Swamp Tails

Go here every few weeks to get my fix on Cajun food and its delicious. And the staff is so nice especially the manager. Great atmosphere. Great food. Great Drinks.

My boyfriend and I visited college station, and we tried this place out. The beer was great, the food was even better! We had the crawfish étouffée, grilled alligator bites, and fried pickles. The étouffée was our favorite and had the just the right amount of spice! Great pick.

My friend and I recently tried out Swamp Tails, deciding for Cajun food while continuing to cross out our checklist of
We went on a Saturday, when they were doing crayfish by the pound ($ 6.50/lb), and while they had a nice Aggie baseball game on most of the big screens.
Since it was the beginning of the summer break, they weren’t too busy, and we were immediately greeted and seated by the hostess. Our waitress recommended the Crawfish Étouffée and the crawfish by the pound. We got both, along with Shrimp Jambalaya and the Seafood Gumbo (each pictured).
The crawfish by the pound arrived first, in a huge platter, along with some corn, sausage, and potatoes. I definitely enjoyed the casual eat-​and-​chat experience, and the crawfish seasoning certainly offered a punch, but without the extra butter sauce which we later ordered, the flavor didn’t quite do it for me (maybe missing some lemon?). I’d highly recommend getting the extra butter sauce in the future.
The Crawfish Étouffée and the Seafood Gumbo arrived next, and what a disparity they were! The Crawfish Étouffée had big juicy chunks of crawfish meat, and the sauce was spicy but not overpowering; it was a very nice recommendation by the waitress. The Seafood Gumbo, on the other hand, had very little seafood, and the gumbo itself was way too salty.
Finally, the Shrimp Jambalaya arrived, and surprisingly, it was more similar to a pasta dish (think Spicy Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo) than a rice dish or a thick stew. To be fair, the menu stated that it was their take on Shrimp Jambalaya, and it was pretty tasty, as the shrimp were nice and juicy, and the creamy but spicy sauce was representative of Cajun food.
I would have liked to try the Alligator Bites and the New Orleans Barbecued Shrimp, but overall this place seems to be very hit or miss, depending on what you order. A little more consistency, especially in their signature crawfish boil, would be greatly appreciated.

Native Cajun checking out the local spots!
Boudin balls — still had casing, oh no Cher!
Red beans and rice — no flavor and dry
Seafood gumbo — very good flavor but roux too dark
Crawfish — great flavor BUT way too hard to peel, wasted almost hall because they broke off in the tail!
Note to chef — could be one of a kind but you gotta step it up Cher and add butter and lemons to that crawfish boil and you’ll be A+!!!

Yep, have eaten here too.
There was a time that College Station lacked any Cajun food. There used to be a place called Crazy Cajun’s over on College Main (which was great and replaced the only Thai food since 2004) and at the same time a food shack behind Taco Bell on University called Herbert’s which was not actually a restaurant — Herbert’s was a spotter for tow truck companies to tow cars parked in the Albertson’s Grocery store carcass, and he and family were making food at home and transporting it to that shack outside of health department requirements.
And then there was none.
Swamp Tails opened where several failed businesses have been located, most recently a Mexican local chain. Restaurants always fail here because they are on a high speed road with no safe turn lane and no one wants to risk their life nor being run over by a fake cowboy in a giant speeding pick up truck that has never been on dirt, just for food.

The food we tried was overly salty which is typical of Cajun. Service was great and it’s nice to have this as an option.

I eat lunch here every few weeks and there are two things I get. When I’m feeling hungry I get the redfish grilled with crawfish étouffée over it. The sides of potatoes and beans are pretty simple, but the redfish is real, and in fact they are often out of it for that reason. It’s delicious, and I was so happy to find a Gulf fish rather than catfish or tilapia.
The other thing I get are the crab cakes, usually as a salad. Now I used to live on the Chesepeake Bay, and have rate my share of crab cakes. These were… Odin a really good way. They tasted very earthy and herbal… like a lot of thyme and file powder was used.
It’s not authentic Cajun. I don’t care, really. It’s tasty and honest and the owner is cool.

