Bracero Cocina de Raiz

Came in and was told that my reservation would take an additional ten minutes so my date and I were directed to the bar so we can order drinks and wait for our table. After we finished our drinks, (roughly 15 minutes after arrival) we came back to the hostess and asked if we had our table ready and was told that we could be seated outside or at the bar when we reserved a two person indoors at a table. We decided to go to the Glass Door which was way better and the balcony view won me in also. Less pricy as well. Really hoping my next experience would go better at Bracero.

So I can see this concept working for non-​locals or maybe a handful of them that don’t know real Mexican food.
Menu is super complicated! I’m Mexican & I didn’t know half of the stuff on the menu.
The food, was just okay. Nothing mind blowing. I ordered a trio of tacos.
I really wanted to try the guacamole but it never came out so I just canceled it.
Service was semi-​decent but really slow (and we went they had like 2 tables)
Not sure if I’ll be back.

There is much to like about Bracero, but also we think some improvements could be made.
First, it’s more expensive than $$. Maybe if you only order the $ 5 tacos, it’s «moderate». But nearly all appetizers, small plates & salads are $ 13 and up.
Second, we like the décor. It’s cool, rustic, and warm. A bar is on each floor. Wood dominates. The chairs are wood and not comfortable. That could be a tactic! We think upstairs is the preferred place to sit. It can be loud. The music can become annoying.
Third, the food.
What our group of 5 really liked: verde es vida salad — get the dressing on side and instead top with one of the restaurant’s very good salsas. The dressing that accompanies the salad is mostly oil. The grilled octopus was very good as was the tuna 2 ways, daily fish special, and carnitas taco.
What was «okay»: green machine shrimp ceviche. It was fine, but nothing special. Other tacos. Our group says head south to Taco Gordo for real street tacos. Pork chops were «fine».
What could use some improvement: The scallop crudo was so salty. It was more ceviche style than crudo. So much citrus… a pool. The salt made it nearly inedible. Our group prefers a Caesar with shaved parmesan vs. grated. It was very plain. Dressing was nice, but could have used more punch. The drink pours are small. One guest said he never gets more than 2 margaritas, but since they were minis… The first wine pour too was a bit weak. And these are $ 11+ per drink. Last, the group really wanted to see some veggies. One guest asked, and was told, no veggies. But then we spotted cauliflower as an accompaniment to an entrée and asked for it. We were happily told that we could have it and the up-​charge was very small. Need 2 – 3 veggie sides for sure.
Service. While mostly attentive, it was very slow and not overly helpful. We waited 45 minutes after ordering 3 appetizers to get them. One came in about 30 minutes. Then tacos came, which were ordered later. Then the other 2 appetizers came. We ordered quickly. We ordered appetizers when we ordered drinks, 5 – 10 minutes after sitting down. Yet our dinner took nearly 2.5 hours. It was too long.
All in all, some real winners, but not enough, given the price point, to make us want to return any time soon.

Couldn’t get rezo on a Sat. Night so our party of 4 just took a chance and crossed our fingers. Luckily, we scored a table just outside of the entrance under a heater! Now about the food…
— crispy egg with beef tartare (different, decent wouldn’t order it again)
— Birria beef taco (fantastic flavors)
— beef tongue taco (a tad salty but good flavors)
— albacore two ways (delicious! Could eat this all day)
— crispy pork belly (Sooo good!)
— squash mole (very very good mole flavor and crispy tender squash)
All in all, we all enjoyed our plates and are looking forward to coming back. Hope their menu changes with the season.

We went back for lunch a second time and had a wonderful experience. The weather was gorgeous so we sat on the beautiful upstairs patio – love! A glass of delicious, dry champagne started us off as well as an appetizer called «tuna two ways» which came with lightly fried eggplant, onion crème, a tiny slice of jalapeño and tuna tartar. It was my favorite thing of the entire meal – light, fresh, wonderfully balanced. I coulda eaten like 5 of these babies! For entrees, my eating partner and I had the chilequiles and the «Bistek a la tampiquena plate»
which came with steak, poblano rice, refried beans, guacamole, poblano peppers, and grilled green onions. Both dishes were excellent. The steak was cooked perfectly as was the fried egg on the chilequiles. Actually – the salsas were my favorite part, to be honest – the peanut salsa and the orange one (sorry, forgot the names!) were so flavorful and added a lot to our meals. Definitely don’t neglect the salsas!
The service was impeccable and perfectly timed; friendly without being over-​the-​top. Our waitress was lovely. What a beautiful place to spend a lunch! Like I said in my previous review, the atmosphere at Bracero is my favorite in all of San Diego. I love the design of the interior; it’s just gorgeous.

