La Reina Markets

They have the best bolios in town. Always made fresh and huge lines in mornings due to everyone wanting one.

Love La Reina, this market has the best mocha drink for the cold. Not too sweet, and if your patient enough to wait for it to cool to warmer temperatures, the drink tastes like your grandmothers old recipes. They also have a bakery attached the back that you can walk through from the front of the market, as well as a makeshift to go food area that sells everything from tamales to beans and rice combos to all different types of meats. It’s really good. They also have a sign that says they’re EBT friendly, for anyone wondering. I’ve come here many times and they have a security guard that’s there pretty much all the time who is really friendly as well as all the workers greeting you with a smile. I always leave super happy from this store because the food and drinks are great and the service makes my day.

Carnitas, pan dulce, and chicken are really good. I come here to get catering trays for all my coworkers. Customer service is really good and everybody is friendly and attentive. Conchas are very soft specially when freshly baked. Carnitas and not to soggy or dry and the chicken as well.

I’ve been living across from La Reina for about 12 years now and I can say that their freshness has always been the best. They have the freshest meats, breads, and hot foods. It’s a little market but it carry’s almost everything in it. Friendly staff and good customer service, everybody knows my family and I already. Ohhh and around the holidays it gets hella packed for that famous masa that they do. Yes the parking lot gets a little hectic but hey i’m glad I can just walk it there.

Cool little tienda. Has a panaderia connected to it, a carniceria to buy meats to cook yourself, a little café where they make tortas and stuff, and a mini grocery store with vegetables and stuff. They also make their own tortillas there. Prices were decent. But holy crap the parking lot is a death trap!

Excellent prices. A Mexican grocery store hidden in a dingy strip mall. Bakery, butcher, convenience store and produce all in one. Parking can be a problem if it’s really busy. Beware though. In the bakery you use a tray and tongs to pick out the bread of your choice. The tongs and trays are simply placed back to be used again WITHOUT being washed or even wiped off.

Best Mexican bread hands down. If you want soft warm bread this is the spot. Parking here is always a disaster with really small spaces and constant traffic but totally worth the bread.

Great local market. Whenever I’m in the area, I stop by here and buy their chips and salsa. Everything is always fresh and well stocked. Their fresh chicharron is so so good (yet so bad for you).

They have good bread. But this place is super dirty and ghetto. Honestly I wonder about their sanitation. They lose one star for that and another for how rude their employees are.

Each year for 40 years I’ve made tamales. Between 600 to over 1,000. Even tho I’m of German/​Irish descent, I married a Mexican who’s mother taught me how to make the world’s BEST tamales. Naturally the masa is important. We used to buy from Tlaquepaque until they went away, then Rubacalva’s in Placentia up until this year. Apparently they changed hands and when my husband went to get our traditional 85 pounds of masa at 7 am, they had a sign on the door stating they didnt open until 8:30… not going to work for us! so he googled and found La Reina, went there and bought the masa — 65 pounds to start and then returned for another 20 pounds… we are hooked! La Reina runs their store professionally, it’s clean, the staff is very helpful, and most important the masa was the best we have ever had! La Reina is now our go to masa store! thank you!
Julie Cruz
Yorba Linda

Nice friendly staff. Very helpful at the meat counter. I was very satisfied with the carne asada and marinated chicken we purchased. Some other markets tenderize it so much it is pulverized and just falls apart. I will be going back here for sure as my go to spot.

I had leftover pork roast from my recent homemade Hawaiian kalua pork adventure. Great meal it was indeed. But so much left over, including massive amounts of fresh banana leaves!
So then Mr. B got the brilliant idea to «try» making tamales… wrapped in banana leaf. Please don’t laugh too hard when I tell you, neither of us has ever made one. It is not standard food fare for our Fil-​Am and Heinz 57 household, other than the eating part. But it sounded like a good idea to me, so I took the bait… and I watched U-​Tube to find out «how abuelita would do it?»
So what does all this have to do with La Reina? I knew I was not going to go whole hog (pun intended) by making the masa too. With this in mind, we stopped at my favorite market, Puerto Madera in Santa Ana, but they do not sell masa preparada. They suggested coming here, to La Reina, for the «best masa (and tortilla dough) ever». So good, says he, that reportedly the lines wrap around the building around Xmas time. Guess I am not the only one who cuts corners.
This turns out to be a small store in a corner strip mall, with a panaderia in a back room. Big hot ovens in an industrial kitchen where they prepare all their bakery and deli items, in-​your-​face visible. And this is where you will also find the masa purchased by weight. I bought a paltry 3 lbs. White girl portions. But boy oh boy, did they save me lots of work. The masa, first impression, was moist and malleable. A good sign. Assemblage (is that a word?) started the next day.
Now for the update: I ended up making 13 tamales before I ran out of masa. And the critique of the finished product, steamed and all? Wonderful masa! (And it turns out, a wonderful filling of smoked, juicy pork chunks, hard boiled egg, green olive, a spoonful of a spicy homemade tomato-​y sauce, and a couple sprigs of cilantro). This was one terrific first-​time experience. And I now know I can do it, happily, with their beautiful masa. Almost easy — peasy. And I’ve got more filling!!!
Next time, their Orange location is much closer for me. This will definitely be a long term, enthusiastic relationship. Just bragging, but you may call me ‘Abuelita’.

