Venados Cantina — Restaurant in Jamaica Beach

Venados Cantina is the first building you come to when you enter Jamaica Beach. It's the first & last stop you'll need! They have it all. Read on ..

For reference, my family has had a home on this island for 53+ years! So I know a good thing when I see it, so I have to tell you all about it.

Great Food I ordered the Tacos al Carbon, and I have food allergies, so it was nice that my requests were met and exceeded every expectation for dinner that night. I can't tell you how relieved I was to get the perfect tacos served to me, the way I like them. Thank you!

Great Staff Sure I could list all their names, but actually I don't think I've met them all. Everyone I met was awesome and knew their stuff, and made sure I was taken care of. I think if you have a nice place like theirs it's awesome when you have a great staff too. Good job y'all!

Update: Kinley rocks! Ask for her by name. She tends bar like a BA!

Great Community Jamaica Beach is a large community of homeowners that share their smiles and laughs at the local eateries and shops. Once you get there you'll know what I'm talking about.

Great View This place is huge. Tons of seating. You can sit outside on the patio overlooking the ocean, or sit inside at the bar and watch the Astros play baseball as you watch the waves crash on the beach. This place has about 1.6 million TV screens, so you can see the action from anywhere you sit. Very thoughtful!

Great Bar Ask for it and they probably have it. Full bar. That's nice. They have a really cool high-tech bar tap system that has party lights! You have to see this! I like that the bar stays open till 2:00 a.m. so whether you like to party earlier or late they are open!

Great Karaoke Like it or not, but this place has a great karaoke system. With the click of a button all the big screens turn into karaoke screens. The sound system is incredible, and you can see it hanging from the ceiling, like you're at a real venue for live performances. It sounds amazing and it's awesome that you can walk around anywhere in the bar and see a screen and sing with the wireless mic. There's some really great talent in this bar. You have to come and check it out! Talk to Jamie! Put your name on the list!

Great Game Room Kids? Or are you an adult child that still likes to play video games? Well they've got you covered. I saw some kids back there playing and looked like they were having fun to me. Again it's nice at this place has thought of everything and made it family-friendly as well. Good job!

Great Parking Hey almost forgot to tell you! Tons of parking, and they even have golf cart only parking in the back. Take a look at the picture with the sunset. Those are golf cart parking spaces. Pretty cool.

To summarize, This is the first and last stop you'll need in Jamaica Beach.

Great food, great staff, great view, great bar, awesome karaoke. Open till 2am. Boom.

Tell em you read Chuck Miller's...

If you're familiar with the west side of Galveston Island, you know eateries are few and far between. This place is in the heart of Jamaica Beach. Seating options are plentiful! Outdoor seating, bar seating and booth/chair regular seating. They have a small gaming area for the kids and a small ice cream area serving Bluebell. The service is fantastic. Jason took great care of us! They have great sweet tea. The chips and salsa are wonderful. The chips alone were unlike any chips I've ever tasted. Light, airy and crisp. The red salsa is served warm and has a little kick to it. I can't comment on the verde salsa. I'm not a fan of that type, so I didn't taste it. We started with the loaded queso. It's "loaded" with sour cream, beef, and other garnishes. It was delicious! For my meal, I went with the Buck's burger. I know, I know! A burger at a Mexican restaurant?? I started to order the tacos al carbon based on the reviews I read, then I saw they had boudin enchiladas, so I was torn between the two. I've never even heard of boudin enchiladas! Apparently, it's a house recipe. When my friend ordered the burger, Jason said it was the best burger in the island, so I had to go with that. It was very, VERY good! I might have to agree with Jason. It's probably the best burger I've had in Galveston! The fries served with the burger are thin and crispy. I was very happy with my meal. We had bread pudding and a Mardi Gras shot for dessert. It was the first weekend of Mardi Gras, so we had to be festive! I'm usually not a dessert person, but that bread pudding was perfection! Very dense, but very good! All in all, I'm so happy we tried this place. I'm definitely going back during baseball season. They have TVs everywhere, even in the bathroom! This is definitely a good game watching place. Plus, I need to try the boudin enchiladas! Job well done, Guys! Winner...

I have given this place way too many tries. Yesterday was my last time going. First annoying thing about this place is that you can never seem to order online despite the website saying you can. Ok fine, I tried calling all week last week to place a to-go order because I pass them up everyday on my way home from work. Not once did they ever pick up. Not on a Mon, Tues, Wed...you get the idea. I went in person yesterday because I was really craving some tacos. The bar tender took my drink order quickly but that is where the serviced stopped. I waited and waited while she joked around with her friends at the bar. Finally asked if I could please get some chips and salsa. She did a few more things before she got around to getting me any. At this point only her friends were at the bar. My food order comes out about 1 min after I get my chips. My beer is empty and I was not given any silverware. Now a regular has come in and she is outside of the bar talking to him about some personal stuff. Instead of my food getting cold I decide to use my chips as a fork for the beans and rice and to put the guac and pico on my tacos. Another couple comes in and she goes right to them and is getting them drinks. They say they are going to place a TO-GO order. She gives them 2 sets of silverware. LOL ok, I am over here using chips and they very clearly did not need the silverware. Beer still empty so I get out my credit card because I am ready to leave. She just says "oh you are ready to go.'' Well yeah. I still tipped 20% because I am not an asshole. I am just over the bad service and never being able to get ahold of this place to put an order in. Won't be back. Last thing. It is just plain ugly in there. Behind the bar is always a disheveled mess and just...