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    Ray's Drive Inn

    3.8 (410 reviews)
    ModerateTex-Mex, Tacos
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Ray's Drive Inn Photos

    Business Info

    RAY'S DRIVE INN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Ray's Drive Inn

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    Mexican plate
    Roger W.

    Awesome place. Food was wonderful and plentiful. We ended up taking 3 boxes home because we couldn't eat it all. Our waitress was wonderful as well Would definitely recommend and will try to come back before we leave town.

    Jenny G.

    These are pretty good puffy tacos. We opt to eat in as it can be a bit messy eating in the car and it needs to eat fresh. The best is the chicken and the beef. The taco does get greasy so make sure you have napkins. Our least favorite is the fish puffy taco. There was no flavor. Overall a good experience.

    Ground beef puffy taco
    Sabrina R.

    The most delicious puffy tacos you will ever eat! Anytime in San Antonio I come out here to eat their puffy tacos. Even with an abundance of puffy tacos places in SA, this one is the best!! Their shells are crispy and don't fall apart.

    Complimentary chips and salsa
    Bradly P.

    Ray's Drive inn home of the trademarked Puffy taco is located in San Antonio, TX offering Tex Mex and classic Mexican dishes at its original spot since they opened for business in 1956! We came through on a weekday after watching a YouTube video on things to do when visiting San Antonio and put Ray's on our list and headed to the restaurant. The parking is a tad bit small and limited cars are able to park probably due to the fact they have been open since 1956. As we walked in, we were greeted by the staff and were seated, and drink orders were taken. We were given our menus and quickly browsed before placing our orders. We went ahead and ordered 2 puffy tacos one being carne guisada and the other a puffy fish taco. We also ordered the 3 cheese enchiladas which come with rice and beans along with the brisket and onions. For the kids we ordered a hamburger, fried pickles and cheese sticks. We were given complimentary chips along with salsa to munch on before our food came. Our food was ready in no time and was looking tastier than ever! A puffy taco is masa that is fried, and stuffed with meat and toppings such as cheese, tomatoes and lettuce. These tacos tasted great where they were deep fried golden brown to perfection were the guisada was tender and seasoned well. The 3 cheese enchiladas were rolled and wrapped in red tortillas smothered and topped with melted cheese with rice and beans along with shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes to compliment the dish. It also came with 2 fresh tortillas wrapped in aluminum foil to keep them warm. The brisket was smoked and seared with sauteed onions along with rice and beans. The meat was fork tender and the bark was as beautiful than ever. This dish offers tortillas or bread, and we opted for the bread. The cheese sticks and marinara sauce along with the fried pickles and ranch were the real deal and we really enjoyed munching on them throughout our dining experience. Overall, Ray's Drive inn was a good experience and I'm glad I got to be a part of history dining here. The food was good while the customer service to the patrons were great. I do like the abundance of choices this fine establishment offers along with the free refills on soda and fruit punch. Thank you, Ray!

    Complimentary chips and salsa
    Nancy G.

    Service: great! As soon as I walked in I was seated. Menus were provided quickly and the waitress took my drink order. Once food was ordered we received our order within 10 minutes Ambiance: there's background

    Special beef plate
    David R.

    This place is known for their puffy tacos! I got the special beef plate. It was well served and wasn't too heavy. They give complementary chips and salsa dip. The ambiance is vintage and walls are decorated with old pictures and furniture. Service was FAST and speedy. Area is kinda sus but this place is so good!

    Puffy tacos without meat
    Darlena H.

    Super fun, ambience environment great service and of course we had the puffy tacos, which were fabulous !

    Beef puffy tacos
    Lindsay S.

    First stop in SA. Got a couple beef puffy tacos (added cheese). Service was really quick and the tacos also came out very quickly after we ordered. We tried the lemonade this time around. Fresh squeezes and tart, very good. Would definitely suggest that over the water. No horchata or aguas :/ but not a deal since the tacos are where it's at :)

    Beef puffy taco plate and a crispy dog!
    Esme N.

    What a neat place! Came here for lunch and my party of 3 was seated right away. It was my very first time coming here and it definitely felt like home! I love all the funky decor. I ordered the ground beef puffy taco plate and crispy dogs as an appetizer. The crispy dog was the best one I've had. So delicious. This place is famous for their puffy tacos, though. I liked them, but I think the oil that the tortillas was fried in was not fresh and I could taste it. I also thought the rice was a bit dry. It had good flavor, but it was so subtle, it kinda just tasted like white rice. So I'd really like to see the flavor on the rice really amped up. The salsa that is served with the chips was not spicy at all and really disappointing. Also not a lot of flavor on that either. I'd come here again and bring folks from out of town! It's an experience for sure!