Overpriced and way way too spicy. Even my Potato salad was extremely spicy. Alligator bites were expensive for not having more than 8. Shrimp poy boy was on a very small bun.

Food: Came here with a friend for dinner. Ordered its all day lunch special Shrimp Basket and Crawfish Etouffe. The portion was filling for dinner but the taste wasn’t anything special. There are better Cajun place in CS.
Price: All day special $ 8. Pretty good price for seafood. Took pictures of the menu.
Service: The server was nice and helpful.
Atmosphere: Reminds me of being in a boat. Big, casual place so good place for group parties.
Rating: ³⁄₅ (would rate it 3.5 if I could). However, I’d come here again with the Hooked deal app (20% off bill).

My, my, my! This location has been a total disaster for restaurants in the past. Anyone remember Salty Dog? Please keep Swamp Tails alive!
My secret lunch spot with the best Cajun food in Bryan/​College Station! Yeah you can go up the street on University to dine at the «Other» place, but it sure won’t be as tasty and authentic. I’m considering having a birthday party here. People are often impressed by the ambiance… You wouldn’t believe how many natives have never visited this location.
Get some wifi and more lunch options and you’ll have to fight to get in there for lunch!

Came here for dinner with 3 friends, and we all enjoyed it immensely. I got the boudin balls for appetizer and the shrimp poboy that came with cajun chips or a potato salad. The balls were super tasty and there were enough to share with everyone at the table plus some. They didn’t skimp on the shrimp at all, and it tasted quite fresh. My friend from Louisiana thought it was on point as well! For dessert, we shared the pound cake with whiskey glaze. It was so soft and so moist and so flavorful! I’ve never had pound cake quite so good. I think we might have been too loud with our praise because the owner came by and told us how his mother-​in-​law makes it and they run out all the time. Seriously, get the poundcake! Our waitress, Hannah (or Anna), was really sweet and cheerful and came to check on us the right amount of times. In total my meal came out to be $ 17 – 18 including tax and tip, and I took home some boudin balls and half of my poboy. The only problem is that there is no cellular service here. Come with good company!
Definitely coming back, maybe just to eat the poundcake! :)

Swamp Tails is a great place to get some good Cajun food in the BCS area.
It’s a cute, awesome place — great place to watch a game. The food is very good — the étouffée and grits are amazing! The owner is personable and wants to make sure everyone is happy! Great place!

The «Boudin Balls!» YES! The «Fried Boudin Balls» are so good they’ll make you slap ‘yo Momma! (Note: Not MY Momma! She slaps back!!)
This time, I got more creative than I did in my previous review.
I had been craving some real Gumbo; Not that stuff they call «Gumbo» on the OTHER side of town… FEEL ME? :)
Swamp Tails is the place for that real, authentic, «Down-​Home» legit Gumbo.
I ordered a Bowl of the «Seafood Gumbo» with a cup of «Chicken & Sausage Gumbo» on the side.
***GENIUS!!!***
Oh my! What a great combination (for me). That’s just the way I like my Gumbo. I want «everything» in that bowl; all swimming together.
The «Luscious Goodness» prevails!

Went here for dinner with my friends.
Nice variety of beers on their draft list, they had karbach love street.
Alligator bites: it was very unique, we had these blackened, it definitely help bring out the flavors, kind of tasted like chicken and pork
Oyster poboy: was eh, nothing too special, the kettle chips were a bit salty and too brown, it tasted burnt

OK, some people told me about this place and I said it wouldn’t last at that location. MAN I hope I’m wrong. The food was GREAT!!! I always like eating at local places and not chain restaurants and this is a must stop and eat place if your in town.
Had the Gator Burger, first time for everything, and the flavor was out of this world. I am not sure what the sauce was on the burger but I have to try and make that myself. I used my fries to mop up the dripping — HIGLY RECOMMEND IT. Next time, and there will be a next time, I will ask for extra sauce just for the fries.
Also, looks like a place the entire gang can hang out to watch some football.

