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#30. Villa's Mexican Food
- Rating: 3.8/5 (86 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 900 Loughborough Drive Ste C Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Latin American
- Read more on Yelp
Highest-rated Mexican restaurants in the Merced area by diners
Just like cuisine from any country, Mexican food is not monolithic. It isn't just combo plates and tacos. (Not that there's anything wrong with that style of food; it's delicious and is responsible for popularizing Mexican food in the United States.) But Mexican food means more than that.
It reflects Mexico's diverse population—shaped by waves of immigration—and has proliferated throughout the U.S., showcasing the cuisine in all its complexity and regionality. Mexico has 32 distinct regional styles of cooking, and thanks to immigrant chefs and the rise of promising culinarians of Mexican descent looking to share their signature dishes, Indigenous foodways, and ingredients from various regions, diners are reframing their idea of "Mexican food."
According to a 2024 Pew Research Center analysis of SafeGraph data, 1 in 10 restaurants in the U.S. serve Mexican food, and nearly 9 out of 10 U.S. counties have at least one Mexican restaurant. The analysis also reveals that California and Texas are home to a majority of the Mexican American population and together host 2 out of 5 Mexican restaurants in the country.
These findings serve as a testament to the influence Mexican cuisine has had and continues to have in America. Which begs the question: Where does one go for the best old-school Mexican restaurants, loncheras slinging tacos out of a half-window, and innovative modern Mexican food pushing culinary boundaries?
To help you out, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated Mexican restaurants in the Merced area based on diners' reviews on Yelp as of February 2025. Restaurants with at least 20 reviews tagged as "Mexican" on Yelp within a 10-kilometer radius of Merced were included. As a result, some restaurants featured may serve other food items besides Mexican food. Also, in an effort to highlight independent businesses and local chains, those with more than 50 locations nationally, based on the Yelp data, were not included.
Keep reading to see if your favorite Mexican spot made the list or to discover a new restaurant to try!
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#29. Costa Restaurant
- Rating: 3.8/5 (87 reviews)
- Address: 1857 Bellevue Road Atwater, California
- Categories: Mexican, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp
3 / 30
#28. Isabella's Bar & Grill
- Rating: 3.8/5 (324 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2811 Shaffer Road Atwater, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
4 / 30
#27. Jose's Taco Shop
- Rating: 3.9/5 (81 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3250 G St. Merced, California
- Categories: Latin American, Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
5 / 30
#26. El Asadero Taco Shop
- Rating: 3.9/5 (350 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3532 G St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#25. Los Gordos
- Rating: 3.9/5 (134 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 6698 North Winton Way Winton, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
7 / 30
#24. Marie's Mexican Kitchen
- Rating: 3.9/5 (115 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 259 West Main St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
8 / 30
#23. Agaves Mexican Grill
- Rating: 3.9/5 (234 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 779 East Yosemite Ave. Ste A Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
9 / 30
#22. Guacamole Burrito
- Rating: 3.9/5 (38 reviews)
- Address: 3144 G St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
10 / 30
#21. Tacos De La Torre
- Rating: 4.0/5 (22 reviews)
- Address: 1800 East Childs Ave. Merced, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
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11 / 30
#20. Titos Tacos & Grill
- Rating: 4.0/5 (77 reviews)
- Address: 240 South Center St. Turlock, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#19. La Morenita
- Rating: 4.0/5 (135 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1352 West 13th St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
13 / 30
#18. Cortes Tacos
- Rating: 4.1/5 (26 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 15TH West 15th St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp
14 / 30
#17. Ostioneria Guadalajara Restaurant
- Rating: 4.1/5 (33 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1220 West 16th St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp
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#16. Tacos Hidalgo Taco Truck
- Rating: 4.1/5 (103 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 550 East Main St. Merced, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
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16 / 30
#15. El Tlahualil Casa del Molcajete
- Rating: 4.1/5 (163 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1277 V St. Ste A Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Coffee & Tea, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp
17 / 30
#14. Tacos El Pollo merced ca
- Rating: 4.1/5 (22 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 371 South CA-59 Merced, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
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#13. El Palmar Taqueria
- Rating: 4.2/5 (128 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1127 Martin Luther King Jr Way Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp
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#12. Phantom's Food Truck
- Rating: 4.3/5 (32 reviews)
- Address: 1930 Airdrome Entry Atwater, California
- Categories: Mexican, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp
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#11. La Patrona Taqueria
- Rating: 4.3/5 (21 reviews)
- Address: 3115 Stratofortrees Ave. Atwater, California
- Categories: Tacos, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp
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21 / 30
#10. Lupian's Mexican Restaurant
- Rating: 4.3/5 (119 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3355 G St. Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#9. Tacos Al Mando
- Rating: 4.4/5 (20 reviews)
- Address: 900 Martin Luther King Merced, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#8. Silva's Taqueria
- Rating: 4.4/5 (20 reviews)
- Address: 1419 Mitchell Road Modesto, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
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#7. Marco's Tacos
- Rating: 4.4/5 (25 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 99 East Donna Drive Merced, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
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#6. Sinaloense Mariscos & Taqueria
- Rating: 4.5/5 (224 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4820 Salida Blvd. Salida, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Mexican, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp
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26 / 30
#5. El Sabor De Oaxaca
- Rating: 4.5/5 (26 reviews)
- Address: 900 Loughborough Drive Ste East Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#4. Carniceria Y Taqueria Superior
- Rating: 4.6/5 (60 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1725 West Hwy 140 Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican, Latin American
- Read more on Yelp
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#3. Mariscos El Nacho
- Rating: 4.6/5 (61 reviews)
- Address: 1560 Yosemite Pkwy Merced, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
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#2. Lonchera el pan de vida
- Rating: 4.7/5 (23 reviews)
- Address: 6061 North Winton Way Winton, California
- Categories: Mexican
- Read more on Yelp
30 / 30
#1. Veekiind
- Rating: 5.0/5 (28 reviews)
- Address: 221 El Roya Ave. Modesto, California
- Categories: Food Trucks, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Cynthia Rebolledo, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 326 metros.
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