Absolutely amazing! I'm a ceviche lover and I love that they use chile canario. Also tried some of the freshest grilled oysters and the most perfect fish tacos. 10/10 for authentic flavor. I would highly recommend. Follow me @EatDrinkMo read more

Caracol - Oysters - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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I've been to caracol twice now. My last visit at Caracol was for a birthday dinner I hosted with reservation around 11 people. I booked my birthday dinner weeks in advance. I got an email confirmation. When I got there it was around 3 people who bailed so total 8 people- we notified them when we got there and they said no problem, they needed half the group to be able to be seated. We waiting outside for a bit but it was too hot and there's a bar area we can also wait at. We then we're seated and I completely forgot we had 9 people and they were able to accommodate and change around tables so quickly I was impressed. I ordered a virgin mojito which was fresh! Very good! Then ordered dinner - got the vegetarian enchiladas. They have a vegetarian menu which is why as a vegetarian I love this place!! We asked for a separate vegetarian menu and it was delicious! Smaller portion but worth it! We then had a cake in the back we gave to them before seating. They brought it out with candles and then they took it back and was sliced. They also brought out a small mini cake for my birthday complimentary. Overall, it was a great place to celebrate my birthday. I want to come back and try some of their other options. Customer service was also great! HIGHLY recommend for any events or just dinner. read more

My sister took me here for my birthday brunch and it did not disappoint. The brunch was buffet style, so you can eat as much as you want. Everything was included in the buffet price except the alcoholic beverages. I had the mimosa, which was so good we got a pitcher. The dishes were amazing and at the end our water gave me a birthday treat. I will definitely go back. read more

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The food options were different than what you'd expect at a mexican restaurant but it was fantastic!

Sunday Brunch Buffet. Live music. Bright open space. Great company. I could leave that just that way, but I have to give the Tres Leches cake a special shout out. That thing was so good, everyone in my group went for seconds. I highly recommend and will be back. But make reservations! read more

Amazing place, great service. Beautiful ambiance. Great patio! Awesome food and drinks!

Caracol is one of Hugo Ortegas culinary gems of Houston. The food is similar to what's served at Hugo's although Caracol offers more seafood options. Everything on the menu is enticing yet the Sunday brunch offers exceptional options for all palates, including soup, tamales, braised meats, roasted veggies, ceviche, raw oysters, and a full desert bar with homemade hot chocolate. Come with an empty stomach and You won't be disappointed!!!! read more

Had my 37th bday party here! Absolutely love it. Great food, amazing service, and well worth the price! Fun place for a little get together.

We recently came here for anniversary dinner and thought the food was delicious! The vegetarian menu has so many options, which is hard to find at more classy restaurants. A friend who recently came here complained about the seafood smell but when we came for dinner there was no such smell. It smelled more smoky. The ambience was very classy and romantic and we dressed up for a candelit dinner. For appetizers, we had both the guac/salsa/tortilla chips as well as the vegetarian quesadilla. We requested a spicy sauce with the nacho chips. It was very spicy habenero sauce! Not for the weak! For entrees, it was hard to pick just two. Everything looked good. We ordered deconstructed enchilada and tamal azteca. The deconstructed enchilada had a slight bitter taste and I liked the tamal azteca more. I thought the tamal azteca was delicious, although needed a little bit of sauce. We had enough for leftovers the next day. Drinks were tasty as well, just the right amount of balance of flavor with alcohol. We ordered the Blackberry mojito and oaxacan whiskey sour. However, service could have been better. As we let them know when we made our reservation that we were celebrating an anniversary dinner, we knew that we were going to get a complimentary dessert. However, our waiter made it seem that we could pick anything off the dessert menu and it would be complimentary. We were excited to try the El Coco and requested it. We were then given both the El Coco and a complimentary flan dessert that said "Happy Anniversary on the plate." And we saw that the El Coco had been added to the bill at the end of our meal. In the end our waiter ended up removing it from the bill after initially denying that he had said it was complimentary. He also seemed a little distracted throughout the meal. That being said, if you're wanting a dessert with your meal, highly recommend the El Coco. It's a chocolate shell with a cream filling that you smash with a hammer. This restaurant is part of a group of classy Houston restaurants owned by the same owner (Hugo's, Caracol, Xochi, and Backstreet Cafe). I appreciate that all locations have vegetarian menus. We've been to all but Xochi and have to say that Caracol has been the best so far with more unique and flavorful vegetarian options. TIP: They validate garage parking at the front counter. The garage is large. read more