Best food we’ve had in a long time! Even after eating at Peohe’s (meh) Mister A’s (delicious) recently. Go there! The pan fried fish was so good!

At first sight, I was intrigued by the pleasing and insightful use of interior spaces. There are two dining levels, each
featuring outdoor dining and lengthy bars.
My friend and I settled in on the second level in the banquette area. Very comfortable. Our server was gracious and helpful with the menu. I selected the 2 Way Albacore. It was delicious, seared, and layered on a small bed of eggplant
that had a surprise crunchiness to it. This is featured as a small plate. Just perfect.
My friend was very pleased with her tostada and beef dish… Our dessert was
very disappointing. It was a slice of chocolate cake w/​a carmel finish plus a scoop of ice cream. The chocolate portion was so hard we had to use a knife to cut into. This was clearly a failure and needs to be reworked or edited. My coffee was excellent. Overall, I would like to return for another excellent lunch.

I was anticipating coming here for the last few months. Decided to try it out during San Diego Restaurant Week. After reviewing the SDRW menu and their regular menu, we ended up ordering off the regular menu and we were not disappointed! We had a reservation for noon and we were seated immediately. Our server was very friendly and when asked for suggestions did not hesitate to suggest her favorites as well as staff favorites. She came by to make sure we were ok throughout the meal. I am beating myself for not remembering her name!
As for the food, we ordered Mexiterranean and Niman Ranch tacos accompanied by the Verde Salad. Everything was delicious and full of flavor. This is not your typical Mexican fare. Chef Javier definitely has put an interesting twist on old favorites. My favorite was the Mexi taco. It was delicious. They do bring you a tasting of 4 different salsa varying from mild to hot. The hot was not as hot as I expected.
This restaurant adds new flavor to Little Italy. Overall the service, ambience and food were all outstanding. We will definitely be back to try the rest of their menu!

You’re only as good as your weakest link and in our experience last night for Restaurant Week, that weak link was our server Hector. I hate to call you out but wow, it was as if you were deliberately ignoring us from the get go and it was a struggle to even get your attention from the minute we sat down. What was most upsetting was that our table was along your path to both your register and food service and not once did you come to our table without us raising our hand (and sadly yelling) to get your attention. That’s just unacceptable at this sort of restaurant especially when we through down $ 300 for 4 people. Like come on dude!
It was so bad that I think the waiter serving the table next to us felt bad so he asked how we were doing to which we asked if he could take our order and he did. And for another round of drinks we had to ask a third waiter for help. So aside from Hector taking our first round of drinks and placing a couple plates on our table, the only other encounter with him from the night was after hounding him down for the check.
With that said, I would have rated Bracero Cocina 4 stars had we even had a decent server because some of the food was quite exceptional and their mixed drinks were also very good (we liked Czech Yourself and Agua-​Chile).
Because it was our first time, we wanted to try a lot of things. For starters we ordered:
— (2) Beef Cheek Tacos
— Lamb Neck Barbacoa Taco
— Beef Birria Taco
— Albacore Two Ways
— Bacalao Tostada
— (2) TJ Style Fish Ceviche Tostada
— Crispy Niman Ranch Pork Belly
Of these, the pork belly was insanely delicious. Seasoned perfectly with just the right amount of crunch, I could have ate the whole thing by myself as a meal and would have been perfectly happy. I had read a lot of people saying the albacore two ways was really good and while it was good, it wasn’t anything special. It was a piece of fish on top of a good fried eggplant. The eggplant shined more than the actual albacore. The tacos and tostadas were good. The only downfall is that they’re so not worth the price in my opinion when you can get better tacos and tostadas at cheap Mexican places for a couple bucks. So those were a let down.
For our main meals we ordered:
— Crispy Brisket + Short-​rib
— (2) Wood Grilled Octopus
— (2) Shrimp and Bone Marrow Sopes
— Tamal De Pato (Duck Confit)
— Corn Masa Crispy Perfect Egg
Definitely pass on the crispy brisket, again it wasn’t bad but it definitely wasn’t special. The grilled octopus was really good as was the shrimp and bone marrow sopes. I think the worse dish was the duck confit as it was overpowered by the mole. But the best dish of the night and one of the best dishes I’ve had in a really long time (that also saved the night for me) was the corn masa crispy perfect egg. I’ve never had anything like it. It was like a winning dish from Top Chef where it was both beautifully presented and absolutely delicious. I mean, wtf is potato foam? I don’t know but damn, I’m here for it. That along with the beef tartare atop a perfectly cooked egg was like heaven in my mouth. It was a perfect bite.
Seriously, it was so good and the only reason I would rate this place 4 stars had it not been for our horrible experience with our waiter.
If we decide to come back, I would 100% skip the entrees and grab a couple hot small plates each instead. Unfortunately, that’s a big if.

