Baja Cantina and Fiesta — Restaurant in The Woodlands

What an amazing new place on The Woodlands Waterway called Baja Cantina & Fiesta (which took the old Yucatan Taco Stand spot). Food was fresh and delicious, drinks and atmosphere are stellar! We all started with the Nacho Tower - Layers and layers of homemade chips, pinto beans, pico de gallo, melted cheese, fresh jalapenos, and crema. Keep it vegetarian or choose chorizo or chicken. We upgraded and chose skirt steak. The nachos are presented tabled side and unveiled by your waitstaff all layered in a giant can (see video). The nachos were better than Yucatan Taco Stands.

We were there so three of us had to support Nick's Local Eats - Drink For Charity and got the Viva Verdita - Dripping Springs Vodka, Verdita (pineapple juice, serrano peppers, lime juice, simple syrup, cilantro, mint, and pineapple syrup). Slightly spicy and very refreshing cocktail and a $1 of each one will be donated to the Bank.

I got the Rosarito Tostadas - Seared Ahi Tuna on a crispy tortilla with guacamole, mint pico de gallo, and smoked chili aioli. I also got a Rosarito Shrimp Taco - Your choice of grilled or fried jumbo shrimp topped with elote corn salsa, smoked aioli, pico de gallo and mexican cheese. The grilled shrimp and ahi tuna were fresh as you can get and both had wonderful and complex flavors. My second cocktail was the Baja Margarita - Campo Bravo Tequila, fresh lime juice, and agave nectar served on the rocks or blended. Damn good too!

My friend got the Missing You Pig Time - Crispy marinated pork belly served on a bed of herb greenswith a miso yuzu dressing. Smokey pork belly was so good! She also hit a side of Truffle Fries - Crispy fries tossed with truffle oil, black pepper, and Parmesan cheese with a drizzle of garlic aioli

Our other friend also got the Rosarito Tacos and added rice and beans. Two others got the Rosarito Tacos, but as lettuce wraps instead of corn tortillas.

The general manager Kevin came out with some awesome housemade salsas. roasted arbol red salsa, green jalapeno salsa, and roasted tomatillo, plus this fantastic Puerto Rican Salsa.

I really want to come back and try more of the menu, it was hard to choose because everything sounded so good! I have included pics of all their menus at the end of our pics. Get here soon!...

2 stars since the food was OK, but the service on my second time here was atrocious.

Arrived early in the evening, plenty of staff, resturant at maybe half capacity. Walked in and was ignored by the 4 people chatting behind the counter before having to ask for a table, drinks for half our party never showed up which we then cancelled, 1 entree was almost 30 minutes late, forgot sides to another entree, appetizer showed up after the initial entrees, waters never refilled, table was filthy when we sat down, and a random man was walking through the resturant soliciting tables for cigarettes and was finally escorted out after about the 10th table. Was almost comedic if it wasn’t so bad.

First time in my life I’ve never given a tip, but the staff seemed oblivious to the issues despite polite attempts to correct the issues, and not apologetic at all. To the point where our cancelled drinks suddenly showed up about an hour later when we were nearly done with our meals, then the waiter just took them away without a peep — not that we cared about a comp at that point, but it just highlighted the absurdity of the whole episode.

Reading the other reviews this doesn’t seem isolated. Our first experience was average/ok, but this second one will be our last. We’re locals and eat out once a month or so and are over at the waterway a lot, but never again at Baja Cantina. Just don’t waste your time chancing it here, there are plenty of good restaurants in the immediate vicinity that can manage the basics. It’s a shame that this prime spot is occupied by such an...

Come for the tequila, stay for the tacos; this local bar+restraunt concept is just what the doctor ordered when the weather is good or the concert is happening. Like its neighbor, Bar Louie, it has as much seating outdoors as it does indoors and offers a casual table service experience. The atmosphere reminds me of a Día de los Muertos festival with many neon/colored lights, skulls, and colorful art. They claim over 70 types of tequila, and I believe it; the bar is central to the restaurant, and the menu is split into two equally prominent parts: the tequila/cocktails menu and the food. A variety of beers are on tap and available in coolers. It would be hard to eat here without a drink, making it great for a hot weekend or before a concert. Described as "Cali-Mex Inspired Food," it's better than any comparables I had in California. You can order individual tacos or a combination plate of two or three tacos with rice and beans. The tacos were delicious, but I wouldn't guess they were healthy. I tried the classic Fajita and Brisket on corn, and I was full but not stuffed. My combo's rice was extraordinarily light and fluffy; it's some of the best rice I've had at any local Mexican restaurant. They have TVs for watching sports, and I suspect they get some solo diners, but this is the kind of restaurant you want to go to with a group of friends and get the alcohol flowing; then you won't care so much about the bill, which may leave a bad taste in...