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Restaurant week 2023 menu wasn't the best for vegetarians. For dinner, I think a warm soup is the way to go since you're ending the day with your last meal. A colder soup, better for lunch (think Gazpacho). The starter soup was cold and saltier than imagined. The next cauliflower item was great, but the sauce was on the bottom. I think had it been on the top it would have been better since it would have had time to marinate through. The main course item was great, no complaints there! Really filling and had balanced flavors. The dessert was extremely sweet and overpowering. I'm not sure what to think overall. read more

Caracol - Dessert- not part of the vegetarian selection for HRW - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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Catacol is a place you come for an experience. Not many high end restaurants these days make you feel so individualized, so special. Luis our server was so attentive and the GM even gave us a special acknowledgment while we celebrated my brothers, a Texas National Guard soldier protecting our border, birthday. I've gotten hand written cards from Caracol and what feels like VIP treatment even being a regular guest. I love this place, it's such a treat, so TREAT YOURSELF! read more

Last week, this was one of the restaurants that our friends recommended and we gave it a try. It was special because I hadn't seen my sorority little sister and her husband in a very long time. Excited to catch up with them and excited to have great food. The ambiance is surely upscale! This place definitely didn't disappoint. We had white wine to go with the meal. I had read about the wood-roasted oysters (ostiones asados) so we got that and campechana estilo D.F. which had shrimp, crab, octopus, Mexico City-style to start the meal off. For the entree, I had the callo de hacha which is pan-seared scallops. Cooked perfectly! It didn't look like a huge portion but as I ate, it surely was very filling. As they say, looks can be deceiving! My friend had the sopa de tamalayota/pumpkin soup and it looked very creamy. She also got the lechuguita orejona which was a beautifully plated salad. My husband and her husband both had the grilled red snapper (I can't remember the Spanish name of the dish). They both thoroughly enjoyed every bite! Highly recommend! read more

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This is one of my go to restaurants. It's consistently delicious with great service. The ribs be oysters are a must every time! The habanero salsa is also amazing. I usually park in the garage because I hate valet. read more

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One of my favorite places to hit for Houston restaurant week. Their HRW menu is always worth it. You can self park in the garage and get it validated when the check comes or do valet. This place is also great for group experience, easy reservations with any special occasions. It has a very classy ambience and very spacious with their indoor and outdoor seatings. I haven't eaten anything here that I didn't like. One of my favorite item is actually their dessert, the el coco. You can smash it open before eating it. If you want this to be a part of your HRW then it's an additional fee ($5). The staff is friendly and quick with their service. I always have a good time when I dine here either for brunch or dinner. On Sundays, they have a buffet brunch which was surprisingly very good. Many great selections with live music playing in the background. The best part is that they have all you can eat oysters. Very fresh and pretty good even though it wasn't the season. Overall, a great spot in Houston to dine at. read more

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Amazing Sunday Brunch Buffet! Wonderful service, lovely live music and scrumptious food. Every bite was delicious... my faves were fried fish cheek, beef cheek, poached egg on cornbread, fresh oysters, and yummy tamales! read more

Warm welcome, attentive, kind service, great margaritas/cocktails, and excellent food - especially the tuna tacos - my expectations are surpassed every visit. read more

