In the comments section of my post on White Elephant Asian Kitchen, “FOY” RedDevil mentioned enjoying Mesa Agricola, a farm to table taco shop specializing in guisados that opened in Escondido in August of 2025. I had read about the place and had it on my list. Recently, I decided to take that 25 mile drive to check the place out. The tiny shop resides on South Escondido Boulevard which parallels the I-15. I don’t recall being around these parts before?
I found parking and walked over. It was just 15 minutes past eleven and there were folks eating already!
There were a couple of tables on the sidewalk and three small tables inside the tiny shop.
There was a woman hard at work making tortillas on the griddle. I understand that the menu constantly changes based on what is available. The owners also have their own farm as well!
Tacos run at $5….so it’s definitely not your typical taco shop fare that’s for sure. I decided on three tacos; the Cochinita Pibil, Mushrooms al Ajillo, and Chorizo con Nopales.
After a short wait, my food was ready. I had taken a seat at one of the small two tops.
Nice looking tacos. The tortillas were tender, yet up to the task of holding the food. It almost seemed fluffy! The maize flavor was on the milder side.
The Cochinita Pibil was first.
It had been garnished with the very hipster pickled onions which kind of made me laugh. I really enjoyed the earthy black bean which were perfectly cooked. For some reason, it made me think of Tacos Hola in CDMX which specializes in Tacos Guisados. Man, that chicken was so moist and tender…perfect texture for guisados. I did find the flavor to be a bit mild for my taste. I prefer a stronger sour-citrus acidity in my cochinta along with more aromatics. In terms of texture and size this was quite good. I even enjoyed the rice in the tacos as well.
The one taco that really interested me was the Hongos Al Ajillo…the mushroom al ajillo.
While I would like more of a garlicky “hit”, the mushrooms were so earthy and not mushy, but almost rich and meat like in texture. There was a mild smokiness to the mushrooms and the black beans and pepitas really added interesting textures and flavors. The milder flavor of the tortillas did well with the hongos. This taco would be perfectly at home served in a guisados tacos shop in trendy Roma Norte or Condesa in CDMX.
I loved the “neba-neba” texture of the nopales in the Chorizo con Nopales. But was expecting a bit more sharpness and spice from the house made chorizo.
There was an abundance of the gooey nopales and the black beans actually seemed to have more flavor than the chorizo. I thought the salsa rojo provided came to it’s best use in this taco as it added smokey heat to things.
Overall, this was a fun meal. No, this isn’t your local taco shop or taco truck fare….it’s quite trendy and a bit hipster. So no, don’t expect $3 tacos here. If Mesa Agricola was a bit closer in distance I’d take the Missus there; I think She’d enjoy it. I do intend to return…maybe on a weekday when things aren’t so hectic and busy. And when gas prices come down a bit.
Mesa Agricola
707 South Escondido Blvd.
Escondido, CA 92025
Current Hours:
Wed – Sun 11am – 6pm
Closed Monday and Tuesday
Thanks again for the recommendation RD!