Tex Mex Bar & Grill

How is it possible I have gone this long without writing a review?!
Tex Mex is so close to my house that the smells and sounds are constantly wafting in my window. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been lured in.
Derek and Kim are awesome bartenders — very friendly and just all around fabulous people!
Some of the food is great (I recommend the nachos and mini-​burritos) and some of the other food is mediocre at best. Honestly, if my review was solely based on food they would get a 2 star rating, but I have so much fun at Tex Mex and the people are so wonderful, I had to bump it up a bit :]

This is strictly a happy hour review:
I went to Tex Mex to celebrate the last full-​work day of the school year. We wanted drinks and a bite to eat.
The drinks were so-​so. Small, not very strong, but fairly cheap ($ 4 for a mini-​margarita).
The food was literally a bite. All happy hour food is aptly named «mini _​_​_​_​_​_​» I ordered the mini chicken nachos. It was four chips, each topped with cheese and a small piece of chicken.
Considering all the other happy hours for similar prices with much better options, I wouldn’t go back to this place.

Okay their taco tuesday is pretty bomb. Nothing special besides that. Dont get their chicken nachos not sooo good.
I went here a second time for cinco de mayo and the quality of the tacos was not the same. So i have to go back and give it a 3^rd try. But overalll they are okay for a mexican restaurant.

I guess I must have been lucky, because neither the food nor the service was as horrible or wanting as described in previous posts. In fact, the hostess/​bartender girl was quite nice, and sat us quickly. The busboy was over quickly with water and chips & salsa (which were not stale, but I didn’t particularly care for them; guess my standard is Chevy’s-type chips). Our server came over very quickly, and took our order with no problem, being very efficient and courteous in explaining the coupon we brought in with us.
My two-​item combo consisted of a carnitas soft taco and mini chicken burrito, both of which came out quickly and fresh and hot. Loved them both… hubby’s two-​item combo of tamale and crispy beef taco was declared a success.
This being our first visit to Tex Mex, we were both very happy with our experience, and would not hesitate to come back, especially to try their Happy Hour, which looks very tempting and full of options.
Except for the chips, I would have given Tex Mex a 5-​star review. Also, very glad they moved from their old location on 8^th St; this location is MUCH better!

Tex Mex is literally the best place on Earth. $ 1 Miller High Life, check. $ 1 street tacos, check. Well, that’s basically all I need for a place to be perfect, but Tex Mex has so much more! The bartenders are awesome. The music is awesome. They give free shots out to everyone at the bar anytime Mas Tequilla, by Sammy Hagar plays. That’s right, the everyone gets a free shot! Free!
You can’t beat the location. 24^th and J is so central it hurts. There is always parking. It’s close to everything. They have a patio with lots of seating so you can watch and judge everyone in the real world who is not enjoying a delicious $ 1 High Life. They also give you free chips and salsa. Nom nom. The food menu is pretty decent. I usually stick to the small plates, but I’ve had the entrees too. Tex Mex comes complete with booths, bar seating, table seating and a pretty comfortable lounge area.
It’s in the same location as Taco Loco used to be… aka: upgrade! This is place 5 stars all day long.

I wanted to see what the hype was all about with the Happy Hour here. I heard it was pretty solid, so last night I went to check it out with a girlfriend of mine.
I liked that this place is within walking distance from my house, and I also liked that they have pretty good Happy Hour specials.
What I didn’t like:
— Horrible service: our server took forever to greet us, so we missed Happy Hour by a couple minutes. After we got our first order, she was no where to be found, so missed the Small Plate Specials which ended at eight.
— No Happy Hour Menu. Just employees trying to tell you what the specials are by memory in a super loud bar. Good luck with that.
We ordered the small plate burritos, nachos and tacos. The nachos were delicious, however, the burritos and tacos were just okay. I might go back, eventually, but not anytime soon!

I finally gave Tex Mex a try and must say I was pleasantly surprised. As mentioned by many other reviewers, this is a great happy hour destination. The food, drinks, music and a vibrant crowd (in no particular order) are everything you could ask for.
Yes, they have $ 1 Miller High Lifes, but $ 3 for a premium beer is the better bargain in my book. As for food, I had the $ 3 happy hour special, two taco plate. Though $ 3 sounds like a real bargain for two tacos, once you see the size you’ll realize though it’s not a bad price, it isn’t quite as good as it initially sounds. We’re talking about two very small tacos here with very minimal fillings. Despite being rather small, the tacos did pack a lot of flavor and were quite enjoyable. In addition to the tacos, the chips and salsa are definitely quality as well. In addition to the tacos, the happy hour offerings also include nachos for $ 4. Though I didn’t try them, they sounded good and for the price, were probably the real bargain.
I probably would not choose this place merely as a restaurant option, but for a happy hour in the bar with food and drinks it is perfect and I will definitely be back.

