Location: Carlsbad
Top Restaurants in Carlsbad
Top Things to do in Carlsbad
- 1. Carlsbad Museum and Art Center
- 2. Sitting Bull Falls
- 3. Carlsbad Caverns Natural Entrance Tour
- 4. Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park
- 5. Lake Carlsbad Recreation Area
- 6. Bat Flight Program in Carlsbad Cavern National Park
- 7. Brantley Lake State Park
- 8. Pecos River Flume
- 9. Pecos River Antique Mall
- 10. Carlsbad Water Park
Countries
Top 10 Mexican food in Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States
Discover Restaurants offering the best Mexican food in Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States. The internationally known Carlsbad Caverns are the biggest tourist draw in this city on the Pecos River. But before or after you've experienced the magnificent caves, you can round out your weekend with some wonderful above-ground sights and activities. If the thought of caves conjures up visions of narrow spaces and dark, cold clamminess, the comfortable year-round 56-degree climate, wide-open spaces and magical underworld of naturally created sculptures will amaze and enthrall you. In the summer, you get to see another natural wonder - some one million bats taking to the skies from the cave entrance every evening at sundown. Hardier cave explorers can take a side trip to the wilder Slaughter Cave for a down and dirty ranger-led tour. Come out from under to the zoo at Living Desert State Park for a glimpse of Chihuahuan Desert wildlife - everything from mountain lions, buffalo, bears and coyotes to reptiles, prairie dogs and roadrunners. Head over to the Lake Carlsbad Recreation Area for river swimming and waterskiing or to Guadalupe Mountains National Park for hiking trails with diverse terrain and incredible views.
Things to do in Carlsbad
10. Lucy's Mexicali Restaurant
Overall Ratings
3 based on 253 reviews
Reviewed By 1956quilter
We were told by the motel people that Lucy's was an excellent place to eat. NOT! We went there and the food was very bland and not much on the plate for the price. There weren't any spices used it seemed. I can cook better at home!!
9. Linda's Restaurant
Reviewed By houseonahill
I really like this restaurant for Mexican food. Not open in the evenings but open early for breakfast and lunch. Very friendly staff and great candy case at cash register!
8. La Nortena Mexican Food
Reviewed By nw1152
Everything I've tried from this menu - Tacos Barbacoa, Tacos Al Pastor, Brisket Burrito, Bean and Cheese Burrito, Brisket Torta, Carne Asada Torta - has been the best experience I've ever had with each respective item. Food of this quality at the prices charged here is very hard to find. The salsas they make here are outstanding additions to anything you might order. Their sister truck, El Charro, is open next door from 4 - 10pm Monday - Saturday, and serves the same delicious options as La Norteña. You would do yourself and your dining companions a service to check these places out!Note: I would recommend calling before coming over because 1) wait times during lunch hours will frequently exceed 20 minutes and 2) La Norteña is known for being closed during regular operating hours.
7. Tina's Mexican Cafe
Reviewed By Oujanzen
Carlsbad City is a rather sterile collection of over-priced and formulaic motels, gas stations, and fast-food places. We spent the night here largely because of its proximity to the caverns. The people at our motel were next to useless in recommending a place to eat. Fortunately Google came to our rescue and in that way, we discovered Tina's Mexican Café. This simple restaurant appeared largely to serve local people, which is always a good sign. It was a bit off the main route into town, but not hard to find. The restaurant had a friendly couple who served as owner/wait staff. They were not licensed to serve beer or wine, only soft drinks, but this was a good thing in our view since we had to drive there and back to our motel. The menu was basic Tex-Mex dishes, tasty and mercifully not gigantic portions. We've reached the point in our lives where we prefer to eat portions that serve our needs, not our greed. This meant that we still had room for a shared dessert. Wonderful! If we find ourselves in Carlsbad again, we'd cheerfully eat here again.
