Cal Mex Cantina

Had a great time at Cal Mex! The view of Redondo Beach is absolutely gorgeous—perfect spot to relax and enjoy some good food. Our server, Annette, was amazing—super friendly, attentive, and made us feel right at home. And shoutout to Maria, the manager, who came by to check in and was so warm and engaging. You can tell they care about the experience here. Definitely coming back!

Great service, a great management team. The manager Sandra was very attentive to my family's needs. We had a small kid and was fussy, Sandra and her staff were caring amd made our date pleasant. The view was awesome, the food was amazing. A huge thanks to Sandra and staff. Would be coming here often.

Sat at the bar with my best friend and had amazing service by Sharon! Our first time here, the happy hour appetizers and drinks were amazing! We’ll def be back👍🏽

Wow, what a great addition to Redondo Beach, the views can't be beat and the food was all fantastic, full of flavor! Haylie was our server and we couldn't have asked for a better experience! We will be back!!!

Another fabulous restaurant at the Redondo Pier! Whether you and your friends are craving a pitcher of margaritas for happy hour or a sunset view at dinner, this cantina had all the vibes and flavors. Highly recommend eating on the patio with stunning views of the pier and beach.

We had the absolute pleasure of being served by Shannon at CalMex, and I can't recommend her enough! Shannon's warm and welcoming demeanor made me feel right at home when I walked in. She has a natural talent for making every customer feel like they are her top priority, which enhances the entire dining experience. Shannon is incredibly knowledgeable about the menu and guided me to the perfect choices based on my preferences. Her recommendations were spot on, and she genuinely cared about ensuring I enjoyed my meal. What truly stood out was her attention to detail--she anticipated my needs before I even had to ask, ensuring that everything was perfect from start to finish. Not only is Shannon professional and attentive, but she also has a great personality that adds to the overall vibe of the place. She's the kind of server who can elevate a good meal to a great experience. If you're dining at CalMex, I highly recommend asking for Shannon. She will make your visit memorable! Thank you, Shannon, for the exceptional service--we will be back!

Amy was awesome! Such a friendly and attentive waitress. The brunch burrito was great and the bucket of rainbow mimosas were a smoking deal. Highly recommend this place for breakfast or brunch. The views and comfortable seating were fantastic too. Check it out!

I love the new change to this restaurant! The food was delicious, the drinks were fun, and the atmosphere is amazing. Natalie made this experience even better! Will definitely come back! Also try the flautas!

My new favorite spot to grab some margarita pitchers some of my favorite chicken wings around. In doors or outdoors you’ll have an amazing view. The vibe after sunset is great with live music.

We had a great time here! Food was delicious, we got the guacamole, Cadillac Margaritas Wednesday special, vampiro tacos. The real winner was the flautas!! (spelling? lol)

The highlight of this place was definitely the server simon and the chips. He was so attentive and anticipated all my needs. The restaurant was very nice. Nice vibe.

Today we ate at the cal mex cantina restaurant and it was delicious! We sat in the outside area and enjoyed the beautiful view of the beach. Food and Service are amazing!:)

Ordered the Birria Fries and Watermelon Margaritas - 10/10 for a girls trip on the boardwalk- our server Sharon was AMAZING!

The food is tasty and the drinks are so good! Props to the bartender and Maria for making this experience great

Amazing service, got seated instantly, the server, Annete, was great. She answered any questions we had and checked up on us constantly. We had a great view of redondo beach. Will definitely come here again.

Great food! Loved my sliders. Beautiful location. The staff were amazing. We were allowed to have our dog.

An incredible experience. The food was delicious, and each dish had a special touch. The staff was very attentive, and the atmosphere was super pleasant. Highly recommended.!!🫶🏻💕

Everything here is so good. Chili Relleno burrito was delicious. Annette gave great service. Thank you Cal Mex. We will be back!

I had an absolutely incredible experience at Cal Mex Cantina, and it was made even more unforgettable thanks to Carlos and Lily! From the moment we walked in, Carlos welcomed us with warmth and professionalism. He was not only attentive but also had fantastic recommendations that made our dining experience truly special. You can tell he genuinely cares about every guest's experience, and it shows in the way he goes above and beyond. And Lily—what a gem! Her vibrant energy and infectious smile lit up the whole place. She made sure our drinks were perfect, checked in just the right amount, and made us feel like we were longtime friends. Her knowledge of the cocktail menu is top-notch (trust her suggestions!). The food? Absolutely phenomenal. Flavor-packed, beautifully presented, and served in a cozy yet classy atmosphere with ocean views that can’t be beat. But honestly, it was the service that stole the show. Carlos and Lily are true standouts and make Cal Mex Cantina a must-visit. Can't wait to come back soon! 🌮🍹

Visited with a group of co workers, grabbed some food and appetizers. The staff was very welcoming, the food amazing!! The pork belly tacos and the governador tacos are really good. I recommend trying the drunken octopus. Another good choice (shareable) are the cal mex fries with birria. Overall a great experience with great views. Maria the manager was very nice and helpful. We will definitely go back!!

