Came after a day of diving at the park. My dish was great, size was generous for the price and taste of everything was perfect. Green sauce is very mild and red is very spicy, so choose wisely. Chips and salsa were a good touch while I was waiting for the food, but I didn't wait very long. Outdoor dining area looks really cute and has a little fountain, but I sat inside which was also nice. No complaints from me! read more

Bear Den - Enchiladas - Mexican Near Me - Balmorhea, Texas

I ordered a tamale and taco salad and couldn't eat them. The meat in the tamale tasted really strange. I have never had meat that smelled or tasted like that before. The smell made me sick to my stomach. I've been back a couple of times since then because my family wanted to go, but only order food that doesn't have meat involved. I'm not a fan of the guacamole either because it has some type of filler in it like sour cream or something. read more

I live in San Antonio, and have excellent Mexican food in every direction. Someone on our local restaurant page said that The Bear Sen had his favorite enchiladas...had to test this out. They are definitely fantastic! Loved the refried beans...and the rice. Fast, friendly service...will return! read more

Bear Den - Enchiladas Montadas - Mexican Near Me - Balmorhea, Texas

Could not have been more disappointed. The meat tasted old and overcooked in our tacos. The shells were prefab store bought type.. I'm pretty sure heartburn is eminent. Also, some Hispanic guy was watching television on his phone and it was louder than the restaurants music. We complained but the staff did nothing except apologize to us. read more

The cutest restaurant in Balmorrhea also has some amazing food. The food has a New Mexico flare with stacked enchiladas. The blackened catfish was delicious, covered in fresh, sautéed veggie. I loved the food. Green enchiladas have so much spice. Nice outdoor patio filled with pollinators around a lovely fountain. read more

Bear Den - Blackened catfish and green enchiladas - Mexican Near Me - Balmorhea, Texas

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Great little restaurant in the small town ! Awesome food, Hugh portions, great service!!!

I had very high hopes for this place. It was featured on The Daytripper. I hate to say that we did not enjoy it at all. In all we spent over 2.5 hours here. The place was empty when we arrived. It took forever for our order to be taken. It took over an hour to get our food. We were never checked on, drinks were never refilled, we had to hunt someone down to get our check. The food was terrible. The salsa was hot but not in a good spicy way. It was very peppery and unpleasant. The burrito was literally a tortilla with ground beef. Super dry, no flavor, no toppings. The enchilada sauce had a peppery spice to it that none of us enjoyed. We were all starving but none of us took more then a couple bites of our food. Maybe it's just not the style of Mexican food we prefer but we have had a lot of Mexican food and this was unlike anything we've had before. As we were there, the restaurant did start to fill up with what looked like locals. I love to see small, local, mom and pop places succeed. Hopefully for their sake the locals keep them in business. But this was a big negative for us. There wasn't a single positive from the customer service, to the wait times, the food, the price...it was all awful. read more

Slow and inattentive service. Lousy, overpriced food made with cheap ingredients and the only saving grace is that the portions are so small (ie: taco salad the size of a teacup) that there is less to get sick from an hour later. There's a reason that they bill themselves as the "cutest" restaurant in town (though it's tacky AF) and not the "best", "most delicious" or "cleanest". Skip this disaster. read more

Great, the cutest little place in town! My husband and I were on our way to San Antonio from El Paso. We preordered our dinner from on the road and our food came out within 5 minutes just before their closing time, lucky for us! The chicken fajitas were so tender and delicious, the salsa was spicy and flavorful the chips were warm and the refried beans very good as was the guacamole. We are so happy to have discovered this wonderful cozy little gem! read more

Bear Den - a decorated christmas tree in a dining room - Mexican Near Me - Balmorhea, Texas

If I could leave 0 stars I would. Wait time is ridiculous, more than 1 1/2 hrs to get food. Waitresses are short staffed, so customer service is minimal. Orderded a burrito which meat tasted like it was old and was tossed back in oil and recooked as it was burned(did not eat it). Immediately after leaving, had a stomach ache which now has been over 6 hrs and it is still hurting. More than likely I have food poisoning. Would not return and do not recommend. read more

Maybe I'm giving them the extra 2nd star because we got lucky and hit up the area at the right time of year. We dined on the back patio area in early October during the Monarch butterfly migration south for the winter, so all during the meal there were literally thousands of butterflies everywhere. It was surreal and magical and beautiful all at once....that is until the food came out. This place is touted as "The Cutest Little Restaurant in Balmorhea". It's the only restaurant in Balmorhea, so I guess that's not really false advertising. The horrible diarrhea I had the following day, however, was anything BUT cute or little. The service was pretty terrible (the server had no knowledge of anything on their beer list - she knew it was cold and that I had to be 21 to buy it), the bathroom was out of toilet paper and paper towels, and the food was "meh" at best, not to mentioned overpriced. The only saving grace was the salsa, which, if Curley L. is telling the truth, must get it's flavor and character from all the tables it's been used at and then dumped back. So that's good. Honestly, if you're in Balmorhea for the state park and the San Solomon Springs, just bring your own food. The only thing you'll enjoy doing after eating at the Bear Den is hibernating in your regret for having done so. read more

