Taco Temple

Taco Temple is the restaurant Morro Bay locals send people to when they want to look smart. The California-Mexican seafood landmark at 2680 Main Street in North Morro Bay has been famous beyond town for years, a Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives alum whose reputation was earned the slow way: oversized plates, seafood straight off the local boats, and a kitchen that treats a fish taco as something worth building carefully. First-timers should know two things going in: the portions are not a rumor, and the line at peak hours moves faster than it looks.

The room sits in the Spencer’s shopping center at the north end of town, a five-minute drive from the Embarcadero and worth every one of them. This is the locals’ end of Morro Bay, and the crowd usually splits evenly between neighbors on a weekly habit and visitors who read about the place before they ever booked the trip.

Sundays are the reason this page has a calendar under it. Taco Temple runs free live music on the patio every Sunday afternoon from 1:00 to 4:00 PM, rotating a cast of Central Coast regulars: Frankie Paredes, Jody Mulgrew, David Talmadge, and Nate Bohard each take their turn through the month. No cover, no reservations, just the best soundtrack a fish taco gets in this county. Arrive on the early side; the patio seats itself and Sundays fill.

Every upcoming set at Taco Temple is listed below, and the rest of the week’s live music around town is on the Morro Bay events calendar.