I went this weekend with my family, the tacos were so good! Thalia our server recommended the vampire taco it was delicious as well as the Cadillac marg. The manager Carolina checked on our table and was super friendly we will be back again!

The host Annette started the experience excellent and even went over the menu before we were sat. Our server, named Jennifer was extremely nice and professional. She said she was new but we couldn't tell. The tacos were amazing, we had the pork belly, and the Mrs. also had the flautas. The drinks were great and came at a decent time despite being semi busy. Overall, great experience and not too pricy, especially for the pier. We will definitely be returning and be abandoning El Torito.

New Mexican on the Pier. They have a modern style menu and extensive cocktail list everything we had we delicious but a bit pricey. Located at the Redondo Beach Pier, there is plenty of nearby parking. Great views and well designed interior.

+3

Stopped in for happy hour, and this was my first visit here. Nice ambiance and decor, feels welcoming. Also had good views of the beach. The HH specials were decent with a limited selection. Had the tinga flautas, and they were quite good. The house margarita was average.

+1

So glad to see someone revive this location....and the Cal Mex Cantina team has done a great job. Love the layout, solid menu and the staff were all great (shout out to our server Stephen - you guys need to keep him!) Great views of the water. The only downfall is that it is a little too loud inside and makes it tough to converse with your table mates. But please give this place a try. We will be back often.

By far the best tacos we've had! Interesting ingredients that just worked (pomegranate seeds, etc.) $11-$13 for one taco though 🌮... You must be partly paying for the atmosphere. The burrito was bigger than the tacos. I'd recommend you order a burrito 🌯 if you're hungry. For the owner: I'd say maybe offer an option to "make it a meal" for an upcharge. That's the only thing that was lacking - it was tapas more than a meal. $100 for our meal and 4 out of 5 people left wondering if we should grab a bite to eat before heading back to the hotel. Still delicious! No doubt about that.

+2

The cantina successfully blends authentic Mexican flavors with contemporary elements, creating a new twist on mexican dishes. The restaurant's modern aesthetic is a major highlight, with clean lines, stylish decor, and a focus on creating a comfortable and inviting space with ocean views. I ordered the birria grilled cheese, prickly pear magarita and of couse avocado dip. The food was good. The amount of food is smaller portion compared to your typical mexican restaurant but you are paying for quality over quanity. Service was basic, nothing stood out but overall it was a good experience.

+4

Great remodel on this place and enjoyed going there with my friends tonight for an early dinner. We sat outside and enjoyed the sunset. I thought the food was very good, although the salsa served with the chips wasn’t that exciting. I had the vegetarian empanadas and thought they were excellent. My cocktail was very good. Our waiter was very attentive, when we first sat down and then halfway through the meal, it seemed like he disappeared Waited a long time just to get water refilled and our plates cleared. I had to actually suggest that he take the plates. Not really sure what happened because he was very nice and attentive when we ordered. So, main suggestion is to have consistent service! Will be back, nice to have this addition on the pier.

The Baseline: For a Mexican restaurant the flavors of the food must make use of the prime Mexican ingredients (corn, beans, chiles, rice, cheese, and meats), preparation of sauces/salsas, the meal portion size must make me feel full, and feeling of the restaurant must give me the feeling of a Mexican restaurant. Food: It was hit or miss on the items we ordered. Drinks: Watermelon Margarita (5 star) came with a chunk of watermelon and it was tasty. The Chain Smoker (4 star) was Smokey but I should have swirled it to get all the smoke infused. Starters: Great complimentary chips and salsa (5 star). The Guacamole was very tasty but there was not a lot of it with the order (4 star). The Corn ribs were really good with a nice BBQ sauce (5 star). Mains: The Chile Relleno Burrito with birria was substantial and filling but I was adding salsa to get the flavor boost (4 star). The Cal Mex Fries with pork belly were “bag fries” but had good toppings (3 star). There is a happy hour Monday to Thursday and I think I will come back to try that. Service: Good service for a week night and we had a very nice waitress. They do a service surcharge that you can ask to have removed and they let you know up front about it. Atmosphere: Well designed restaurant decor and the views are top notch (even at night). You can have Tex-Mex on the beach. Win-win. Bathroom was serviced and clean.

+6

While walking the pier looking for Churros our ears perked up as chipper staff advertised they had amazing margaritas. Needless to say as we walked up the stairs we saw a great dining area with nice seating. The food wasn't bad and the margaritas were reasonably priced. The staff was a little overwhelmed and things moved a bit slow but overall they were nice eager to please and got the job done. Menu has a little bit for everyone.

