Las Delicias, Ventura

Las Delicias

2611 E. Thompson

Ventura CA 93003

Like I usually do when I write these things, I check to see if the food place has a website. I didn't find one for the Ventura Las Delicias, but I did find one for the Santa Clarita location. I found the last sentence on the home page to the most telling-Each Las Delicias location is privately owned and operated. Prices and quality may vary depending on location.

The Ventura Las Delicias smells a little bit funny. Not "omigod run" funny, but funny. It conjures up Mexican restaurants from my past, but places where the food wasn't necessarily that good.

Since I was in the door, I figured that I'd give it a try in spite of the smell. Walking to the counter, things looked reasonably clean, which is always a good start, as did the rest of the restaurant. I actually really liked the look of the place. Orange walls with some faux exposed brick, a large Aztec calandar, and some paintings of romanticized Aztec warriors. On the walkway to the bathroom, there's a bunch of hand painted tiles on the floor that appear to be done by children, but I can't say that for sure.

You order at a counter, and it is easy to see the food being prepared. My daughter ordered the taco salad, while I had a taco and a pupusa plate. We were handed a paper tray of chips, and we walked over to a table to wait for our food. 

Interestingly, the tables had large pictures of various location locals. I walked over to the salsa bar and picked out four to eat with the chips. Both my daughter and I thought it was strange that when our second tray of chips came out, they were different than the first-tastier too. I don't know why a place would have two types of chips.

The food came out, and it was just okay. I thought my daughter's salad was a bit small, but she said it was fine. My taco and pupusa were certainly edible, but not outstanding. There are good Mexican restaurants nearby, all with a similar price points, so I don't know how long an okay Mexican place will last.