I admit it, I’m a happy hour whore and Tex Mex is my new pimp daddy.
It’s long from 3−8ish. They have a variety of foods from tamales, tacos, mini burritos, etc as well as free chips and salsa. $ 2-​$ 3 dollars for various beers or margaritas and half off ALL tequila shots!
On Tues and Thurs they have $ 1 street tacos and $ 1 miller high lifes.
If the song «mas tequila» comes on, everyone gets a free shot of tequila! So bring some dollars for that jukebox and have that DD ready!
Hit it up soon cause I wouldn’t be surprised if they changed the prices. It’s a friggin steal.

Although the service was a little «meh» I’m giving it 4stars because I think people should give it a shot.
I thought the $ 4 Margarita (special) was AWESOME and delicious! We also ordered the Nachos, which are the type that are individually piled. I didn’t think they were going to be good but they were also AWESOME. The carne asada there is worth buying on its own and bringing home. Very flavorful and tender… I’ll go back again for sure.

Remember in 4^th grade when Ms. Blankenship’s annual project was to have her students construct a diorama of a make-​believe restaurant? You had to give it a name, create a menu with appetizer, entrée and dessert items, include the pricing with the proper tax amount written in the margins and then you had to present your fantasy business endeavor in front of all your classmates. Remember that?
Well, the humdrumly named «Tex Mex Bar & Grill» is one 4^th grade diorama that somehow came into full fruition on 24^th and J Street.
The menu is not very creative, the décor is haphazardly thrown together and just doesn’t seem like it knows what type of clientele it wants to attract.
I’ve eaten here on 5 separate occasions and I am wowed every time at the bullishness of the kitchen staff’s attempts to save the restaurant a few cents by skimping on every plate I’ve ordered.
The first time I visited, I ordered the carnitas. The plate arrived with a pile of pork meat about the size of my clinched fist. Dietitians will tell you, «Well that’s the perfect amount!»
Piss off Dr. Dean Edell, I just polished off an entire basket of tortilla chips prior to this platter arriving. Does it look like I’m dieting?
The silver-​dollar sized dollops of sour cream, pico de gillo and guacamole are not helping this situation either.
Then I open the plastic tortilla warmer and to my surprise, two, yes, two tortillas! Again, what’s with the skimping? I detest asking for more tortillas, it just bothers me. And three is the low-​ball minimum most restaurants have established to give its customers that order fajitas/​carnitas platters. Two? That’s bold.
I can report to you that the carnitas were pretty bland. Too much Tex (white, dry, conservative) and not enough Mex (Spicy, fatty, dangerous).
HAH! And don’t order the salads. Jesus Christe, I don’t know what I was thinking on the 3^rd visit. I ordered a «steak salad» and it honestly looked like someone just sprinkled Baco Bits all over it. (Don’t get me wrong, it was grilled steak, but probably 1oz of it). Again, STOP SKIMPING. $ 10 for a head of lettuce is silly and makes me feel like I’m a manatee.
It’s a 1 star for the food, 1 star for the friendly staff and 1 star for a bar that seems to have some damn good happy hour deals that I probably will never use to my advantage.

Three words… DOLLAR, TACO, TUESDAY!!!
That’s right people, your choice of carnitas, chicken, steak, bbq pork, and FISH! I ate 7 tacos a few weeks back and left with a deliciously serious case of expanded «taco-​belly». What’s even better is that while staggering out the door like Kevin Smith being thrown off a Southwest flight, I could only think to myself «I can’t wait until next Tuesday».
They have a ton of great happy hour deals that include various combinations of tacos, nachos, burritos, tequila, and beer. And let me be clear, when I say combinations, I literally mean 4 tacos+tequila shot+draft beer was on the specials board for $ 10 the other night. I would say they are worth a visit even if you’re just looking for a solid happy hour $ 3 draft beer, or budget tequila shot.
All-​in-​all, the food is pretty darn good, but not to be compared it to all the other mexican food around town. It’s «tex-​mex» after all, and at this point, they’re worth trying just for a little change in pace. I have been focused on the delightful Tuesday night taco frenzy, but my friends love the veggie burrito as well as the happy hour nacho plate. I am usually split between the fish tacos and bbq pork (sometimes I throw in a grilled chicken or carnitas). All of the varieties as I have said… are basic, simple and delicious. I love being able to order a variety of street tacos along with a couple beers (on top of some very yummy free chips and salsa)… and always leave feeling like it was a steal.
I will point out that this past Tuesday night there were some pretty crazy service issues going on. As in, one server running the entire floor throughout happy hour. She really seemed to keep it together and stayed friendly and patient throughout. Eventually a manger or bar-​back person started backing her up and things were fine, but I did notice there are a few other folks who had similar experiences (or worse) below. This needs to be resolved ASAP.
I will continue to give them my regular Tuesday business and hope that the staffing issues are ironed out. Perhaps the management can respond or explain here, but either way I’ll keep everyone posted!

