La Fiesta — Restaurant in Houston

I tried this places years ago before writing reviews. I remembered it being good, but I didn’t remember it was 5 stars good! My aunt and I walked in with a multiple people ahead of us, so I was concerned the wait might be long. The interior of the restaurant is much larger than it appears on the outside. They have multiple seating options. The bar area with actual bar top seating, tables and chairs, plus booth options. The main dining area, also with table and chairs, plus booth options. There is also a patio area with tables and chairs. We were taken to a booth, by choice, tucked away in the corner of the restaurant. It was perfect for reduced noise level and being able to talk. We were quickly greeted by Beatriz and she took our drink order. Beatriz was warm and friendly with a big welcoming smile. We ordered two margaritas, a small queso, and studied the menu while we ate some chips and salsa. This chips are a little thick for my liking, but that was good in the sense that I didn’t eat too many before the meal. They only serve red salsa. Another good thing because I could eat my weight in the creamy green salsa that many Mexican restaurants serve in the area. I ordered the combo plate with one Taco al Carbon, one chicken flauta, and one chalupa with ground beef. My aunt ordered the Tacos al Carbon with Diablo shrimp. Both entrees came with rice and beans. We sipped on our tasty margaritas while waiting for our meal to arrive. Our dinner arrived within a good amount of time, but also not too quickly. I could tell it was freshly prepared. The portions are quite large. Everything was hot and tasty. I didn’t realize the flauta came with red sauce on top. I didn’t have my glasses on when ordering, so I missed the fine print. At first sight, I was concerned I may not like it, but it was delicious! The best flauta I’ve ever had! The plate came with sour cream, so the red sauced drizzled over the flauta then dipped in the sour cream was wonderful. The Taco al Carbon meat was tender and flavorful. The chalupa was on a plate by itself dressed with lettuce, cheese, and diced tomato’s. It was huge and very good! My aunt liked her meal as well. We were both stuffed and very pleased. Our tab, for 4 margaritas, a small queso, and 2 meals (with leftovers), was $81.00 before tip. I thought was pretty reasonable. Beatriz is a great waitress. Ask for her! The restaurant was clean with good energy. We were able to see some of the Astros game while dining (we won 8-4 against the Red Sox! Go Astros!) . I would highly recommend this place. I can see myself going again to try out the bar area and watch my Astros. I do have to mention one small issue. The parking area. It’s a very busy area, especially with the new pool hall, Woody’s Hideaway, that just opened 3 days ago. Most of the parking has signs reading 1 Hour Only from AM hours (I think it was 9 AM) til 7:00 PM. We arrived at 5:55 PM. We knew we would be in the restaurant longer than an hour, but decided to take a chance. It’s not monitored, as far as I can tell, but I am a rule follower by nature. We could see the vehicle from our table in the restaurant, so that helped. I figured we could run out to move the vehicle if needed. There are multiple businesses sharing the parking lot, including an extremely busy gas station that pulls in feeder road customers. The gas station is also accessible from the parking lot we were in, so the entrances and exists make it very congested. We circled about 4 times before finding a spot. To be fair, it was a Friday night at 5:55 PM. Just heads up on...

I ordered a lunch to go Tuesday, July 2, 2014. The food was good I ate the whole thingy for dinner that night, after I zapped it in the microwave, (3 Enchilada Dinner) However the next morning I did not feel very good. The salmonella or something creped up on me and that afternoon I was on the POT most of the day. I think they should have better food handling, or maybe the meat, chicken or cheese was bad and should have been discarded instead of serving it to paid customers. I am just glad I did not get food poisoning at my age 76 and have to have gone to the hospital, to get my stomach pumped. I know how any food needs to be reheated to a certain degree, but if you ask me it was spoiled food to begin with. I will never return to La Fiesta again, the owner needs to inspect his kitchen & his cooks method of cooking instead of standing by the cash register and calling the kitchen for new orders. First of all I always wash my hands before I start cooking or after a bathroom visit. I cook at home a lot & I always make sure the food is not spoiled, it is cooked or heated to the degree it is meant to be cooked at, it is cooked in a clean unused pot or pan that has not been used for something else. If any other patrons have gotten sick, please reply. No wonder Gordon Ramsey inspects OWNERS freezers & kitchens before he tells them WHAT'S WRONG WITH THEIR...

After seeing that the restaurant had 4.5 stars I decided to give it a try rather go to Ninfa's. In retrospect i would have done better going there. The frozen top shelf frozen margarita wasn't bad, but lacked depth, profundity and intrigue and when it came time for a refill, I settled on the house frozen margarita.

The chips...(bangs head on table)...tasted as though Sysco delivered them a month ago. The salsa was watery and lack bite and imagination.

I ordered the chicken enchiladas because another reviewer raved about them. The evidence is this: the shredded chicken was a perfect shred. The flavor, what flavor? The enchiladas were covered in nacho cheese sauce then tossed under a grill. The accompanying sauce lacked flavor and certainly didn't tease any taste buds. The rice was unsalted, and the refried beans might as well have come out of a can.

If you are searching for a quick neighborhood TexMex fest, look elsewhere. This restaurant is unremarkable. The food and interior lack character and personality. I do not plan...