Cute restaurant... took the waitress 15 min to get our drinks.. didn't bring chips and salsa til later. Food took literally an hour to get to our table. They brought our food, forgot rice and beans. Another waitress had to come and give it to us. Food is NOT authentic Mexican food. Food is not that great. I asked 2 waitresses for a side of rice and beans and they never brought it out.Way overpriced for what we got. Waitress never came to refill drinks. When asked questions about the menu she didn't know, didn't ask anyone. Never checked on us. I would never come back to this place again. I had to walk around and find someone just to get my bill. Awful customer service read more

My family is traveling all over the U.S. and we love trying one of a kind places to eat. We rely heavily on Yelp reviews whenever we pull into a new city. In my opinion, The Bear Den is way under rated by previous reviews. We ate there three times while staying in the area and found everything we had to be excellent. The combo fajitas (beef and chicken) were excellent. They have four or five combo plates that are named after family members. All were EXCELLENT. The restaurant was clean and the waitress was really friendly. Obviously we would eat there again. read more

As others have commented, the service is extremely show. In their defense, we only saw one server. The salsa was incredibly pepper "hot." Chips were very good. Hubby had the burrito plate. He describes as mediocre. The tortilla had seasoned hamburger meat. Rolled in the tortillas then cheese melted on top. The burrito was dry from being heated for the cheese. I had the three cheese enchilada plate. The red sauce has a lot of tomato and was incredibly hot as in spicy. I love peppers as in jalapeno and pico but this was very different. Not enjoyable. read more

Our service was ridiculously slow. And our server was very forgetful. We kept reminding her to bring us pieces of our order. I will say that she wasn't unfriendly. She was nice. Just slow and not good at her job. I'm giving three stars because my husband and kids liked the food okay. I ordered cheese enchiladas. They were so spicy I couldn't eat them. Their red sauce has quite a kick. I am pretty wimpy but my husband agreed that it had a punch. I've never had to be worried that my enchiladas were too spicy. For me, the only flavor the food has was hot. I was also not expecting the price tag. We had two adults and four kids. No appetizers. Sopapillas (4) with a scoop of ice cream for dinner. Our ticket was $80. I guess it's par for the course in a seasonal tourist town. It's worth a try if you have PLENTY of time on your hands and don't have an aversion to hot food. read more

Great food or such a small town. Off the Interstate a few miles but worth the home cooked Mexican food.

First off, this restaurant is the same as La Cueva del Oso, which is also listed for reviews here on yelp. I was confused about that until I used my rudimentary Spanish to translate :) This place was yummy!! Great service, kind and accommodating to my wiggly toddler boys, and clean bathrooms (especially nice after leaving the Balmorhea pool bathroom which was gnarly.) I had the avocado burger and my husband had the chicken quesadilla, both delish. Ooh and the queso! So nice to have a good lunch stop in a tiny town. read more

I'm not sure why this place has two separate Yelp listing, but it's the same as La Cueva De Oso. Definitely worth the short trek off the main highway! To start with, the salsa is delicious. Just enough spiciness too. The tamale, beef taco, cheese and enchiladas, chicken flautas, beans, rice and guac were all amazing. Our waitress was friendly and the place was nicely decorated and very clean. read more

Complete waste of time. Walked in and were seated but waiting for 15 minutes. Never brought out chips or salsa, didn't take our drink order nor gave us a menu. Walked out and left this bad review. read more

Very nice little place with great service and fabulous everyday Mexican and American food. We had the Fajitas - perfectly grilled! The beans were to die for. All with perfect homemade taste. Absolutely worth driving to from 1-10. Don't miss this place. read more

Nice, affordable lunch. Friendly service, and cute interior.