    Mexican Plate
    Rich M.

    For a second visit I recommended Ray's to a group of friends based on my initial visit and review. This time there was a Sunday lunchtime crowd and while the place is still interesting and the staff friendly they missed on a couple of critical items...food and service. First: Service. The person seemed very disinterested in giving decent service. Poor attitude, orders were wrong, drinks mixed up, and the ordering process was painful. It was almost as if they weren't listening at all. Second: Food, Fatty Carne Guisada. Mediocre beans and rice. Doughy/mushy puffy taco (was crunchy perfect last time), and muted flavors. It was all just OK. In this case I must complain more about the effect of inept service. Bad service can have the effect of spoiling one's appetite or being more critical of the food received. I felt "responsible" for recommending a place that didn't live up to expectations. I probably won't return. There are simply too many other Mexican restaurants to choose from. Bummer.

    Shannon R.

    We went to this restaurant based on a travel vlog we watched on YouTube (Matt & Nat). They are the inventors of the "puffy taco" and have a great selection of tex-mex cuisine. It looks like a place that is always busy. Luckily, we got a table pretty quickly and had food in front of us in under 15 minutes! We ordered mainly tacos but also a side of rice and avocado. I love when you can order avocado and not got guacamole (I can't eat raw onions). Their side order is just mashed avocado. Add a little salt and maybe lime and it's perfect! So good on all the tacos we ordered. We did a mix of puffy taco shells and soft corn tortillas. Everything was fresh and delicious and we loved the light, crunchy texture of the puff taco shell.

    Puffy tacos!
    Tri D.

    Service was top notch and grandma vibe which I loved . Food was delicious and came out pretty quick with their famous puffy tacos! If you come for dinner try to come early due to parking challenges. Overall, had a great time and would definitely come back

    Lizzie R.

    We stopped by because we read Puffy Tacos are a thing in San Antonio... So we decided to stop by BUT.... They were slow to seat us. The waitress took her time attending us.... It took 10+ min to seat us. It took about 10min to even get noticed after we were seated. Once she brought our waters, which took another 5 or so min! Our food was brought out after another painful 10min wait! The tortilla consistency was good (and it reminded me of sopes), however, the filling was not... I took a chance by ordering the carne guisada but it was inconsistent. I didn't realize the beef was ground beef rather than shredded beef. We ordered the Carne Guisada Fries as well, but all it had was sauce. It didn't have any meat, or cheese to be honest and it was literally the saddest thing we saw! We're not from Texas, so we will probably not return to the restaurant. Oh and most tables were empty! Other patrons were being served in a timely manner!

    Combo Plate: 1 Chicken puffy taco & 2 Chicken Enchiladas

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    1 month ago

    The service was fast & needs were ment . The lady's up front are helpful and work as a team. Will recommend.

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    28 days ago

    Good food. Horrible service. Never going back. Asked for a server twice after waiting 10 minutes. Hostess was rude and inconsiderate

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    3 months ago

    Puffy tacos lived up to all the hype. Ordered beef and were hot and delicious. Service couldn't have been better. Super friendly staff.

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    5 months ago

    First time here and we like it..Tacos were hot and service was outstanding! We waited only 5 mins for our foods...

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    Ray's Drive Inn Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Ray's Drive Inn

    What kinda of sauce is on the enchiladas is it carne quisada or enchilada sauce?

    They ask which you prefer, either sauce

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    Los Weyes de la Asada - EL TACO MAMON, EL FAVORITO DE MUCHOS, ARRACHERA, QUESO OAXACA, PIÑA ASADA, CEBOLLA, CILANTRO Y UNA TOQUE DE NUESTRA SALSA DE CHILE DE ÁRBOL

    Los Weyes de la Asada

    4.5(35 reviews)
    3.5 miDowntown

    There's a certain kind of joy you don't plan for, it just hits you. Like pulling up to your primo's…read morecarne asada, the loud one, the one where somehow the music is always right, the grill is always going, and for a few hours nothing else matters. That's exactly the energy at Los Weyes de la Asada. From the second you walk up, it feels alive. Not in a forced way, more like you've been there before, even if it's your first time. The kind of place where your stress, your diet, even your cruda takes a backseat. Now the food. No overthinking needed here. Everything coming out of that truck is a straight up pow pow of flavor. The carne is cooked just right, juicy with that perfect char, and the corn tortillas are legit, soft but with enough structure to hold everything together. I ordered the Mamón and the Chingón, and honestly, both lived up to the names. No misses. And the agua fresca de fresa? That sealed it. They serve it in a little bolsita, which somehow makes it hit even better. Simple, nostalgic, and just cool. It's all tucked inside El Camino, which adds to the whole vibe, string lights, people hanging out, that easygoing outdoor feel where you lose track of time a little.

