Jessy’s Taqueria

I’m from California, so I’ve had some amazing Mexican food, but this is hands down THE BEST mexican restaraunt in Hampton Roads. They’re salsa is amazing, everything is fresh, it’s just downright delicious. I’ve never had anything I didn’t like here. A staple!

Went in during lunch one day. Not overly crowded yet it too a while to get our food. Chips and salsa were on point (fresh). I had a classic margarita on the rocks. Once our food was received it was cold. Pretty disappointing. We had chicken fajita lunch, cheese quesadilla, and jalapeño rellano. Did not each much do to the food being cold. They credited one of the meals which I appreciated. We will be back. Ives to to love this place. Just need hot food!

The food just speaks volumes on the authenticity of how its prepared and makes any real Mexican feel like you in Mexico in a down town taqueria whit family and friends… Bravo!!!

I moved here from San Diego. This is the first legit Mexican joint I’ve been to since moving here 5 months ago… And I’ve been searching hard. Price was a little higher than what I’m used to paying, buy the taste and quality made me feel like I was back home. They do charge for chips and salsa… Weird.

I moved from FL to CA a few years ago and was ruined for Mexican food. Jessy’s is the ONLY Mexican restaurant that matches the delicious traditional food I loved while in the southwest. I am in love!!! They have a California favorite the Carne Asada burro with French fries and an amazing Mexican salad. Do yourself a favor, go tonight and stuff yourself with deliciousness.

Free chips and Salsa, I ordered enchiladas and it was a TON of food. Really good & filling, authentic Mexican food for around $ 12.

This place is pretty good. The food portions are great. And the customer service here is good too. Only reason for the four stars is because of the atmosphere. It seems a little dim and dark. You feel almost drained. If you looking for a place to stop for lunch, this is it.

This is definitely different than other Mexican restaurants we’ve been to. We love Mexican food and our grandson was excited to take us to Jessy’s.
We were all pleased with our food which ranged from quesadillas to different enchiladas. The food was very good and I’m assuming very authentic. Of course, we all know Mexican food is like American food in that every place you eat it’s a little different even though it may be authentic.
The only complaint we had was with the temperature of some of the items. We ordered queso and bean as extra dips to go along with the chips. They were both just lukewarm. They should have been hot. Also, our enchiladas could have been a little warmer when served.
Overall though, the food was good and so was the service.

Great food for great prices!
The tacos were great! I had the steak tacos with beans and rice. I also had to get myself some horchata to bring it all together! The food is great and really hits the spot. The only thing I wish was different would be the tortillas. I’m used to eating authentic tacos with freshly made tortillas, not the store bought ones. Freshly made tortillas make a huge difference. That is my only remark otherwise the tacos were fairly delicious.

Good Mexican place here. There tacos are on point. However, the red sauce was a little spicer than expected. The green sauce wasn’t too bad either. I had the «polytaco» (carne asada and chorizo) the meat not the best I’ve had but still good. The chorizo was really good. Maybe one of the best I’ve had. Prices weren’t what I felt it should have been for the quality but it’s alright with me. There’s not really a lot of good Mexican food in Virginia so it’s a pretty good spot.

TACOLICIOUS!
It takes time for your food to come if the place is full but worth the wait!
Come and get your taco fix! We Just had a tables worth of arrachera (grilled steak), a carnitas (slow cooked pork), lengua (braised tongue in garlic and onions tben dices and pan fried) and al pastor (show arma spot grilled meat)… Fresh salsa and pico de gallo and an ok fresh guacamole…
Other tables were enjoying huge platters of grilled meat, tortas (sándwiches)…
So happy to see Micheladas (marinated shrimp cocltail in a glass) on the extensive (somewhat overwhelming menu of choices) menu as well as seafood Soup, lamb Soup … The potential of this place inspiring for those looking for something a tad more authentic!
$ 2 surcharge for chips and salsa and absolutely understandable.
Saturday at 2:30pm was like family day. It was busy and happy feeling. The hostess who seated us has a short wait list and was pleasant and welcoming. The server was friendly.
The only criticism is how they slow it is for them to turn a table which means if there’s no one bussing a table then the wait is longer to get seated.
We will be back! Thanks and best of luck