This place fails on a few levels.
We arrived at midday on a Saturday, not exactly a hopping time, but at least half the booths and tables were occupied. The restaurant had one waitress. She ran around as fast as she could, but it was obvious they had understaffed her.
While the place looks nice and the art on the walls is pretty groovy, they didn’t have any music playing. There was just the awkward silence of people who are slowly realizing they have patronized the wrong restaurant and are now stuck.
When I went to order the carnitas I was told that it wasn’t ready yet. At 12:30 on a weekend. I’ll forgive this in a place that’s been open for a very short time and is figuring out their logistics, but Tex-​Mex has been open for 3 months.
The food was decent, but definitely didn’t blow me away, particularly not for the price.
I would kill (and by kill I mean lightly maim) for a decent taqueria in midtown with decent hours.

I have lived in Texas, and I love TexMex, almost as much as I love college football, but this place is no bueno. It has an identity complex. The bar is this wierd shishi underlit thing which would be kinda neat but if you remember anything about highschool science you might be reminded that light and heat go hand in hand and this bar is really warm, which means your beer gets warm and warm beer sucks!
I had steak fajitas, which were just ok. What was good was it was a perfect mix of onions and peppers. What was bad was that I got 2 tortillas with a plate of fajitas. And a little tiny scoop of picco. And when I asked for more tortillas it took forever, as in I just ate the fajitas without the tortillas long (it was not busy that night). And without the tortillas the fajitas were really salty, which brought them from a four to a three. That and warm beer brings you from a three to a two.

After flaking on me a couple times, a friend and I finally made it to Happy Hour here a couple weeks ago.
We both got the $ 3 margaritas which were tasty and pretty strong. Good thing the restaurant was in walking distance of our apartments!
We also went for the guacamole, also tasty, but we were given a very small portion for the price.
For dinner we ordered off the small plates menu. Prices were really good, $ 3 for a quesadilla, burrito, tamale, or nachos, $ 1 for a fish, chicken, or I think steak or maybe carnitas taco.
I ordered the quesadilla and was pretty disappointed. It’s hard to mess a quesadilla up, but theirs was not great. The chicken was super dry and the only flavor I could taste was pepper, even over the cheese and salsa.
My friend ordered the fish taco and seemed to enjoy it, but I didn’t get a taste.
Was not too much of a fan of the ambiance either. We sat at the bar and I felt like a child with the seats pretty low and the bar up to my chin. I had expected a comfortable/​homey feel based on the casual cuisine and the patio feel on the outside but it seemed like they went too far in the direction of a modern club with mirrored surfaces and neon lights.
Probably won’t be heading back here any time soon.

At the recommendation of a friend, Tex Mex became the location for Sunday-​Funday! I had been to this location when it was under a different name, so, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I got there. Let me say this, upon first glance, this place looked like quite the happening spot! The artwork is colorful and vibrant along with the lights that are up on the wall behind the bar.
The bartender is extremely cute — I am a sucker for tall, bald men! At any rate, my group of 4 sat down and we ordered a simple cheese quesadilla and the Texas style nachos. Both were fantastic! Very tasty. The nachos are not your normal ‘toss in a bunch of tortilla chips, cover with beans, cheese and meat… these were individual tortilla chips with beans covered with melted cheese, a spoonful of guac and topped with meat (we had steak). Lets just say it was a mouthful of meaty goodness!
The one thing that I wasn’t too thrilled about was the salsa. It was very runny. no chunks of tomatoes, onions etc… made it difficult to put on the chip.
The atmosphere was good. You could watch TV and still be able to carry on a conversation with your friends. The happy hour looks ever so enticing, soo, I think I will have to venture there again!

