Baja Cantina - Carmel

4.5

607 Reviews

$30 and under

Mexican / Southwestern

Make a reservation

2 people

Feb 17, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 10 times today

Great for outdoor dining
Good for special occasions
Kid-friendly

Baja Cantina is a fun and energetic place that is known for its exceptional automotive memorabilia collection and excellent food. We have a large outdoor patio that is perfect to sit and relax on a sunny afternoon with one of our award winning margaritas. We have special events all year round, including our famous classic car gatherings, holiday parties, tequila tastings, and sporting events. ****We only accept online reservations during off-peak times. If you can’t find a time you want online, please give us a call.***

Dining areas

Additional information

Dining style
Casual Dining
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
Mexican / Southwestern, Contemporary Mexican
Hours of operation
Weekend Brunch: 11:00am - 2:00pm; Lunch: Monday - Friday: 11:30am - 4:00pm, Saturday - Sunday: 11:00am - 4:00pm; Dinner: Nightly: 4:00pm - 9:00pm
Phone number
(831) 625-2252
Website
http://www.bajacantina.com/
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Dress code
Casual Dress
Executive chef
Mauro Cuevas
Catering
We offer a full range of catering options from simple deliveries to buffets. Have one of our uniformed chefs come to your location and prepare our famous tacos and quesadillas on our custom built comal. We cater groups as small as 10 guests, or groups upward of 600 guests.

Location
7166 Carmel Valley Rd., Carmel Valley, CA 93923
Neighborhood
Carmel Valley
Cross street
Valley Greens Drive
Parking details
We have both a private lot and plenty of street parking as well.
Public transit
Monterey-Salinas Transit stops at Valley Hills Center.
Entertainment
Live music Thursday through Saturday nights, and Sunday afternoons (during summer months). We have a classic car gathering every Thursday night (also during summer months). All the best NFL matchups are shown on our multiple big screen televisions.
Additional
Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Corkage Fee, Dancing, Entertainment, Full Bar, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Late Night, Outdoor Smoking Area, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 607 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.5

4.5 based on recent ratings

4.3Food
4.5Service
4.5Ambience
4.3Value

Noise • Moderate

Loved For

California Central Coast
Kid-friendly
California Central Coast
Hot spot
California Central Coast
Great for outdoor dining
California Central Coast
Good for special occasions
Monterey / Carmel
Kid-friendly
Monterey / Carmel
Good for groups
Monterey / Carmel
Healthy
Monterey / Carmel
Hot spot
Monterey / Carmel
Great for outdoor dining
Monterey / Carmel
Good for special occasions

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews

Baja Cantina in Carmel delights with "great quality food" and "excellent service" in a vibrant atmosphere. Known for "the best margaritas" and flavorful fajitas, it offers an inviting patio and friendly staff. Regulars appreciate the fresh salsa and perfectly seasoned chips. A must-visit for a fun dining experience!

