In Menlo Park, right off Santa Cruz Avenue, rests Café Del Sol, a down-home Mexican eatery. With moderately reasonable prices (about $12 to $20 per dish), diners expect a good meal — and they get one. The restaurant serves up some great fare, with high-quality ingredients and complimentary taquitos. The Café is a tasty spot for some grub and a good place to take a friend for dinner.

Sitting in my wobbly table, I started looking around the place. Noticing the décor, among it crooked paintings of fruit, I though it could use some attention, but it’s also a simple sign — this eatery focuses less on its appearance and feel and more on the food. The ambiance certainly doesn’t add to the dining experience. The tables are so close together that it was difficult even for my somewhat-slim frame to fit into the chair without moving the table. With the close-quarters and thoughtless decoration, though, is the food worth it?

Yes. While there has been some chatter on the Internet, particularly on yelp.com, about the restaurant’s service (or lack thereof), the service is more than acceptable. The wait staff is responsive, and it isn’t much of a concern anyway as the experience is centered more around the food.

The menu is reasonable, but not extensive. There aren’t terribly many vegetarian options and they are not clearly identified. At first glance, the offerings seem seafood-heavy. However, there are several turf options, ranging from beef tacos to filet mignon.

Diners should note when upon sitting down, complimentary taquitos are served in lieu of the usual chips and dip. These taquitos are served for quality, not quantity. To supplement them, order the nachos. The Chicken Nachos are an excellent choice, served with chips, guacamole and other toppings arranged in the shape of the sun. The Shrimp Del Sol is also a good call, especially with the sweet mango sauce to compliment the saltiness of the grilled shrimp.

As for the soups, the options are limited, with only two offerings. The Chicken Soup is decently tasty, with little pizzazz save two peppers that strike you when you are least expecting them.

The entrees are strong. El Combo is a colorful plateful of food, with cilantro green rice, beans, guacamole and choice of taco and/or enchilada. The Fajita plate is made with some high-quality meats and is tasty, full of savory flavor. The additional items on the plate, such as rice, beans and guacamole, are among the Café’s best — diners can taste the freshness, with the creamy butteriness of avocado coming through in every bite of the guacamole.

Café Del Sol is located on 1010 Doyle Street in Menlo Park. Reservations are not required and parking is not bad, especially as lots of spaces flank the restaurant on Santa Cruz Avenue.