I just filled the cup.
Started with bone marrow and shrimp sopes with an elote by their side. Moved to wood grilled octopus. Next was the ahi two ways. Finished with the tamarind cajeta panque, with peanut brittle and yogurt sorbet. Astounding. All of it. Don’t pass this place up!

If you can understand the menu — that is, if you know what ‘Birria’ style is or what ‘Tampiqueña’ — and you appreciate a good creative chef, this is a place to go. Well, the cuisine is Mexican. And they have done it so nicely that familiar flavors are uniquely combined to create a great dining experience.
I would order all the items on their taco menu. Each item upped the other — though a bit pricey. The veggie options were good.
When asked for a warm drink for a cold afternoon — the bartender whipped up a ‘Gold Rush’ (Bourbon, Honey, Lemon) — which was a perfect complement to the flavors and the weather. It was a good dining experience.
The waiting staff could be a bit more attentive — though they were mostly on point, I have a problem with waiters who deliberately avoid eye contact. You know that they could not have possibly not heard you, and yet they are looking somewhere else and walk away! Happened a couple of times, which makes me dock a star on an otherwise awesome discovery!

Review strictly for the upstairs bar:
5 stars not only for the ambiance and the drinks, but for the awesome bartenders.
My husband and I were visiting our friend in San Diego, and he was so excited to check Bracero out – he mentioned that his local friends have only said good things about this joint.
Although the kitchen was about to close as we arrived, the guys behind the bar were patient and shared what their favorite desserts were.
All three guys were so friendly and sweet. They would casually hop into our conversation and check up on us and keep the obnoxious drunk customers on the opposite side of the bar at bay. They handled a difficult situation with a loud, drunk woman and walked back over to talk about holiday plans.
The drink menu is extensive, so there’s a little something for everyone.
I recommend checking out the bar upstairs. The guys are awesome and the drinks are great!

A round of applause for Chef Javier Plascencia. He just nails it with Bracero. What a great addition to his list of delicious restaurants — Mision 19 and Romesco. The menu is incredibly inventive, the flavors are amazingly fresh and savory, and the modern take on Mexican cuisine is impressive.
The albacore two ways was so delicious we had to re-​order. The grilled octopus out of this world delicious and perfectly cooked. The beef cheek and adobada tacos you will not want to share as they are too good. The bone marrow sopes delivers with rich texture and flavor amazing. There are just too many small plates to mention, you have to try them all!
Five stars!

First time and enjoyed very much despite the fact that I am not a fan of Mexican food at all.
The place is very nice, open and lighten. It was full but you almost not notice that because thee is enough space between the tables. We got a tall table for 6, although we were 8 and we made a reservation in advance (the reservation was made for 7).
The waiters did great, we were a lot of people and ordered a lot of different dishes, and they keep smiling.
The bathroom was clean but there is only one. At one point 5 ladies waited to enter the bathroom and the view is not nice since the bathroom is on the hall, next to a table with people having lunch.
Now to the point… The food!
By far the best dish we had was the Albacore two Ways, OMG, the crispy eggplant was fantastic.
Something so simple as Guacamole, here was amazing: the Zantac and sea salt chips and the fine combination between the guacamole, beans and hummus is unreliable.
The best Tostada was the Shrimps Green Ceviche Tostada.
We also loved the TJ Style Fish Ceviche Tostada; the Cauliflower Tortilla; and the children loved the corn.
The only dish I did not like was the Local Heirloom Tomatoes, the Pamela and Basil Salsa was good but the tomatoes were not.
We had dessert but not sure which one, but I do not recall the name of it.