6. PJ and B's Rio Cafe
Reviewed By toniroger
Full Barrista service with Starbucks products so that you can truly have the coffee of your dreams and get your day started off right!!!This is a quick order at the counter and they will prepare your meal breakfast, lunch place. Located near the Pecos River Conference Center In Carlsbad, NM, this is a family owned business. It stays busy with people coming in for their delicious big breakfast burritos. That is what my son had and I had huevos rancheros!!!Big portions, they keep the area clean, and will customize your order for you. Super nice employees, and cool to have a new business in town!!!My only recommendation would be to bring a huge appetite and save room for the gigantic cinnamon rolls or donuts that are so tempting!!!!!
5. Mi Casita
Overall Ratings
4 based on 45 reviews
505 628 1393
Reviewed By Mr_and_Mrs_Cuddles
This is a great family-run Mexican restaurant offering pretty good food at very good prices. From the first moment we came in, the staff were extremely friendly, kindly giving us assistance to get a disabled family member seated.Service is super-fast here; we got our food within about five minutes of ordering. A warning during the brief wait for your food: the complimentary chips and salsa are nice, but that is quite a hot salsa youâll get as the default. Being in New Mexico, we had to try the enchiladas with green chiles (got both chicken and beef), as well as a taco salad with ground beef and a steak taco plate. Everyone finished their meal very satisfied â this isnât the fanciest of places, but everything is seasoned well and you get a lot of food for your money (more for $8 than weâve gotten other places for $15, honestly). Beyond the entrees, they also have excellent drink specials â one of our party enjoyed the $2 margaritas on special that entire month, and from the signs, it looked like they have different specials going on fairly often. A nice selection of desserts is available from the refrigerated case. Inside dessert tip: get cake. The pies arenât bad at all, but they are store-bought, while the cakes are made in-house. There was some uncertainty about their closing time when we visited, as they had two signs outside, one saying they closed at 8:00 each night, the other saying 8:30. Staff told us theyâd recently changed hours to stay open until 8:30, so hopefully thatâs stuck.Their breakfast menu looked very enticing, but alas, our travel schedule didnât allow us to be there at the right time to enjoy it. Clearly, weâll just have to come back.
4. Carniceria San Juan De Los Lagos
Overall Ratings
4 based on 15 reviews
Reviewed By Justin B
Had a party of 8 walk in around 5 pm. We ordered our food and our drinks and waited on the food. 45 minutes later the food partially arrives. We were missing 2 kids plates and asked abut them. The waiter said that they were being prepared. I could not understand why it took 45 minutes to cook these simple meals. There were 6 people in the kitchen just standing around. The restaurant was not busy, actually only 2 other tables were there. On the 3rd request we finally received the kids plates that we were missing. I hate this because the place was really authentic and the food was really good, it just seemed as if the workers really did not care about the service. Very honest review.
3. La Patrona
Overall Ratings
4 based on 16 reviews
Reviewed By 2cooleytexans
We needed a quick place to stop after Carlsbad Caverns and on our way to Santa Fe. Thought we would try La Patrona after reading other reviews here. We were delighted with the speedy service and with the yummy food! We tried asado (steak strips) burritos, asado tacos, the asada (stewed pork) plate, and the horchata. Found everything to be delicious! The asada had a pretty good kick (may want to avoid this if spicy isn't your thing) and the hot sauce/salsa was fairly spicy. Horchata was perfect to tame the kick. We loved it all!
Where to eat Bar food in Carlsbad: The Best Restaurants and Bars
2. El Jimador
Overall Ratings
4 based on 33 reviews
Reviewed By carbajalj
We were all satisfied customers happy to find genuinely good Mexican food. I wish we had restaurants like this in Colorado. The food is authentic and very delicious. The staff was accommodating as it was very crowded and popular on a Friday night. Parking can be difficult to find.
1. Junior's Burritos & Mexican Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4 based on 149 reviews
Reviewed By Mindy and Roger A
Read the GREAT REVIEWS and headed there for dinner. We ordered the Taco Salad & Beef Enchiladas. Huge Portions! Both meals were excellent. They also present Chips & Salsa. Chips were fresh & crisp. Cost was about $10.00/meal. Total for two people with drinks + tax, $25.00. If you are looking for real Mexican dishes prepared & served by Hispanic staff, this is the place.
Most Popular Southwestern food in Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States
