Great local spot to grab a margarita and some tasty Mexican food! Good service, fun chill vibes!

Fantastic food and environment. Kelly our server was fantastic, I have never seen a server work so hard to take care of guests. We will be back again very soon!

Great atmosphere. Great food! So worth coming back again. A down to earth feeling in the place.

I just want to say this place is exellente!! Terrific service drinks & the food was better than great. It has progressively improved over the years , now it is 5 star! Thank you so much for an amazing time with friends & family

I found this to be an enjoyable old fashioned Mexican restaurant. The food and ambiance both stay true to that old fashioned vibe. I had the three item combo with a beef taco, cheese enchilada and chile relleno and all were quite good. Nothing mind-blowing happening, but the ambiance made it worthwhile and satisfying. I found the service to be friendly but slow. I was happy to notice that my stomach felt surprisingly content after all the food I ate, so that was a big bonus. The chips were perhaps the biggest aspect that I wish could be improved. The salsa was quite good, but the chips were nothing special and I feel that fresher, hotter chips would definitely level things up with the first impression. All in all, I'll be happy to stop in again when I'm in that area.

My wife and I discovered Hernandez' Hideaway after watching a Dateline episode on the Escondido serial-murderer/rapist/evil incarnate John Albert Gardner. This was his regular hangout during his unspeakably sinful crime spree, and he was arrested at the Hernandez Hideaway bar in 2009. Despite the awful way we discovered it, we thought the restaurant looked interesting (we love restaurants in remote locales) and drove down to Lake Escondido to have dinner. I'm rating 4 stars because the food and service met our standards, and I always want to support small businesses rather than big corporations. However, a big concern: once you enter, it feels like the owners want you to know and accept their politics. Maga heaven. Not subtle either. I was very disappointed to see this, but it also made sense considering an evil man who basically hunted young women in the area felt Hernandez Hideaway was his safe place. If eating in this type of Trump-loving environment disturbs you, be warned. If you walked into this place with a mask, I wouldn't be surprised if you faced undeserved ridicule. That aside, the enchilada pie was as delicious as everyone says it is. Plenty of parking. Festive, hole-in-the-wall atmosphere. You want the decent food and drinks? You got it. You want a friendly-place where you feel welcome? Well... unfortunately, this place curates and caters to a certain type of regular customer. If they sense you are not of that ilk, it's very possible you may not be treated with the same kindness and respect.

Moved back to San Diego after 20 years, is Rick and Sabina still the owners? Thanks always had great food!

One star less for the owners opinions. No need to share your backwardness. Staff is great. Kelly, Heather, Monica, Theresa and Richard. Great team. Good house marga. My fav is the enchilada pie. No one else has this delish! Great chips and salsa. I think the chips are air fried. Never greasy.

This has been a long standing restaurant in our family. My dad passed away this year. And I was missing him, so, I wanted to go to "all the familiar places". The menu here is stable, and hasn't changed at all since I've been going here. So, I ordered the enchilada pie, which I have always loved and still love, and a margarita. The evening we stopped in, a week night, this place was hoppppong. With one bar tender, one wait staff and a whole bunch of us locals. So give yourself extra time and patience. Our waiter, was one of the most skilled multi-tankers I have seen this year. With about 25-30 covers he had it all. Our chips were full, our cups never empty for long, and he was personable. The tables, which he was also bussing, were not empty to long before they were turned again. The food - tops The service - The best they could do The drinks - yes please The ambiance- still the original vibe it's alwys been. If you're new to town or a tourist, you won't likely find this place, but, it's worth it if you can :)

Wow was this place good! Located in the middle of nowhere near lake Hodges you'd never know this place was here! The inside is very nice, with plenty of seating. Service was fantastic the entire time, and the menu was very large and offered a lot of seafood as well. The guacamole was fresh and delicious but what was outstanding was our entrees! The chilli relleno was excellent! Lots of cheese and cooked perfect! The enchilada was great and the tostada was huge! Fantastic Mexican food, cute atmosphere and great service! This place doesn't deserve anything less than 5 stars!