The restaurant itself is beautiful in its sleek modern style and the atmosphere is upscale yet comfortable and as conducive to relaxing with friends as it is to enjoying a fun date night. And the food.... Ooooooh the food! The chips and salsa were delicious and the spices in the tacos POP, with flavors that are BOLD and BRIGHT! I went with my friends (we call our quest for the perfect taco the Taco Tuesday Tour) and while the wait time on both service and food was uncomfortably long, every employee we interacted with was friendly and helpful. Overall a lovely experience- I fully intend to bring my husband back to try new tacos and drinks with me some time since he loves spicy, flavorful food. Summed up: the food is spectacular (as are the margaritas!), the quality and portions are great, and the staff is lovely, but the wait time is substantial so don't go when you're already starving. The food, while on the pricey side, is both delicious and in substantial enough portions to be worth the price- and nothing was *so* spicy that my inner gringa had to tap out on anything, though everything from the salsa to the tacos were right at the edge of my spice tolerance. Go for a Taco Tuesday to try them out (the tacos are each $6-8 and margaritas start at $8 and stay in the reasonable zone even with add-ons like a shot of melon liquor in the frozen margarita) and give them a chance! They've definitely won me over with such a lovely experience.

Came here for mothers Day celebration. We started well with ordering bottles of champagne for mimosas.

We came on a Monday night. Even though it was quiet, the music was lively and the service was excellent. Our waitress Jenna was polite and friendly. The food was actually better than expected. Fresh, hot and tasty. We had the corn ribs shareable to start. It was excellent. Definitely recommended. Margaritas are very good. Vampiro tacos and chicken burrito were tasty. Better than other Mexicans in the vicinity. We will return

Came on weekend to grab a bite on the pier. It was a similar experience to that of their Vancouver, WA location - nothing too stellar but great enough to have a good time and order American-style Mexican food on the waterfront. Service here was prompt and our server was amicable. Beer I ordered on tap was flat and a few other minor mistakes from staff made it a bit uncomfortable. The manager was handing out some free SWAG blankets to enhance the mood and experience, which I appreciated, but overall the experience was modest. Food was a little underwhelming: cauliflower had good portion but the sauce laid onto it had a strong flavor that diminished the rest of the flavors; vegetarian taco was pretty good but tortilla was heavily saturated in oil. The michelada was probably the highlight of it all as the "paleta"/popsicle contained the mix - neat idea. Plenty of parking around the area and garage. Ambiance was okay, laid back.

+3

Went here today for lunch because the adjacent El Torito only had a buffet for brunch. What a mistake. $16 for a single taco (menu said "tacos" but don't believe it), no joke, not kidding. Was wanting to splurge so we got the guacamole for $13 and it was little more than a dollop on a plate with an assortment of chips and way too much non-avocado vegetation. Their menu had almost nothing on it in the way of non-appetizer food so I got chilaquiles, which were gross and somehow overcooked. The service was sparse and took so long in spite of the restaurant being near-empty. Maybe the alcohol would have been good, but we only got food, which was really gross. Don't go here. Go to El Torito instead right next door, like I should have. On the plus side, the atmosphere is good and the chips and salsa aren't bad. But will never go to this restaurant again.

Omg! Worst customer service EVER! Even the manager is unprofessional as she stood right behind us while we were eating, chatting with a co-worker. She was actually our "server" at first and she walked away without saying a word. No one helped us for 10 minutes! This place has great food and views but again, SERVICE AND MANAGEMENT SUCK!

We have been here previously and enjoyed it but today was not a good experience. We won’t be returning. It took 20 minutes to get our drinks and the food was not great. There was no apology for the wait. The service was very poor.

3.99% surcharge on all checks. It's disclosed ahead of time, but given they printed the menus 10 days ago, are already cheaper than their competitors and aren't a chain trying to keep prices consistent, it's just anti consumer and scammy. Other than that, food was good, service was okay-had to ask for water a few times and wait a while for the check. Good to have place to go instead of El Torrito.

One of the worst eating experiences we have ever had. The place was near dead, which should’ve been our first clue. The waiter was a very kind gentleman, but the manager that came and checked on him was rude. The food tasted like it was cooked by someone who had never heard of Mexican food or spices. Kids menu hamburger was overly charbroiled fake meat. No silverware or napkins, when asked they offered us cocktail napkins. No one ate their meals, except the kids said the waffle fries were ok.

we went around 8 saturday. it was almost empty and they said they were gonna close at 10. we ordered two beers and seven food items. The bill came charging us for three beers. I don't think that was a mistake. Our food total was $143 take away nine dollars for a beer mistakenly charged. would have been around $135. our friend gave him $200 cash and he asked if we wanted change back. we asked him how much our friend gave? he said $150. we said no it was 200. he said you are right. was extra beer and $50 a mistake? i don’t think so. server: Carlos S