Good fajitas, but they only gave TWO! tortillas for the plate of veggies and meat. WTF?
Plus the complimentary chips/​salsa they give at the beginning are the saltiest things I’ve ever tasted. Gross!
But, the happy hour is pretty good. $ 3 for a pretty tasty margarita. And the outdoor patio was good for people watching, so… you can definitely do better, but if you’re in the area — it’s fine, *shrugs*.

Stopped in on Sunday November 21^st, 2010 for their Sunday Happy Hour which runs from 10 A.M. to 8 P.M. along with the NFL Package on DirectTV.
I was immediately greeted by our bartender, Derrick, who is the consummate professional and immediately took my order. From $ 1 16oz High Life Pints on Tap; to $ 2 Bottled Beer — both imports and domestics; along with $ 3 Margaritas, $ 3 Premium Drafts, and $ 3 Small Plate Appetizers this place offered it all! Each beer was frosty cold!
Kim, another bartender, came in to relieve Derrick later in the afternoon around 2:30 and did an amazing job as well ensuring that my beer was always full — checking my bottle to ensure it wasn’t empty and if it was replacing it. It’s always nice especially when watching a sporting event; that you don’t have to track down the bartender!
The steak nachos — were a unique concept; each individual nacho had the meat, guacamole, sour cream, lettuce, and all of the items on top of each and every single one. The full size lunch nachos for $ 12 were quite filling with a heaping piece of steak on each one. The portions of steak were considerably greater than the happy hour version.
The mini burritos — two of them with choice of meat; and tacos were also filling choices off the happy hour menu; along with the happy hour portion of 4 nachos.
As some of the reviewers have mentioned — the main flaw for Sunday Football is the brand of television Heier, along with the fact that they can only show 3 games at once on their 5 screens; however, Derek mentioned that this will be fixed within a few weeks with new TV’s arriving. When this place is fully stocked with TV’s this will be ther premier spot for Sunday Football. Derrick was even willing to put the sound on for the Tennessee Titans — a rarity here in Sacramento.
I have been a loyal MVP’s fan for Sunday Football on 21^st and L — and this place blows it out of the water.
Coming from Seattle, WA — I was quite impressed with the service by Derrick and Kim; and look forward to seeing them behind the heated bar again soon. Honestly this is the 1^st time I ever been in the place since it’s been Taco Loco or met either of these two bartenders.

Disappointed to say the least.
It is technically the closest bar & restaurant to my house. I REALLY wanted this place to kick butt. I will give it another shot because i REALLY want it to be good but here are my issues as of now:
1. If you are going to spend a ton of money remodeling, spend a few hundred extra bucks on good TV’s. we went there to watch the playoffs and supposedly they were HD tv’s but it looked like someone was holding rabbit ears kind of picture.
2. I am tall with a very long upper body and when I sat at the bar, my head was barely above my glass. They put a glass cover on the old bar which raised the bar level and they bought normal bar stools. No bueno.
3. The food was ok at best.
Positives.
Service was great. Food a bit slow coming out. Prices were ok, food was decent priced, happy hour prices were great.

10/​26/​2010
I was a big fan when they were located downtown on 8^th street. Now they are in the heart of midtown Sacramento. For a Tuesday evening, there 6 people at the bar and 8 others around the dining room
Our server, with short, shorts, was pleasant, and was always refilling our drinks without us having to ask her. this is a very casual and laid back place.
I ordered the Dos XX Beer Batter Fish tacos. Good size portion. Perfectly complimenting flavors and textures (the crunchy batter on fish make a huge difference) The chipotle aioli & cilantro lime dressing was nice and spicy. Mouth-​watering, colorful eye appeal, puts Tex Mex Bar & Grill at the top of my what to get for lunch or dinner list. A big, fat thumbs up!

This was the first time I’ve been at this place. It’s only been open for two week, so I wasn’t expecting it to be too great. I was really surprised from the start how good this place is. They have three different salsas, but I liked the habanera salsa the best. It had a nice kick as well as great flavor. It was recommended by our waitress. I had the enchiladas in a mole sauce. It was really awesome. The presentation on the plate was very colorful as well as flavorful. The beans had bacon and beer. I am not a bean fan, but I finished my plate. My partner had the carnitas which were good, but he said he’s had better. The carnitas were cut into small pieces which he said isn’t the way it should be really served.
The service was really good and attentive. Our waitress kept checking on us to make sure the food was good.
I will definitely be back. I can’t wait to try the margaritas.