Vermillion Restaurant and Watering Hole — Restaurant in Brownsville

This place is always jam packed with people that'll even wait over an hour to be seated. To be completely honest, I dont understand why. Yes, the staff is ready to tend to you and make you feel welcome but the food leaves a whole lot to be desired. My wife and I went to Vermillion last night because we were able to finally find a babysitter and have a night to our selves and we were totally disappointed. About the food, enchiladas "our pride and joy" (it says it on the menu) are covered with what appears to be canned chili sauce which isnt authentic Mexican at all. The fajitas were very soft but bland at best. The plate was overloaded with refried beans and rice which pretty much all remained on my plate at the end of my meal. I ordered a flour tortilla but damn it was closer to a piece of crunchy cardboard. The last thing that left us with a bitter taste as we walked out was the bill. Paid about 50 dollars for a 25 dollar meal on a good day. I really want to like Vermillion, but it seams that every time we give it a chance we end up going home with a feeling of disappointment. Itll be a good while before we even consider trying it...

For newbies to the area, like us: this is worth a try! It’s a local institution—a friend whose family has lived here for 3 generations recommended it. We went together with our husbands for dinner, specifically for the nachos and micheladas. If you are a gringo like me who likes fresh toppings on their nachos, ask for lettuce and cilantro on top. If you like avocado, guacamole, sour cream/crema, limes, or onions, you can ask for those too. Otherwise, they comes with meat, refried beans, and cheese only. The melty-ness of the cheese is just divine. I had a michelada using Stella Artois, which was refreshing and really cuts through the greasiness of a good nacho. You can choose local beers, standard beers, or Mexican beers, too. My friend’s spouse asked for a whisky neat, but they don’t carry hard liquor at the moment. The dining area is on the smaller side. Get a booth if you can; they feel inviting, private, and home-like. Give it a try! At the very least, you won’t regret it. We stayed till closing, and will be back again...

I went to Brownsville to visit my sister and I took her to Vermilion for lunch. I will speak for what I ate only. I ordered the lunch special which was chicken fried steak with fries and vegetables. I have eaten there many times, especially in the sixties. My plate arrived and looked very good I started by eating the steak first. The meat was rather thick for that type of fried steak. I didn't enjoy the steak at all. My sister said it was because I ordered brown gravy instead of white gravy. The fries were undercooked but the vegetables were great. As a practice, I never send food back I just tolerate it till I give up. This won't stop me from trying it again as this was our hangout from high school. I usually order beer with my food but this time I asked for a glass of water. Well, I feel sorry for people in Brownsville if that is what the city offers you to drink. Brings back a lot of memories going there. The people working in there were very friendly and it was very clean in the...