College Station really needed a place like this! It’s not pretentious or fancy — but it’s definitely a great find. How have we lived so long without this place? We came here on a weekend night for dinner with a group of friends.
Our server was great and did a wonderful job recommending different foods for us. We ended up trying alligator bites for an appetizer. Yep, deep fried alligator meat. I had never had it before and I am surprised at how well it tasted. It seemed like a really moist delicious chicken. I highly recommend it if you’re in the mood for something different.
I also ended up getting crawfish étouffée for dinner. I really loved how spicy and amazing it was. I highly recommend getting if you’re not sure what you want. The only thing I wish that were a bit better were if they had printed drink menus. Other than that, great place! Highly recommend it :)

Batter was a little too salty on the calamari but I really enjoyed the étouffée over cheesy grits. Will definitely be back.
Our waitress wasn’t very knowledgeable about the menu but I will give a pass since the place is still pretty new.
We will be back.

FINALLY, some really awesome Cajun grub that I can get local! We had the fried boudin balls with their special sauce (that truly was special!) and the crawfish ettouffee. The food was seriously flavor-​rich. The portions are huge… so sharing is totally an option. I like the extra large booths too.

Having lived in New Orleans for 15 years and friends with a few chefs, it was great to stumble upon this place. I had not heard of the restaurant and only came across when trying to get from South College Station to North Bryan via Welborne.
The menu is very interesting and covers basic Cajun and Creole cuisine. I decided to try a Po’ Boy. I couldn’t decide between fried oyster or fried shrimp. As I did in New Orleans many times, I asked for combination of both and they were willing to accommodate the request. It came fully dressed (lettuce, tomatoes, etc.) with a full load of oysters and shrimp. It was served on a roll which was pretty soft. I prefer the traditional crusty French bread which has a nice crunch. The Po’ Boy was served with a Cajun spice which slight, but overly seasoned with a Zatarains type seasoning making it rather salty. The batter in which the oysters and shrimp also had a lot of Zatarains type spice, adding to the salty taste. There just seems an over use of the spice.
The menu is intriguing and certainly will draw me back. The staff is very friendly. Nice environment for a lunch. I’ll be back for an evening meal and try their draft brews.

Great atmosphere and staff! Highly recommend starting with the Crab Au Gratin. It’s absolutely decadent. The Crawfish Étouffée is unbelievable. It’s served over grits which is a welcome twist that makes it an unbelievably delicious meal. We finished off with pound cake that tasted like the best homemade cake you’ve ever had. The prices are also very reasonable.
We will definitely be back to this little gem. Even though it’s more than an hour away from us! Actually, I told the staff that I’d rather drive an hour to eat there than wait an hour to eat anywhere else!
Try it! You will be pleased!

First time at Swamp Tails.
Server was Dennis.
Came alone at a slow 2:00 pm
Initially, the place has great appearance. Plenty of seating and well placed flat screen TVs. So far, food is good. I got the gator bites. I chose to have them fried. The fry isn’t too crunchy which goes well with the consistency of the gator. There’s a tasty spicy creole sauce on the side called their «Swamp Tails Sauce». I also ordered a side of their Cajun French fries. Thick sliced potato wedge-​like. They’re a little soft. If you’re a crispy thin, crispy kind of fry lover, these aren’t for you, however I am sure you’ll still enjoy them. Cajun seasoning on them is tasty as well.
Overall, the place is great, and Dennis did a good job. I will definitely come back to try their key lime pie.
I agree with Doc X, the location isn’t exactly convenient but it isn’t out of town, but I hope that doesn’t stop the place. Better than Shipwreck without a doubt.