Very good seafood and fun tapas place. Caracol is very much known for seafood and you cannot go wrong with the ceviche or the tuna tostadas. We also got the pork ribs which I would pass on. The mango empanada was delicious. This is also a fun place to come for Houston restaurant week but they don't really have seafood on the restaurant week menu so it's not really food that they're as known for. Great place to check out. A little pricy. read more

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I came to Caracol today for happy hour and it was my first time visiting--it will definitely NOT be my last! I've been hearing the name of this restaurant but I had not gotten the chance to visit until today. I ordered the spicy pineapple Paloma as my drink. It was so yummy, the perfect amount of sweet and heat. It is a tequila based drink with habanero infused pineapple soda. So good! I had two! To eat, I ordered the Mejillornes (mussels and chorizo), the Tortita de Langosta (mini lobster roll), and ostiones asados (wood-roasted gulf oysters). Everything was delicious but those oysters?! I am coming back for the Wood Roasted Oysters! They were so, so, so, tasty! I also ordered Tres Leches to go! The service was impeccable and everyone was extremely friendly.. read more

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SÚPER busy place, I remember trying to come here a couple times before today (Because I LOVE OYSTERS) since I live just around the corner but was always full. We'll today I finally got in with a group and it was worth the wait! Best scallops I've never had, so juicy and no urea taste like in some places . Valet is 5 dollars and they take credit. The oyster appetizer was sooo good. You know what pizza flavored goldfish taste like? This is the same but oyster LOL. Service was great, I got my wine refills by winking at my waitress, super efficient communication hahahaaaa. The only gripe I have is the private room door doesn't close all the way and As busy as this place gets with a cracked door it was very hard to hear my party sometimes, please fix this! read more

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It is a must for me! The food it's incredible, the service it's super and the place it's great, you have to make a reservation because it's super full all the time. I love the vibes in there cuz the service is dress like a Mexican folklore. read more

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Let me start off by saying how great the service was for our party of 18. We ordered a lot of Alcohol and each drink was really good. Some were strong some were sweet but overall loved it. Our appetizers were phenomenal. HOWEVER the entrees were a disappointment. We ordered over 7 different types of entrees and they just weren't good like it was either bland- no taste or it wasn't cooked well. I haven't been to caracol for dinner in a very long time but I've been to caracol multiple times for Brunch. I'm really not sure what happened to the quality of the food. read more

Caracol - Brunch buffet-Desserts - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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Meh. My friend who is really into the culinary scene in Austin recommended this place, and we went for happy hour. I didn't realize it was Hugo Ortega's work until later when I read about it. I was underwhelmed. The setting is typical big-shop Houston style, with a huge outdoor patio and an interior that screams bougie night out. It didn't feel unique. We elected to sit outdoors next to a big fan, which was a nice touch. The Galleria area is always chaotic, so the restaurant had the buzzy high-energy feel to it. We ordered for happy hour. My friend didn't enjoy the prosecco she ordered, but "I'll drink it," she conceded. The food came out slowly, and for the portion sizes in a city like Houston, I felt the prices were too high. The fried oyster sandwiches (molletes de ostiones) were pretty good, but outside of that the best thing on the table were the chips. Skip the gulf oysters, they may be big but size isn't what matters when it comes to oysters. They forgot to bring out one of the items we ordered altogether (the lobster rolls). Service was quiet slow. If I weren't writing about it now, it would have been altogether a forgettable experience if it hadn't been for the good company of my friend. read more

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We came with a family group of 6 to celebrate a UH college graduation. We arrived around noon on Friday, and it was not crowded at all. The concept is high-end Mexican seafood, unusual cocktails, and attentive service. Our waiter checked in frequently, and made sure that we enjoyed everything that we ordered. They succeeded on all counts, and I am looking forward to another visit because they had lots of interesting entries on the menu! read more

Very cute atmosphere. Dress up! I went with some classmates. Liked my food though it was a little salty but the service was great. They have fun drinks and fun desserts. Would certainly go back. read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