3.75 stars. I had lunch hereon a Friday two weeks ago.
Pros:
— easy street parking during the time I came; however, I can see how it could be difficult at peak times.
— prices were reasonable
— chips and salsa were unique and good
— service from the hostesses were super friendly (our service was ok)
— easy seating
Cons:
— the uni ceviche I ordered was not that tasty.
— everything else we ordered was really just ok
— no Mexican coke :/

Bracero Cocina has been on my radar and one of the TOP restaurants on my list since they opened. The only thing holding me back is the distance from Los Angeles.
Located in Little Italy, this newish restaurant is the latest effort from chef and restauranteur Javier Plascencia. Chef Javier has made quite the impact in the Tijuana food scene and Valle de Guadalupe with his fine dining establishments. His restaurant, Finco Altozano, in Valle de Guadalupe, recently was recognized one of the «best 120 restaurants in Mexico» for 2016.
The first time tasting his food was at the local Los Angeles food festivals — LA Street Food Fest and Tacolandia. His food is usually the must-​try and highlight for me every year I attend these festivals in Los Angeles. I love the Tijuana food scene and is the main reason why attend these food festivals.
I’ve been wanting to try his restaurants in Tijuana. I’ve also seen photos of food bloggers and influencers on Instagram post from the restaurant, which also added to my excitement to eat at this restaurant.
So when it came time to choose where in Southern California I wanted to eat on my birthday, Bracero Cocina was an easy choice for me as a special occasion meal.
Our server, Lupita, was excellent. She was one of the best servers I’ve ever had at a restaurant. She was kind, really attentive, and made some great recommendations for dishes for our table. She made us feel as if we were special guests at her home. Even the manager came by several times to check on our table. I would not hesitate to return again for a special occasion or any occasion.
FAMILY STYLE SHARED PLATES:
Verde es Vida Salad — beautiful and artfully presented
salt-​cured cactus, watercress, zucchini, chayote squash, purslane, Mexican oregano vinaigrette, avocado, 18 month aged cotija
Chilaquiles Rojos — this is probably the best chilaquiles I ever had in my life.
suzie’s farm fried egg, taj farm crema, chipotle, avocado, pickled red onion
«Sabina Bandera» tostada — not quite the same experience at La Guerrerense in Ensenada, but very close reminder of this life changing street food cart.
corvina ceviche, prepared clam, sea urchin topping, avocado, nut salsa
Shrimp Green Machine Ceviche Tostada — bright flavors of the sauce complement the fresh shrimp
avocado, watercress
Caja China Beef Birria Taco — rich beef birria on a housemade tortilla
pickled onion, cilantro
BEVERAGES:
A wonderful selection of cocktails, Baja California craft beer, and a selection of Baja California wines.
Paso Fino Paloma — A bit watered down and not as good as I expected with these ingredients. I would not order again if this was standard recipe. Perhaps the ice melted and sat on the bar for a while?
mezcal, hibiscus infused fino sherry, grapefruit, lime, cinnamon, xocolatl mole bitters, soda
Cabernet Savignon/​Merot (La Lomita) — loved the red wine pairing with dessert!
Sacro, Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico 2012
DESSERT:
Panque (pancake) w/​ice cream + additional on house birthday brownie ice cream dessert — picture perfect for Instagram and tasted as great as it looked.
Everything we ate exceeded my expectations for a restaurant from this highly regarded chef, who some have described him as a «chef’s chef» or a place where other chef’s come to eat.
From the service delivery, stylish interiors of the restaurant, and Baja-​inspired food, I loved everything about Chef Javier Plascencia’s newest restaurant in San Diego.
The parking for a late lunch on a Saturday is on the street. We found parking at the meters a couple of blocks away.

Attracted by all the positive reviews, and being in my immediate neighborhood, I knew I was going to like this place. Yes I did!!!
I joined my friend for lunch during the recent Restaurant Week. The lunch special was a prix fixe offering of side salad & brisket torta, and chocolate torte, all for $ 20.
While the salad was a smallish dish, it was fresh and vibrant in color, and a refreshing accompaniment to the brisket. However, the star was the brisket torta. Here, the sandwich was filled with fragrant and delicious beef, prepared to the perfect consistency and texture one expects from a quality chef. The torta was assembled with avocado, tomatoes and pickled onions. Though we were provided four sauces (salsas) to add to our torta, the meat was so flavorful, we hardly wanted to even try the salsas (though we did, which was also excellent). The chocolate torte dessert was also delicious, with the addition of chocolate sorbet, so much so I wished the portion was larger.
Lupita, our server, was friendly and informative, adding a positive vibe to our al fresco dining.
This was a wonderful introduction to the restaurant, fulfilling the objective of Restaurant Week, insuring that I will return soon to sample their regular menu, likely for the evening service.