    Finally made my way back and I was not disappointed! Everything was so good!! I'm assuming it was…read morethe owner, he helped me with my order. Muy guapo.

    Photos
    Los Weyes de la Asada - Outdoor seating

    Outdoor seating

    Los Weyes de la Asada - EL TACO RANCHERO, LA MEZCLA PERFECTA DE ARRACHERA Y CHORIZO, CON UN TOQUE DE CEBOLLAS ASADAS Y CHILES JALAPEÑOS

    EL TACO RANCHERO, LA MEZCLA PERFECTA DE ARRACHERA Y CHORIZO, CON UN TOQUE DE CEBOLLAS ASADAS Y CHILES JALAPEÑOS

    Los Weyes de la Asada - EL TACO CHINGON, UNA DELICIOSA MEZCLA DE SABORES TODO DENTRO DE UNA TORTILLA DE HARINA O MAÍZ HECHA A MANO

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    EL TACO CHINGON, UNA DELICIOSA MEZCLA DE SABORES TODO DENTRO DE UNA TORTILLA DE HARINA O MAÍZ HECHA A MANO

    Boudro's, a Texas Bistro - Fillet and Shrimp

    Boudro's, a Texas Bistro

    4.1(3.7k reviews)
    2.9 miDowntown
    $$

    I always feel very badly when I don't do a review of such an excellent restaurant and frankly…read moreBoudro's is an example of an exceptional restaurant. Firstly, the ambience is incredible. We were right on the river walk, but walked through the entire restaurant on our way to be seated and every bit of it is as lovely as where we ended up sitting. The Riverwalk, however, is a people watching place and so there really isn't any place in this particular restaurant which is not gonna be pleasant. Secondly, the service is exceptional. This is a very busy place. However, the waiter was simply incredible. Very attentive, very informative quite humorous. He was frankly part of the river walk entertainment. Extremely accommodating and instructive as well. You can't hope for much more from a server in Restaurant than this activity. The food is really quite good. How are the drinks. Extremely dependable and the portions are generous and equally wonderful. There are many places to dine in San Antonio. However, this is an experience not to be missed and I mean that quite sincerely. Kudos for a very, very well run well situated and well managed enjoyable place to dine on the river walk in San Antonio.

    Over-hyped, over-priced, unfriendly staff, watery drinks and terrible guacamole…read more My wife and I had a very bad experience while dining in this restaurant during the Fiesta San Antonio. Boudros was highly recommended by friends, and was the first restaurant on our list to dine in during our recent visit. We arrived at the restaurant on a Thursday around 7:45 pm and were told by a young Hostess that no walk-ins were allowed until after 9 pm. We decided to modify our itinerary and instead had dinner at a different restaurant on the riverwalk, and made a reservation for Boudros online for the following evening. When we arrived the following evening for our reservation at 7.30 pm, we were escorted to a small table in the bar that was next to the entrance to a small room. The area was noisy with a lot of foot traffic. We asked for a table in a quieter room and were moved to a room in the back of the restaurant where it was easier to have a conversation. A few minutes later our waiter, Stephen, approached the table. We asked him for drink recommendations and among others he recommended the "Prickly Pear Margarita". I ordered the Prickly Pear Margarita, and we also ordered the tableside Guacamole. The restaurant was busy, but there were several empty tables in our dining area. After about 15 to 20 minutes, the waiter brought our drinks. The Prickly Pear Margarita I received was not even close to the description on the menu. The ice was melted and it tasted like Fruit Punch with alcohol in a martini glass. A few minutes later, Stephen approached our table with the Guacamole cart. There were pieces of onions and cilantro all over the dirty table cloth on the cart. He prepared the Guacamole in front of us and it looked very unappealing. We watched as he added an excessive amount of diced onions and cilantro. Being a connoisseur of Guacamole, and making my own for most of my life, it was obvious that Stephen had not been trained well in how to make Guacamole. After he mixed the sliced avocados, the diced onions and cilantro, he wiped the edge of the stone tray with a dirty cloth. The onions and cilantro over powered the taste of the avocado. Later that evening, Stephen brought a very fancy drink for a customer sitting next to us. The drink looked like frozen lime juice with line of frozen strawberry and a nice scoop of frozen lime juice on top. I asked Stephen for the name of that drink, and he replied that it was the same drink that I had ordered. I asked why it looked so different and he muttered something about it being the end of the batch and then said "I'm not the Bartender". He blamed the Bartender for making the terrible drink, and made no effort to correct the problem. Later Stephen returned with our dinner, and as he approached our table, he ordered my wife to "move your glass!" Needless to say she was quite taken aback at his abrupt manner with no please or thank-you. In all the staff did not have a very good demeanor and were very sullen and grumpy. Even asking for directions to the bathroom barely elicited a glance and the needed information. Maybe the staff was overworked because of the number of visitors for the Fiesta, but the terrible, over-priced food, did not make up for the unhappy staff, and we do not plan to return.

