us forever to walk out with the check.