Seriously one of my most favorite brunch places to go to, ever. There's so much variety! Service is great, and parking is validated if you park in the garage. Like, almost everything on the menu is great. My favorites are the taquitos and the roasted oysters. Don't think I'll ever get tired of this place! read more

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It used to be very good, not sure what happened to this restaurant. After we waited for about 20 minutes with 4-5 waiters helping others even though we arrived first, we decided to stand up and leave. Will not go back at all. Good luck. read more

Great seafood and Mexican restaurant. A great experience especially for restaurant weeks. It's been a couple years, but I remember having some awesome Mole and tamales. As a Mexican myself, I was in heaven! My wife also got their restaurant weeks menu and ended up with some great seafood. Eat whatever they bring you. You won't be disappointed. read more

I had Sunday brunch at Caracol and every single item looked exquisite and tasted amazing. The service was so attentive to my table and the vibrant festive ambience brings us back every time. Total crowd pleaser! read more

Thanks to David for making our family Happy Hour an evening to remember. Started with some light bites. The Trio de Quesadillas with housemade Oaxacan string cheese, calabacita, huitlacoche and chicken was a great way to start the celebration. Loved the Duo Ceviche- mini ceviche of raw striped bass and tuna, tangerine, and cucumber. It was such a fresh, delicious and creative twist on ceviche. Mom and dad enjoyed a cabernet and a cold draft. For dinner, they were able to accommodate the vegetarians, pescatarians and carnivores in my family. For salads, I would suggest the Garnachas de Platano, a unique blend of sweet potato and cauliflower hash, refritos, and crispy Brussels sprouts, topped with crema and queso fresco. The Heirloom tomato salad is great for tomato lovers. The Tacos de Atún with seared tuna, guacamole, refried beans, greens, topped with pickled onion were delicious. The Repollitos Asados, charred Brussel sprouts with chimichurri dressing, could have used a little more time on the grill. Capped the evening off with a complimentary pineapple tres leches. Thanks again to David for a great birthday celebration with my family. read more

Caracol - Happy Hour Ceviche - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

This was my first time coming here on a Saturday for brunch, I've mostly done work meetings. Brunch was awesome & the beautiful day to sit outside just made it amazing. The hostess was a bit rude but the waiter made up for it, he was super awesome. Drinks were great, the calamari chicharrones were truly excellent! I don't eat pork but have when I was young & they tasted better than the original chicharrones. Mom ordered the brisket enchiladas and she loved it, the meat was very tender and tasted a lot like ropa vieja. My daughter had the cheese quesadillas & loved them & the black beans were also great. I had the mushroom with mole & it was truly great. No complaints & looking forward to come back. read more

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Almost all the food was just bad. A rice, lobster and shrimp dish had overcooked rice, mediocre shrimp and horrible lobster tail. Porto Nuevo style lobster also subpar at any price let alone $75. Tuna tacos were horrible. How does a seafood restaurant screw up tuna tacos. Ceviche was a 7 out of 10 so one of the better dishes but I've had better off of a food truck. Pork taquitos were actually good although almost no pork to speak of. Pork ribs were flavored ok but full of fat, cartilage and gristle. The standard margarita was horrible but spicy margarita was good. 4 people and over $500 later and I'll never go back. We didn't even bring home the doggy bag of leftovers. read more

Excellent place. Good variety of interior Mexican foods. The 3 of us tried a lot of the appetizers, and my fav was the queso flameado with lobster. Also the pulpo with mushrooms was outstanding. Then we finished with a split of carne asada ribeye which also was outstanding. Could be my new fav for Mexican food in Houston. read more