607 Reviews

M
Miguel
Central Coast
1 review
5.0
1 review
Dined 2 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 1
3. Service 1
4. Ambience 4
I ordered the skillet scampi shrimp and it said on the menu that it was sizzling and they brought me a skillet liquidy with shrimp look like soup got so disappointed. The rice of beans was terrible like they just split it on there. I would not recommend to go back there again. I would rather go to cilantro’s in Watsonville California for the best Mexican authentic restaurant with great food.
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G
Gail
VIP
Cincinnati
13 reviews
2.0
13 reviews
Dined on February 3, 2025
1. Overall 2
2. Food 1
3. Service 1
4. Ambience 3
We had chicken enchiladas, food was average at best. There was a sweet flavor that was unexplainable, and the chips/salsa were very strange. Overall, bad experience
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R
Richard
VIP
Chicago
71 reviews
4.0
71 reviews
Dined on January 31, 2025
1. Overall 4
2. Food 4
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 4
Very solid Mexican restaurant. Dishes are well-prepared and range across the standard fare expected at Mexican restaurants. The cocktails are exemplary. I particularly enjoyed the mezcal margarita. The only thing lacking that would bring this to excellent are dishes with a true gourmet flare, e.g., huitlacoche tamales or enchiladas, whole fish with a tropical salsa, chicken mole. Nonetheless, very good!
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A
Ali
San Francisco
7 reviews
1.0
7 reviews
Dined on January 27, 2025
1. Overall 1
2. Food 1
3. Service 1
4. Ambience 1
My husband’s credit card information was fraudulently exploited by the restaurant. Unacceptable and fraudulent.
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J
Jackie
Los Angeles
5 reviews
5.0
5 reviews
Dined on January 3, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Great quality food, excellent service. Best Mexican restaurant!
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C
Carole
San Francisco
6 reviews
5.0
6 reviews
Dined on January 1, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Kicking off the New Year enjoying a spicy lunch, the BEST margaritas sitting in the corner booth next to the fireplace. As regulars we were met with one of our favorite servers that remembered we love their salsa bring us extra along with warm seasoned tortilla chips as we waited for our chicken/beef fajitas that arrived on a sizzling platter with lots of onions, peppers, tomatoes and a slightly charred jalapeño..yummo. Cheers to 2025!!
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K
Karen
VIP
San Francisco
54 reviews
5.0
54 reviews
Dined on December 28, 2024
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Very fun am ambiance, especially tastefully decorated for the holidays. Delicious margaritas and yummy huevos rancheros. Can’t wait to go back!
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W
Wendy
Central Coast
1 review
5.0
1 review
Dined on December 27, 2024
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
We really enjoy quality of food and pleasant wait staff! Thank you!☺️
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T
Teri
Central Coast
5 reviews
5.0
5 reviews
Dined on December 21, 2024
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Baja Cantina is the best Mexican restaurant in the area! If the weather is fine, we love sitting outside in the fresh air. We usually order a Cadillac margaritas, so good! The chips are real—-not the strange cardboard ones that many other restaurants serve. A nice spice mix on them and super crunch make them irresistible! The salsa is spicy and not too hot. All the food we’ve tried has been delicious! We’ve always found the wait staff to be friendly and they do hustle your food out quickly. I’d recommend getting a reservation, especially on Saturday afternoon, where the large patio can be packed!
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j
josephine
Central Coast
28 reviews
4.0
28 reviews
Dined on December 8, 2024
1. Overall 4
2. Food 4
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Food was not as hot as it should have been. Flavor was good.
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FAQs

Baja Cantina - Carmel is rated 4.5 stars by 607 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people

Feb 17, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 10 times today

7166 Carmel Valley Rd., Carmel Valley, CA 93923

Dining areas

Additional information

Cross street
Valley Greens Drive
Neighborhood
Carmel Valley
Hours of operation
Weekend Brunch: 11:00am - 2:00pm; Lunch: Monday - Friday: 11:30am - 4:00pm, Saturday - Sunday: 11:00am - 4:00pm; Dinner: Nightly: 4:00pm - 9:00pm
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
Mexican / Southwestern, Contemporary Mexican
Dining style
Casual Dining
Dress code
Casual Dress
Parking details
We have both a private lot and plenty of street parking as well.
Public transit
Monterey-Salinas Transit stops at Valley Hills Center.
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Executive chef
Mauro Cuevas
Entertainment
Live music Thursday through Saturday nights, and Sunday afternoons (during summer months). We have a classic car gathering every Thursday night (also during summer months). All the best NFL matchups are shown on our multiple big screen televisions.
Additional
Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Corkage Fee, Dancing, Entertainment, Full Bar, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Late Night, Outdoor Smoking Area, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Website
http://www.bajacantina.com/
Phone number
(831) 625-2252
Catering
We offer a full range of catering options from simple deliveries to buffets. Have one of our uniformed chefs come to your location and prepare our famous tacos and quesadillas on our custom built comal. We cater groups as small as 10 guests, or groups upward of 600 guests.

Baja Cantina - Carmel

Make a reservation

Dining areas

Additional information

Menu

What 607 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Loved For

Review summary

FAQs

How is Baja Cantina - Carmel restaurant rated?

Is Baja Cantina - Carmel currently accepting reservations?

Make a reservation

Dining areas

Additional information