Restaurant San Juan — Restaurant in Port Aransas

Sadly, San Juan's is a Mexican restaurant that has lost its way!

I have been coming to eat at San Juan's for almost 20 years; whenever I would make a trip to the Texas coast around Corpus Christi. I used to think nothing of driving out of my way to eat at San Juan's. When I first started coming here, the food was terrific. It was full of authentic Mexican spice and flavor. One of my favorite things to do was to bring my fresh fish here that I had caught and have them cook my catch for me. Or, buy fresh-caught shrimp right off the boat and do the same. I have often bought pounds of jumbo shrimp off of the Poly Anna shrimp boat and had San Juan's prepare them in the traditional Mexican style of A Mojo de Ajo, which is my favorite. Oh my! I would be willing to drive 500 miles for this if that is what it would take. Back in those days, 90% of the clientele at San Juan was Hispanic or Mexican. It was common to see your regular working Hispanic guys come to San Juan for lunch in their dirty work clothes. The food that San Juan was preparing in those days was for real Mexicans that expected authentic spice and flavor, and that is precisely the reason why I loved the food at San Juan's so much.

Unfortunately, it is no longer that way. Last week was my wife's birthday, and we decided to make the long drive to the coast to celebrate. One of our stops was going to be San Juan's. I bought 5 pounds of fresh-caught jumbo shrimp, and we headed to San Juan's. I asked them to prepare it A Mojo de Ajo, as I had done in the past, and they said they did not offer the A Mojo de Ajo style anymore. They said they could only boil or grill the shrimp, but the shrimp had to be shelled and deheaded (A Mojo de Ajo uses whole shrimp). We were disappointed, but we decided to just order off the menu anyway.

When the food came out, it looked good, but that was about all that was good about it. I have seldom tasted more bland, flavorless food in my life. It is like they somehow sucked the flavor out of it. We had invited eight other people to celebrate with us, and they were all frowning after the first bite. I asked them if they liked the food. They all said that it was bland had no favor at all.

This was when I started looking around to see who was eating there that day. Whereas the clientele used to be made up of almost pure Hispanics and Mexicans, what I saw last week was that 90% of the people in San Juan's were all elderly white people, most likely Snowbirds from up North (it being winter). Having a lot of family myself that is from the Northern States, the one thing I know about them is they think black pepper is way too much spice. LOL! Those Yankees like their food bland baby! I mean to tell you.

So, it is clear that San Juan's has lost its way as an authentic Mexican restaurant. Port Aransas is overrun with retired snowbirds running around in their battery power golf carts, and that is what San Juan is now catering to. Hey, I understand. It is a business, and they do not want to offend their northern customers by actually adding something that might make their sensitive Yankee taste buds tingle a little bit. I get it.

So, if you want to go to a place that looks like a Mexican restaurant, but cooks for people that are afraid to look at food that has any spice in it for fear it will burn their eyes, then San Juan's is the place for you. But, if you want genuine, authentic Mexican cuisine and spice that will make your taste buds sing and dance, go somewhere else.

On a side note, four of the ten people that ate at San Juan's, had bad intestinal discomfort and diarrhea the night after eating there, including me. We are all pretty sure it was the food at San Juan's...

From the moment I stepped into San Juan’s Mexican Restaurant, I was genuinely impressed. The atmosphere was warm and inviting, with vibrant colors, authentic décor, and just the right amount of background music to set a laid-back, enjoyable vibe. It instantly felt like a place that takes pride in both its food and its hospitality.

Now let’s talk about the food — absolutely phenomenal. I ordered a plate of chicken enchiladas with verde sauce, rice, and refried beans, and my friend went for the carne asada tacos. To our complete surprise, the food was brought to our table within five minutes of ordering. We literally had just settled in when the plates arrived, hot, fresh, and beautifully presented. It didn’t feel rushed — it felt like they had everything perfectly timed and knew exactly what they were doing.

The flavor of everything was spot on. The chicken was juicy and seasoned to perfection, the verde sauce had the ideal balance of tangy and spicy, and the rice was fluffy and flavorful — not just a bland filler. The tortillas tasted homemade, and the salsa served with the chips had that perfect smoky kick. You could really tell this place makes everything from scratch and puts serious love into their cooking.

What made the experience even better was the service. The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive without being overbearing. Our server checked in at just the right moments, made great menu suggestions, and even gave us a little history on the restaurant’s family recipes. Everyone seemed genuinely happy to be there, and that kind of energy is contagious.

From start to finish, San Juan’s nailed it — quick service, top-tier food, flawless hospitality, and a welcoming environment that makes you want to come back before you’ve even left. Whether you’re in the mood for a quick bite or a sit-down dinner with friends or family, this place delivers in every way.

Highly recommend. This is my new go-to Mexican spot. If I could give it more than five...

If I could I wouldn't have even given a star. Only good thing is the service is really fast but now I know why..DONT WASTE YOUR MONEY EATING HERE Nuggets & chicken fried steak were not homemade!!! I asked to verify first if I was being charged still for a chicken fried steak plate since I only took a bite and returned and order something else, since It was not a homemade chicken fried steak it literally tasted like a frozen one from the Grocery store the only thing homemade was the gravy on top, beans& fries on my plate. And trust me I eat chicken fried steaks at every new restaurant I go to so I'm not over exaggerating this. I wish I would of took a pic to prove it but I had not yet experience the disrespect that made me want to leave a review. Considering the fact that I never leave reviews but This owner embarrassed me in front of everyone yelling at me saying: "Well Mija can you not afford it because nothing is cheap here, everything is homemade!!!" Very loud and rudely and just turned around& charged my card I asked him how much an I being charged he egnored me and told me $88 after the fact he had already billed me demanding for me to sign the receipt I asked to speak to owner or manager and he said I am the owner here. (He was light complected Mexican with gold chains on). I did not sign anything it was not my card+ I didn't agree with the charge it was my mother's so I came to bring it to her and she was amazed also how much it came out, since we added it our selfs to determine the waiters 10%tip as I was explaining to her, this man came out yelling threatening to call the cops if we did not sign his receipt we told him to do what he had to do. He had no reason to be acting like that infront of our children... I did have a pic of my son's plate proving they where...