    Photos
    Boudro's, a Texas Bistro - Private dining space

    Private dining space

    Boudro's, a Texas Bistro - Chicken enchiladas verdes

    Chicken enchiladas verdes

    Boudro's, a Texas Bistro - Signature margarita

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    Signature margarita

    Sanchos - Bistec Tacos Lunch Plate

    Sanchos

    4.2(658 reviews)
    2.6 miFive Points
    $

    As a 15 year plus downtown resident, this is our backyard. With 30 plus years in the hospitality…read morefield (now retired) I feel I can bring you real insight into our locations. The good, the bad and the ugly. If we run across a serious issue, I will always go directly to management and not post it. I truly believe you always must give management an opportunity to correct a serious issue. If not corrected and or just ignored, then I feel it is correct to inform the public - professionally. No establishment is perfect. I will bring to you smaller hiccups we may have come across. I will rarely comment on the taste of food - being bad, as that is a very personal thing. My wife and I disagree on taste of food and wine, no one is wrong or right. Now if the food is on fire, burned, under/overcooked to our requests, that would be mentioned. My favorite thing about our visit to SANCHOS was their hospitality. Sometimes things do not turn out as you think (the customers end). We had a scheduled event planned at SANCHOS, and some of the RSVPs didn't show up. Nothing changed at all from our server, he was simply amazing. Rearranged the tables to make it more suitable for us. And we received more one-on-one attention and interaction with him - he was amazing. Then the food and drinks. To say a solid happy hour menu for both drinks and food is an understatement. It is worth the Uber if you live downtown SATX! Had some amazing apps and drinks! The price point you can't beat! Live music every Thursday, SANCHOS has a real neighborhood feel to it, but has a downtown view. We will set up another Thirsty Thursdays event in the spring. PS on the happy hour bites - try the croquetas de Camaron - "take a cold shower good"! See you soon, just Cindi and I!

    The food is great but the service is slow and sometimes you're not even acknowledged. Tonight we…read morewalked out after being ignored for over 15mins. It's very discouraging because it's our favorite taco joint but the service is not the best, they need more servers on busy nights.

    Photos
    Sanchos - Cool setting for a good time. Too bad their food Sucks

    Cool setting for a good time. Too bad their food Sucks

    Sanchos - Picadillo (5) with arroz and beans

    Picadillo (5) with arroz and beans

    Sanchos - Picadillo (5) with arroz and beans

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    Picadillo (5) with arroz and beans

    Pete's Tako House

    Pete's Tako House

    4.3(1.5k reviews)
    3.3 miDowntown
    $$

    Here's a cleaner and more professional version that still keeps your personality and honest…read morefeedback: This restaurant is perfect for a date night. The atmosphere and lighting create a very intimate vibe, and the darker setting really helps it stand out from other restaurants in Laredo. Just a heads up -- they do have a dress code, which honestly adds to the overall experience. The food was excellent. I ordered the chicken mushroom plate, and all the flavors were bold and well balanced. For drinks, I highly recommend the Jardin Eden. The fusion of lavender, blueberry, fruity liqueurs, and aromatic herbs made it one of the best cocktails I've had in a while. My only complaint was the service. We had a party of 10+ people with only one server assigned to us. He was very kind and professional, but it was difficult to find him throughout the night, especially when we were trying to pay our checks. The restaurant also wasn't very busy at the time, so service felt slower than expected. Overall, this is still a great spot for a special night out, and I would definitely come back.

    Ordered a big delivery from here: street tacos for a small event- they were a huge hit! Received…read moremultiple inquiries on where the tacos were from. Thank you so much! Delivered quickly via DoorDash. Ordered the chicken, beef fajita and pastor street tacos- they come with 5 tacos per order. Friendly service and delicious, we work nearby and will be ordering again!!

    Photos
    Pete's Tako House
    Pete's Tako House - Poco De Todo

    Poco De Todo

    Pete's Tako House - Tortillas

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    Tortillas

    Ray's Drive Inn - tex-mex - Updated May 2026

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