I recently had my first visit to Red River Cantina, in League City, Texas. I was primarily looking…read morethrough yelp for a restaurant that served Tex-Mex, and this was the first restaurant that popped up in my area with a "very good" rating. As I write this review, this restaurant currently has a rating of 4.0 stars with 380 reviews. Before coming, I also reviewed several pictures that other folks have posted on yelp, and I thought I'd give this place a try.
The outside of this restaurant is well lit and inviting. Parking is plentiful, and they have several handicapped parking spots for folks who need that. Upon entry, I was immediately seated in one of their booths by their hostess. The busboy came out a few minutes later, bringing some fresh chips and two kinds of salsa. The busboy didn't seem too friendly; he didn't say a word or even crack a smile.
My waitress came out a couple of minutes later, and her name was Eliza C. She was friendly and professional, and she was attentive to my dinnertime needs throughout my experience.
The chips and salsa they serve here are amazingly good. While I decided what I wanted to eat for dinner, I couldn't stop eating them! I ordered one of their "Maximina's Build Your Own Cominados," choosing an order with two items. For my two items, I ordered an enchilada with beef picadillo, and I ordered a crispy taco with beef picadillo. I ordered my meal with a side of their Mexican rice and refried beans. I also ordered a Dr. Pepper with my meal.
My meal was delicious. The refried beans were excellent, and they had a smoky/bbq taste to them. The Mexican rice was delicious as well. They did an excellent job on my enchilada and taco, and they provided a generous filling with beef on both. They were delicious as well. The Dr. Pepper was also refreshing, and I appreciated that they served it in a glass rather than a plastic mug.
One thing I noticed in their menu is that they appear to pay attention to folks who have vegetarian and/or gluten free needs in their diet. This doesn't effect me, but it is appreciated, so kudos to the management for that. Unfortunately, I also noticed that they require a mandatory "large party fee" for parties of 8 or more, which is 20%. This didn't effect me either, but it would be annoying to me if I were in a large party. I think this is unnecessary, presumptuous, and a little annoying. It is essentially a tip that is mandatory, regardless of the quality of the food or the service. If you have a large party, just make sure you don't add another tip on top of this mandatory tip (for the large party) without realizing this. The management should reconsider this annoying practice.
Overall, I had an excellent (almost perfect) experience here. I would definitely come here again the next time I'm in the area.
In addition to this review, be sure to check out all my pictures if you'd like to get more detail on this location, some of which are attached to this review.