We went last night to kick off Houston Restaurant Weeks 2019, as well as to celebrate a birthday, and we had a great time! I have posted menus of the HRW menus this year for anyone who is interested in trying them -- they do their menus a little differently than other restaurants. The entire menu is preset, and you pick one of four 4-course menus. Fair warning: it is a TON of food! Everyone came away stuffed but satisfied. The staff did a great job while we were there. We were greeted warmly by hostesses, one of the owners stopped by our table, and we had a wonderful waitstaff. They changed out someone's napkin for a dark colored one to match their clothing, cleaned up the tablecloth after a dirty utensil had touched the linen, made table-side margaritas, and were very attentive the entire night! We started with chips and guacamole, which was prepared just the way I like it: very avocado-heavy with minimal onions to distract from the flavor. Yum. I had the Wines of Mexico menu, which included a lobster tamale, bacon-wrapped pork shank, and dark chocolate cake. The tamale came with a delicious lobster sauce that was poured on by the server at the table for you. The pork shank was HUGE - none of us were able to finish our own. The meat was very tender and cooked well. And the chocolate cake was divine! Very rich and almost brownie-like. read more

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I wish I had a picture of any of the 4 DOZEN wood grilled oysters we preferred, but they were eaten immediately. We ordered with and without breadcrumbs and preferred the without. Validated parking is easy, the vibe is great, and the service is wonderful. We came on a Tuesday for happy hour and had a blast celebrating our anniversary. The happy hour oysters, taquitos, chips and guac/salsa, and drinks were the best things of the night. You honestly don't even need an entree. The black beans that come with the taquitos were so good! read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

Amazing food, friendly service and good vibes! The lobster with queso was my fave! The spicy pineapple margarita is a must! Will definitely visit again. read more

I used to eat here frequently but today was totally unacceptable. I was with a group and my waiter got the order wrong despite my pointing to it on the menu. Then, after all my lunch companions were finished, they brought my food and the order was wrong again. I had to ask for a tea refill 4 times and they refilled every glass but mine. As much as K used to enjoy the food, it is unlikely I will return. I would have posted a zero re isw had that been a choice. read more

Food was amazing everything was delicious Shoutouts to Chef Hugo and Chef Adrian on their dedication to making good quality Mexican food. Also I would like to acknowledge the managers, great service and always helpful read more

Caracol - ENCHILADAS DEL DIA Callo de Hacha Carne Asada con Mole Negro PULPO AHUMADO Ceviche de Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

I was so disappointed from a place I was so excited to try for years. I got the carne asada con mole negro and not only was my (12 oz "prime") ribeye steak very thin cut and highly unlikely it was in fact a prime cut, but they overcooked my steak THREE times. I'm not normally one to send my food back, but when I'm at a restaurant with that high of caliber and we're spending good money, I expect my meat to be cooked to perfection (medium rare). Instead my meat consistently come out medium well to well done - tough, thin, and poorly seasoned. I eventually gave up and ate my food, but I have no desire to return. I've had better steaks at Chili's - a place where I would never order a steak which should tell you all you need to know. I would, however, like to point out this is a predominantly seafood restaurant and as such, there is VERY limited non-seafood options. I'm not a big seafood person, which is why I ordered the steak. I did not expect my steak to be of the same caliber as a high end steak restaurant, but I do expect it to at least be seasoned well and cooked correctly. The seafood that my colleagues had was received well, but still not worth it for the price. I recommend skipping this place and taking your hard earned money elsewhere. read more

Very nice place , service was excellent, food was delicious, they had so many delicious dishes, drinks were good, will definitely come back, read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

Visited Caracol recently for HH, it was my first time. We sat at the oyster bar and it was pretty neat - right next to all the action! Service was super friendly, came by often asking what we needed, plates cleared fast. We ordered the raw oysters and the wood roasted. The raw oysters tasted really fresh, nothing too briney or fishy. The wood roasted oysters had great flavors, little kick to them that I enjoyed. We also tasted the tostaditas de campechana and thought it was a good mix of flavors, this is 3 bites of food. I ordered a mojito which seemed freshly made but a little sweet. We also got tiny bubbles and the pineapple paloma. The drinks were average. I look forward to going back! read more

Caracol - Raw oysters - half dozen - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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