*EDIT*
I’m so thankful the owner of this business reached out to fix the meal we ordered! I’m impressed, maybe our last visit was just a fluke everyone has a bad day here and there but I so appreciate them reaching out to address it!
We eat at Jessy’s pretty frequently and usually once a week we are ordering Carne Asada fries but after our last three orders I really hope they step up their service. I’m thinking we will be taking a break from our favorite taqueria for a while.
Several times now I have asked for extra red chile on the side that comes with the meal and did not receive it. Which was really not a big deal but that red chile is so good!
Tonight we ordered Carne Asada fries and there was no queso on the fries? How does that even happen? We ordered 3 orders of it for our family and they were all missing the queso, which is what makes them so delicious in the first place. The fries were just dry and tasteless without the queso. Not really worth it when you’re expecting something delicious and get something dry in its place.
We’ve also noticed the people on the phone are rude when taking an order and at the counter while picking up our food. Being rude to regular customers is not a great way to maintain them, maybe hire someone who is more friendly for those jobs?
I’m super disappointed because this was the closest I ever found to my Abueltias cooking and pastel de tres leches is something I’m always craving so a quick trip to Jessy’s always sounded good.
The food is great but the friendliness of the people behind the counters needs some work.

Best Taqueria in the Hampton Roads!
Cancel that plane ticket to Mexico and head over to Jessy’s. This place is a one stop shop. When you walk in, to your left you have a store that is attached to the restaurant. Inside the store they have freshly baked Pan Dulche and all the other Mexican baked goods. They also sell Carne Asada and other meats by the pound. They have all those really good Mexican candies (Lucas, Pulparindo etc) They even have those Nacho Libre wrestling masks!
Onto the Restaurant. They have indoor and outdoor seating. The place isn’t huge but I’ve never waited more than 30 minutes for a table.
I kept it simple and ordered two carne Asada tacos, 2 carnitas tacos and a chicken tamale. The tacos are comparable to the Tijuana street tacos. My only two cents is that they are very basic with the ingredients. It’s just a corn tortilla, your choice of meat, onions, cilantro. Still very delicious though!
One more thing, CHEAP BEER! All day, everyday. They have a 12oz, 32oz and 43oz ranging from $ 2.50 for the 12oz to $ 7 for the 43oz. Can’t beat that!
ENJOY!

My first time here was awesome!
I went with three friends around 5:00PM on a Friday evening, and we were seated immediately. It’s not big, but there’s extra seating outside. The menu was huge~
For $ 14 split between my friend and I, we ordered the Choristeak (which also comes with rice and beans, but we subbed the beans out for rice)! It was delicious, and the large serving was impressive. We still had leftovers. The salsa was delicious, pretty much lathered it all over my food. We tried a caramel tres leches for dessert, and it was a huge piece for $ 3.50! It was good, but the top layer was a tad too dry. The horchata was free with the Unilocal check in, so we decided to try it. It tastes like the milk after a bowl of cinnamon toast crunch. It was good, but I just wasn’t feeling it that night.
We also ventured to their grocery store connected, and it was pretty cool! I’d definitely return to this gem and try other things off the menu~

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO delicious!!!
After some pondering before typing my review, I have to note that I give this place 4.4 stars.
I can honestly say that this is one of the best Mexican restaurants that I have been to in this area. Everything was so fresh! Like the slice of avocado that was on my taco, it was so ripe and green like it was grown in a garden out back. Well, maybe not out back, since this IS Ocean View! I’m just saying though. Welp, on to my review!
A few of my coworkers and I came for lunch around 11:20 on Friday. This restaurant has a store that has yummy treats attached to it; it smelled so divine in there! I was sniffing like a bloodhound. Once you walk through the store a little bit, you enter the restaurant. Surprisingly, there was no wait and we were seated immediately at a table.
Now, this ain’t where you go for ambiance and as such I’ll just say that it was ‘cute’. When I say cute I don’t mean newborn baby cute either. Our server was upon us to take drink orders after we had barely gotten into our seats good. Overall, the service was fast and friendly. I did check in on Unilocal and I got the free hortchata and it was really tasty.
We got chips and guacamole and BOY that was some good guacamole! That guacamole had to have been prepared like 3 seconds before it hit our table. The chips were hot and fresh. Could have stood just a tab bit more salt, but that could be just me. I got the lunch special of two tacos — the names escape me at the moment. Poly something was one of them. I do know that they were both delicious. On one I got steak and the steak was so tender and seasoned perfectly. It came with cilantro and cheese on a corn tortilla. On my other taco I got chicken, which was a smidge on the dry side, however this was balanced out with the tomatoes, sour cream and fresh avocado slice. Rice and beans were good too. My plate was CLEAN when I was done. I will most definitely be back soon, if not tomorrow as I’m told there is a Ghent location and that is closer to me on the weekend.
A word to the wise, if you are coming during lunch hours, I would try to come early because when we left at 12:40 there was a line was almost into the store part of the restaurant. Great meal.