Loving the open air style of this place with the rough country wood tables. Doesn’t look like any other «Mexican» restaurant I have ever been to. Service is friendly and their hot salsa is HOT as promised! Not too many places that can deliver a salsa hot enough to keep this spice head happy!
Without further ado, what you should order? The cauliflower taco. Amaze! It is served in a tomato sauce that tastes almost Italian. (Makes sense — the place is in Little Italy). It is coated in some type of eggy mixture and then carmelized. Served on a double corn tortilla with pickled onions, more tomato sauce and a slice of avocado. I want a whole bowl of this cauliflower goodness.
I also had the carnitas taco. decent carnitas. Not too fatty. Crisp edges. Served with guacamole and the double corn tortillas.
The guacamole was yummy but really, how can you screw up avocado. They do add a little touch of black bean hummus to mix things up a bit but it is nothing you can’t make at home. They had a quesadilla gringas with skirt steak that 4 others in the party ordered and liked. The heirloom tomato salad was also pretty darn good with a pistachio pesto and fresh cheese.
I look forward to going back at night so I can try the wood fired octopus. I was sad it wasn’t on the lunch menu!

I’ve been a fan of Javier Plascencia and his restaurants ever since my first visit to Mision 19 in TJ. Once I learned he’d opened up a brand new spot considerably closer to home — on the edge of Little Italy — I couldn’t pass up a chance to visit.
Two of us dropped by for a weekend lunch. We didn’t realize that it was Restaurant Week, so we were disappointed to learn from the hostess that every table was reserved, except for the communal tables. Luckily, there were plenty of seats available at the bar, so that’s where we camped out.
Before we ordered, we soaked in the ambiance, which features that artisanal/​industrial-​chic look that’s all the rage nowadays. To start, we started with a round of drinks — a Wendlandt Cerveceria IPA for my guest, and a «Javier Wallbanger» (tequila, Galliano, citrus, allspice) for me. I eventually followed my cocktail up with another creation called «Get A Job» (tequila, amaro, lime, falernum, tamarind soda). The cocktails were absolutely fantastic — in fact, I’d call them the highlight of the entire meal.
For eats, we decided to share the Restaurant Week menu, but we tacked on a few extra courses since we were feeling hungry. The rundown went like this:
1) Elote tatemado with white plum, queso fresco, and cilantro
2) Slow-​braised brisket torta with avocado, tomatoes, and pickled onions
3) Side verde es vida salad with salt-​cured cactus, watercress, zucchini, avocado, and queso añejo
4) Albacore two ways (seared + tartare) with lime salsa verde, rice cakes, burnt onion crème fraiche, and crispy eggplant
5) Chocolate cherry cake with plum sauce and bitter chocolate sorbet
My favorite dish was the torta. The brisket was cooked beautifully, and the torta roll was great — a nice balance of soft and crisp. The quality of all of the dishes was outstanding, though.
My main criticisms are the minuscule portions and prices that are borderline ripoff. The worst offender was the albacore, which was $ 17 for literally three small bites of food. You could find a better deal at the Bellagio — and there the guy bringing the food out will be in a tux.
All in all, I enjoyed Bracero’s modern and upscale take on Mexican food — but I don’t see myself coming back often, since I’d need to go broke just to feel full.

My boyfriend was hesitant to come here since he can cook Mexican food and said that the menu didn’t look that interesting, but I told him I wanted to try it out anyway since it was near an event we were attending that night.
This two-​story restaurant has a modern Mexican menu that I didn’t know was limited at the time we came, which was a little after 4pm. There weren’t any happy hour specials and we ordered some small plates to share until dinner service was available at 5pm.
Since it was a hot day, the hostess recommended that we sit outside on the sidewalk patio. I’m not sure if this was why our server took a long time to come by our table to take our order or was just too busy… Our server reminded me of the guy in those Dos Equis commercials. He was very charming, but gone for long periods at a time haha.
We started off with a couple of drinks. He had the Paso Fino Paloma and I had the Czech Yourself based on our server’s recommendations for something refreshing. Both drinks were pretty good– mine needed to be sweeter, so they remade it. His was still better and pink, so we thought it was my drink at first LOL.
When our server finally came by to take our order, we decided to get the albacore two ways, shrimp green machine ceviche tostada, gringas, a carnitas taco, and a beef tongue confit taco with salsa verde. They brought out a variety of salsas for us to try, which we didn’t really need since everything was full of flavor. The only thing we wanted to try from the dinner menu was the shrimp and bone marrow sopes, which was my favorite savory thing I ate that night.
For dessert, we had the chamoy and corn tamale. These were the most interesting and creative desserts I’ve ever seen! Both were equally delicious, but one was sour and fruity, and the other one was sweet. I also like how they were plated too. Bracero did a fantastic job pleasing our palates! I can tell a lot of thought and modern techniques went into creating their cuisine. My bf wants to take his dad here now LOL.