Baja Cantina — Restaurant in Watauga

This is a very quaint neighborhood Mexican style cantina off of North Tarrant near 377, although there are several other locations.

The entrance and signage is very difficult to see and I would not have noticed it if I wasn’t told it was there. There is a large tree blocking most of the signage, so a little pruning would do wonders for them.

Inside decor is clean, not cluttered, and very open. The staff is very friendly.

Chips and queso were provided, and I have to say the salsa has a solid kick to it with a nice lingering heat. Chips are a nice thickness (not too thick but won’t break constantly) and fairly standard. We asked about queso and perhaps one con carne. I found out there is one version not listed on the menu called Issa’s Queso, a combination of choice of meat (chicken, ground beef, fajita, chorizo, etc.) with guacamole, pico, and sour cream. It was quite good and we enjoyed it.

We then ordered a Burrito Plate and Enchiladas Suisas. I have to say the presentation of the burrito plate was strikingly boring and didn’t inspire great expectations. It turned out to be passable. The enchiladas actually were impressively plated, colorful, and inviting. A delight to see. Digging into the first bite, starting in the middle, my first impression was the chicken was a little tough and a little dry. Continuing on, this faded, yet my opinion still stands that starting with a touch more moisture would go a long way to up this dish slightly. The Suisas sauce was on the lighter side with the sour cream yet works well. The interesting, and a little surprising, addition was the softly sautéed squash and cucumber (yep, cucumber). It actually works quite nicely and adds character.

They have a nice little bar and feature margaritas prevalently. I hear this is a neighborhood gathering spot (I was there during mid-afternoon lull) but I can imagine weekend nights could find a crowd.

I wish I could go 3.5 here but have to try it...

My family and I love Baja. We typically spend family birthdays and special occasions there throughout the year. The food is always delicious is perfect! My favorites would be the guacamole, queso with brisket, mad mex plate, and their brisket tacos! (Sorry… I love brisket 😂) I also enjoy the swirl margarita! They have a great selection on beer, margaritas, and drinks in general! The staff is always so friendly and kind. Also, I’d love to shoutout Daniel who helped us through a major issue that occurred on our last visit. Long story short we were there celebrating a birthday and at the end of the night the waitress swiped my boyfriend’s card 5 times because it wasn’t processing on their end yet it took the money out of his account all five times. We were still asked to provide an alternative form of payment after almost $1000 was already taken from his account, so that was very frustrating. Daniel reassured us that we would get our money back for the five charges and went out of his way to make sure we could contact him if we had any problems not getting the money back. He even got me in contact with the higher ups when it came time for that. It did take ten days for the money to finally get back into our account… but we got it back. After speaking with the owner of this location, I was very disappointed with how her response came across over the phone. She made it feel like this wasn’t their fault even though the waitress continued to swipe the card after each time it was not processing and never came to us until after the 5th swipe. The only thing I wanted at that point was our meal comped for the inconvenience of being out about $1000 for ten days when we had bills to pay. All she could offer us in return was a $35 giftcard for future use.

Unfortunately I don’t see us returning in the future due to this event. But if you plan on going in the future, just be mindful of card processing issues. Check your account...

I have been there 3 times now and twice only ordered an appetizer and some margaritas. Once for dinner. The homemade tortilla chips are the best anywhere. They are simply amazing. Their salsa is quite spicy, but it is also very very good!!! If a Mexican restaurant can't get these basics right, you know they won't do the rest of the food right. Their food was good. We split a fajitas and the meat was not the most tender and was not in ample amounts. The sides to go with the Fajitas were just standard and nothing special. Antonio, the server, is the nicest man on the planet. Give that man a raise!!! Now, the bad news. Their "Perfect Margarita" is not made by the traditional standard of a perfect margarita. It had a lot of sweet and sour mix. A perfect margarita is supposed to have only tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice. Their perfect margarita tasted just like the regular house margarita and I was supposed to get the house margarita at a happy hour price and they charged me the regular price. So, when it comes to margaritas, they get a failing grade. If you want a good margarita, go to Namaste Bar and Grill. They make the perfect margarita exactly how it is supposed to be and they charge you one dollar less...