Senor Grubby's - Carlsbad CA

From senor grubby

Pizza Port too crowded on a Sunday Afternoon!

We went to the beach the other day and then unwisely thought Pizza Port would be a good place to go afterwards.  Sunday on a sunny day at 4pm is no time to go to Pizza Port.  The line was almost out the back door and the place was mobbed with red faced shorts wearing people. 

From senor grubby

This is a cool looking church or house thing on the way to Senor Grubby's

So we walked down the road to Senor Grubby’s, a chain-sort of place serving up Mexican food.

From senor grubby

Overall Senor Grubby’s is a good place actually.  They have a good salsa bar, good chips, and lots of Mexican beer on tap.  There were plenty of seats, etc.

From senor grubby

From senor grubby

From senor grubby

But, I can’t get over the fact of my al pastor.  I walk in and shining there behind the counter is a mountain of meat with a pineapple on top.  I get very excited.  I’ve never actually had al pastor off the spit, which is how you are supposed to have it.

Their meat tower, however, was black, and looked like my grandmother’s family in Queens was storing it in the basement during the great depression.  The meat tasted the same:  old, black, dry and crunchy with the taste of licking an old piece of wood that used to be on fire a couple of days ago.

If you go, and you are the vocally complaining type, please do me a favor and pass this info on to them, tell them to either cut the meat or get off the pot, if the meat gets black cut it off and don’t serve it, serve the good stuff underneath.

Ole!

From senor grubby

Bathroom Reading

From senor grubby

Cold beer on tap!

From senor grubby

Their hot salsa reminds me of the salsa I really like at Mama Testa (another dry old meat taco sometimes place), it’s got a strong tang to it like tamarind or something, pretty good stuff.

From senor grubby

The beers were good.  The company was good.  The place was pretty clean, they had an assortment of hot sauces on the table including Tapatio and Cholula, a bunch of teenagers working there, some kind of mix of music with a lot of horrible country (like “new country” not Johnny Cash), everything.

From senor grubby

Someone else got a California burrito, and for the kids she asked for rice and beans, thinking they would be on the side, but when it was delivered it was the size of a small baby wrapped up in a blanket.  The carne asada in the burrito wasn’t that good either, to tell the honest truths, but the cheese was ok (artificial orange tang) and the fries were pretty good, but the California burrito was overall a very dry experience, making salsa a necessity.

From senor grubby

Torta someone got - they say it was good but I didn't get a taste!

From senor grubby

Someone else had a burrito with shrimps of the devil (alal Diavolo?).  Anything with devil or red or hot or spicy peppers next to it, I order.  The burrito was actually pretty spicy and, from the bites I got to have, really good.

From senor grubby

I had carnitas tacos too and they were actually pretty good.  Nothing like Cuatro Milpas, but still a lot better than Rubio’s.  They looked like they might be dry but they were actually pretty moist.

From senor grubby

Overall, I would go back if Pizza Port was overcrowded, maybe even if not.   Pizza Port isn’t that great either.  I was trying to get the crowd to go to Fish House Vera Cruz, which, getting old in my days, I actually like a lot, but alas they told me they weren’t retired yet.

Amen.

Senor Grubby’s:

377 Carlsbad Village Drive

Carlsbad, CA 92008-2918

(760) 729-6040

goodtacos.com‎