Homemade Mexican food, not fast food. This style reminds me more of New Mexican food than Tex-Mex with red and green chile sauce being the basis of many dishes. One thing you'll notice is how friendly everyone is that works there. Our waitress' name was Rachel and she could not have been nicer. The hotel they are connected to is El Oso Flojo Lodge and it's likely the best lodging in the area. We stayed there and loved our room and the swallows in the walkways surrounding the well kept courtyard. A really nice atmosphere that reminded me of the Gage Hotel in Marathon. You'll love it and it's just down the road from what might be the best swimming pool in the US in Balmorhea State Park. read more

Never, Never, Never do this. We were seated in full view of the waitress station and we saw the waitress pick up salsa from a table that customers had left and pour it back in the serving pitcher!!! We left, we had seen enough. Health Department should get after these folks. If you want food poisoning, go here. read more

Came to swim at the springs and stayed at the accompanying hotel (the lazy bear) it was a fabulous, clean, modern room, in a charming Spanish style hacienda around a lush garden. The Mexican food is amazing!!! My love had green cheese enchiladas. They were yummy. I had combo chicken n beef fajitas n a side of legit Juarez style fries!!! Not the sopapillas for dessert were absolutely perfect!! I Love that it's all a family estabishment. read more

Every time I'm in the area I eat there. Great Mexican food and only a short drive off I-10. Perfect at the end of a day at the Balmorea pool. read more

Very nice place. Cute decor, love the patio. Had the blackened catfish and it was excellent.

Service was terribly slow. It took over 20 minutes to place our food order. Almost 30 minutes for food to arrive and the Food was burgers were burnt. Extremely understaffed. Our waitress even told us it wasn't the normal cook & the person cooking didn't know what they were really doing. Sadly this kit place could be a great location! I hope somebody fixes it soon read more

Very dirty place with marginal food, was out of salsa, tried to swindle me with hidden charges, disrespectful to employees and customers. Everything a horrible restaurant should be. If they weren't in a tiny town they wouldn't exist. If you're traveling the I-10 looking for a place to eat, my best advice would be to move on. read more

Great authentic food! This is a very cute and small restaurant. We stopped at on our way to cali and I must say if you passing buy on the hwy defiantly give it a try! read more

Living in Texas, I have literally eaten at hundreds of TexMex restaurants. The Bear Den was the worst I have ever experienced. We were a small group of 3 diners and ordered a simple lunch. It took over an hour to get our food (after asking three times about it and getting a less than hospitable response). When we received our food, it was cold and disgusting. The chicken quesadilla was dry and, even though I was hungry, I could only eat half of it. The other members of my party were equally disgusted. Service and food were terrible and I actually observed the waitress cleaning a table on her way to serve food at another table (without washing her hands in between). The health department needs to take a look at this place! Avoid it at all costs! read more

I ate there the ladies were rude there was bugs everywhere specially flys we waited for the food forever and it wasn't all that great my tortillas were hard I ordered beef fajitas they said they didn't have any more beef so I had to get chicken the food was way pricey for what you get in a small portions I will never eat there again read more

Good overall for a tiny town like Balmorhea. I had the Tacos A La Parrilla and they were delicious! The enchilada sauce was super hot, which wasn't good for my kiddos. The queso taste like melted Velvetta- not worth the $7 price tag. read more

Great queso dip! Fajitas were awesome. Good atmosphere and friendly service. Left very stuffed.

My brother and I were traveling across the country, and, in the process of looking up fun, out of the way places to stop, I found this place on a tripadvisor review, and let me tell you--it was the best decision! This place should get a 5 for the setting and atmosphere alone. A cute little town out in the middle of nowhere, this place was like an oasis. We sat on the patio, covered by pecan trees and with a fabulous view of the mountains, purple and blue in the evening sunset. My brother just went with the tacos. I got a corona and a roast pork dish that was smothered in this rich tomato-based sauce. Large portions. Good prices. Do it! read more

Very nice restaurant , great food, friendly waitress, clean restrooms, will eat there again when we come back through.

Worst restaurant ever!!! VERY SLOW SERVICE!!!! Took over 2.5 hours to get our food. We didn't have a choice but to sit and wait. Not work my time or money!! Has two plates and 2 teas.. Paid over $50, didn't have enough money to leave a tip... Would not recommend this place to anyone. Sad that the tourist have to put up with this service and price. read more

I'm giving a one star only cause you can not give less. We had a table of 7 and sat down within seconds. Five minutes later a table of 12 sat and within minutes they had their drinks and we're taking their order and we did not even have someone come over to take our drink order. After we ordered which was almost an hour later and maybe 25 people in the place our drinks ran out and still did not have chips. Around the time the 12 top was finishing their order we had our order place and still waiting on drink refills. When we finally received our orders two were cold two were Luke warm and one had nasty hair in it. The plate with the nasty hair was sent back two people with their cold plates did not eat and the Luke warm plates were barely touched. 10 minutes after receiving our foods we were paying and to make matters worst the hostess looked at us and said "if you do not like our service or food don't come back"! I'm all about second chances but after that last comment it they will never ever see me again. read more