Good prices and the best Mexican breads and masa for tamales in OC

In my search for the the best overall local Carniceria I decided to check out La Reina based upon Carolyn W.‘s review. She has some pros and cons about the place, but what she loved was the part I was looking for — the Carne Asada.
Currently this is the leader in this quest for Mexican prepared meat products. Here’s the breakdown–
Carne Asada — number 1 ranking — nice flavor and tender!
Chicken — number 2 in flavor, but very close — I like that it is cut up — my number one flavor wise is a breast that is not cut up (Buy Low/​El Metate) — but I entertain big — and this is less work — also a mix of light and dark meat — flavor is so close that La Reina’s is number 1 overall.
Pork — not much fat, good flavor — not as spicy as Ramona’s — but my wife likes it that way — so it was number 1 for her — good for me also — I can always add heat!
The meat is what I was looking for — I don’t care about the groceries, baked goods and deli here — I have a «go to» place for those items.
La Reina makes its own tortillas — I got a bag of mini corn — they were still warm — but we did not like them at all — Buy Low — (until recently «El Metate») makes them fresh — and they wayyyyy better — in addition they have more variety — worth the short drive.
(they also have better fresh cilantro, cheeses, sauces — everything else really)
Parking was a little tight — and it was on a weekday afternoon — I hope that it won’t be a problem at other times (for me — or you!). I can see why Carolyn likes the Orange store a little better — since I’m just getting my items — this place is closer, and works perfectly.
Service was good — I was greeted upon entrance — and thanked as I left by the security guard guy, and by one of the employees. The butcher and cashier were both friendly and helpful.
It’s also very close to Buy Low, Stater Bro’s and not far from my house. I can quickly hit all 3 three places to put together a great street taco bar for a crowd!

Oh La Reina, how I love you. Let me count the ways:
Very good carne asada.
Lovely rice with peas, carrots and lima beans
BEER
hot sauces galore
But sweetheart, we need to work on our relationship. I missed a few things:
refried beans in the hot case
small cans of refried beans, i don’t need a two pound can
fresh veggies, i had trouble finding fresh cilantro and squash
avocado salsa like at the La Reina in Orange
I know I need to do some work and try several things:
the fresh juices and drinks, I saw horchata
the pastries, my hands were full of meat and beer
I like the set up of the store in Orange more. The Orange store is smaller and it’s easier to get through everything since the meat counter and hot counter are separate. Plus the Orange store has the pastries in the main area. Here the pastries are in a back room. I like the salsas at the Orange store more. But the guacamole here was very good.
I’ll probably be back. It’s close to work and it is cheap and affordable.

This is a small market with a bakery next door which looks like liqour store. It basically is but with a butcher shop in it. They carry items like milk, canned goods, chips, tortillas and incidentals. The service is cool, no complaints. They also have the following:
Carnitas — crunchy yet soft, crispy outside, juicy inside and all that salty flavor or well cooked pork.
Chicharon or crackling — it is an inch thick of rind which is half beefy and half crunch pork fat.
Chicarones — these large pieces of pork rind you can stuff in a sandwich or eat alone with lemon, chili and some veggies.
Bolio bread made fresh across the way, I love these.
Pan Dulce — Sweet bread as depicted in the pics other Unilocalers attached.
Anyone hungry?

When my family’s down in Anaheim each year for my family reunion, we stop by La Reina in the morning before the big event. Two reasons. First, it’s just a minute or two from my grandma’s. Second, the food. Delicious pan dulce, artery-​clogging (yet oh-​so-​yummy!) chicharrones, and fresh, flavorful meats.
Oh, I just realized the third reason, too! I’ve never uploaded a picture of any restaurant or store to Unilocal,but I’m going to have to now. There’s no way to describe the massive amount of pan dulce you can buy for $ 5.35. My mom filled a large tray with various pastries, and I had to tell her, «Uh, I think you’re getting way too many.» Once we were rung up, I had to say, «SHIT, GET MORE PASTRIES!» Your dollar definitely goes pretty far at La Reina. Also, we didn’t pay much for all the chicharrones we bought for the reunion (the thin and crispy kind and the thick, juicy kind that I like). I don’t know if I can be that proud over all that pork skin, though… well, whatever, it was good!
If you live in the area, you definitely have to check out La Reina. It may not be in the best plaza, but the store itself has been fixed up. Great to see this little store prospering. Check it out!

Their pan Dulce is very very good! Their bolillos are very good and always fresh too! Everything here is good! The only thing I don’t like is that the parking lot is usually full but I can deal with it as long as I get some pan Dulce!!!

This mexican market is down the street from my house, its a small parking lot and its full of mexicans — in their SUV’s. But its worth the struggle to get their Pan Dulce. Mexican Sweet Bread that is baked fresh onsite — they always have ripe avacados and carry OG mexican products. They also have Fresh Cheese, and meat market that sells Chicharon (pork rinds) I know sounds gross to some but they actually taste good.