Get the cantalope juice and add a shot of rum… Dangerously good!
The most «authentic» mexican restaurant around. They have corn, homemade corn and flour tortillas!
I got a dish that had chicken and chorizo with onions. I love this place and the guacamole is homemade and so freaking good!
If you want real authentic then come here!
The outdoor patio is really cool and a nice change to the drab inside.
They also have a really cool store inside that you can get authentic mexican eats and drinks to take home with you.

Everyone keeps saying how ‘authentic’ this place is. I’ve never been to Mexico, but I did live in San Diego for a while. So no, this place is not Taco Bell. Of that is what you’re expecting go elsewhere. However, it is comparable with some of the food I did have just north of the border. So 4 stars for food quality and taste. Portions are large too.
The thing that really got me though and that makes this place a 2 star rating is the restaurant itself. It is basically a dumpster. The amount of flies in the restaurant were more than people eating. I was doing karate while I was eating trying to keep my meal for myself. Hands down the most disgusting place I’ve ever eaten. Dead flies on the tables too.
Food — good
Atmosphere — garbage can
I won’t be eating here again.

What can I say! This place has been bookmarked since I moved to Norfolk in May! Finally went as it was close to my dog sitters home! Carne Asada was wonderful! I got the burrito supreme and it was so much food! Hubby got the fish, and carne Asada tacos as well as a California burrito and he was super happy we could hardly finish our plates. Chips and salsa to start were terrific (unlimited Too) for $ 2.00! I loved the Horchatas and they have excellent beer specials! 32 oz yes please!
We’ll be back to visit for the excellent food, service and they allow dogs in their patio! score!

My sister would go on and on and on about how her boyfriend LOVED Jessy’s. I brushed it off for the longest time… until I returned from Mexico and decided to give it a try. When I was in Mexico, there was a taco stand-​ish place that I visited several times on my trip and I just fell in love with it. The food here brought me back to that place. I love the asada tacos. They are simple, tasty, and authentic.
I’ve visited Jessy’s several times (even 3 times in a 2 week period, which is kinda unheard of for me), and every time I’ve been, the place has been packed. I’ve already recruited 2 of my co-​workers as big-​time Jessy fans. It’s definitely a hidden gem and word of mouth kind of place… the curb appeal is totally ‘meh’, but once you try it, you’ll see why people love the place!

By far, THE BEST DANG TACOS I’ve ever had. Jessy’s Taqueria is quite a drive for me, but I happened to be in the area, so I went on my quest to try these tacos everyone’s been raving about.
It’s tucked in a run-​down shopping center, but takes up a good chunk of it. One space is their grocery store, and the other space is the restaurant. Enter through the store to get to the restaurant! Since it was my first time here, I walked back and forth between two doors, since I couldn’t figure out which one was the entrance, lol.
I came in around 3:30 pm, so their lunch specials were long gone (lunch specials run from 11 – 2). I opted for two tacos to-​go: beef cheek and carnitas. I waited about 10 minutes for my tacos, and in that time, I browsed around their grocery store. They have a whole display of baked goods and refrigerated desserts, such as flan and tres leches cake.
Upon receiving my tacos, I took a bite out of the beef cheek one first and proceeded to scarf it down bite after bite. The beef cheek meat was bursting with flavor and was so tender. I poured the spicy green sauce on my taco to make it a little spicier, which was a nice touch. I saved the carnitas taco until I got to my next destination. I thought the beef cheek would be better based on the reviews on here, but to my surprise, the carnitas taco was just as good, if not better. The carnitas was so juicy and chunky. I swear, my taco was 90% meat. Definitely did not make any bad choices on my first visit!
This visit is just the first out of many more to come. I have found taco heaven!