First Houston restaurant week! Took my grandparents out for a nice lunch and decided on this spot. They have a great selection of different entree choices for their restaurant week - a lot of traditional Mexican dishes with a twist. We started with the hominy soup and watermelon appetizers (only two choices). The soup was pretty small but was fairly tasty. The watermelon app came with pineapple, peppers, etc in a spicy sauce - interesting but probably something I wouldn't get again. For main, I got the duck with cauliflower rice which was delicious! We also got the fish entree as well as the shrimp entree. The fish was just ok but the duck was definitely my favorite. The portions weren't overly heavy but just enough to make you feel satisfied for lunch. We finished with dessert and we got one of each. The churros with chocolate ice cream was great! The tres leches had a marshmallow topping which was pretty good as well. read more

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Food was surprisingly terrible (I've been to the owner's other restaurants and thought the food was great) -- super bland (isn't Mexican food supposed to have seasoning...?) and way overcooked, the only saving grace was the dessert..Service was pretty good. read more

Freaking LOVED this place. I took my family out for the brunch buffet and everybody ended up like a beached whale. The seafood was great. My family grew up eating massive body bags of oysters, just chucking them outside and consuming to our hearts' delight - that day we were granted a break from the arduous chucking and really went ham on the oysters. The oysters were very meaty and juicy and had some toppings. We went and got salsa and it was smooth sailing for us. The warm food was also good but no where near as impressive. My highlight from the warm foods were probably the three different moles so dense without being overwhelming and so rich! I was so stuffed by time it got to dessert but I trudged on and I am glad I did. The highlights for me were the arroz con leche and the tres leches cake - soooo milky without violating the structural integrity of the cake. The ambiance was also great. The band was playing and the food was colorful- it just made my heart so happy for a full sensory experience. read more

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Stopped in for a quick lunch and was very surprised by the upscale atmosphere and delicious food. I sat at the bar and was quickly greeted by the bartender and given a menu. For lunch I ordered the paloma especial. The drink has a spicy kick to it from the roasted jalapeño. The flavors work well together and I especially enjoyed the mango flavor from the soda which is not traditional in authentic paloma drinks. For my entree I ordered the calamar y pulpo ahumado. The calamar and pulpo were very tender and packed full of flavors. The chipotle-tomatillo salsa was delicious and quite spicy so be careful how much of it you use. The tortillas were a disappointment, almost seemed store bought. I was expecting some home made tortillas. Overall the experience was a good one. The food is pricey but from the little I tasted the flavors are worth it. The restaurant is upscale and from what I saw well run. This spot is definitely worth a try if you are in the galleria area of Houston. read more

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HRW brunch. Ambiance is very good however no sound insulation and noisy. Live music was very nice but it was difficult to have a conversation with that background noise and music on top of it. Service: nice and friendly Food: very good chips, guacamole and seviche, excellent wood roasted oysters. However churros were not freshly made and therefore chewy. Cute tableside show of making hot chocolate. Overall good impression. read more

I am a huge fan of Hugo Ortega and all his restaurants. Brunch at Hugo's is probably one of my favorites in town. I had a chance to come check out Caracol and I was equally impressed here as well. It is located near the Galleria among many other fine dining establishments. We made reservations and our table was ready when we arrived. The service was top notch. Our tables were always clean and our drinks were always full. I can not even remember all the drinks we had, but they were all excellent and paired perfectly with each entree. I started off with the Tamal de Langoste. How can i ever have another tamale anywhere else? This thing was packed with flavor and they did not skimp on the lobster either. I did everything in my power to get every last drop of that sauce without embarrassing myself. I went against the norm here and had the duck breast for my main entree. Wow, that was the best duck I have ever had! It was so tender and it fell right off the bone. For dessert we went with the ever so popular El Coco. I mean, you gotta get it for pic opportunities alone. Sadly I did not get to break it, but I sure did eat it. We also tried the Xocolatl. Another excellent dessert, but the El Coco beats it out in my book. I did nibble off some of the other seafood dishes and they were all excellent as well. This is a perfect date night spot or if you want to impress your guests with high end seafood done differently than anywhere else. Check it out! read more

I highly recommend the restaurant and the group of people working there Great attitude great food what else can I say that even the chef and owner took the time to came to say hi to our table so yes I'll come back for some more experiences read more

We came here for the Sunday brunch buffet. Live music from 11am-2pm. They offer a nice spread of options. Oyster bar, ceviche, enchiladas, 3 types of tamales, stuffed peppers, fish and more are included for savory options. Flan, arroz con leche, capirotada, churros, hot chocolate, and more are included for dessert options. The Bloody Mary was recommended our waiter. The spicy version was overpowering to accompany a meal, but they were nice enough to switch it to the non spicy version- which we enjoyed. read more

Caracol - Blood Mary - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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Good food and great service. I do feel like there are better options out there in Houston. But it's definitely not a bad choice.

Are you serious???? This place is wow. I was brought here on a date as a surprise, had no expectations or knowledge. I am generally easy going and I let my date order though he had also never visited. We ordered the Chicarron Oysters to start. Just 6 since we were each ordering our own entree. Well...they were so good we instantly knew we made a mistake not ordering a full order and quickly we order another 6. Oh...my.... For our entrees he had the branzino, and I got the Arroz Negro and they were somehow even more tasty than the oysters! His dish was single, the branzino grilled, with a small salad on top. Mine was in-sane. Black bean rice topped with chorizo, shrimp, clams, mussels, squid, and octopus. There was also corn, cherry tomatoes, sardines, and radishes mixed into the rice. In-freaking-credible. Everything was served on a hot/warmed plate. Though we were not famished, we were eating so diligently I failed to make conversation for almost 15 minutes, shoveling this delectable, hot food into our mouths as fast as humanly possible. 10/10 would come here again. I hear they also have a fantastic brunch. Atmosphere was lively, cozy and upscale, we went for dinner. The noise level was high, very hard to hear our server and each other. Service was efficient, minimal interactions, quick. read more

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My husband and I went here for Sunday brunch. It is $37 for an all you can eat adult meal. The focus of the brunch is seafood. There is a cold line (5 stars) with items like ceviche and guacamole. There is a warm line (4-5 stars) with tamales, fish, soup, etc. another line has a raw bar (2-3 stars I didn't find the oysters to be very flavorful but the scallops were good) and the last is a dessert line (4 stars). There are as many overall food options as you could imagine. Drinks are not included. We tried the Bloody Mary (3 stars - nothing special), the aqua de mar margarita (4 stars - pretty sweet) and the toque de valor margarita (5 stars - spicy). It was my husband's birthday and then brought out a special dessert for him, which was delicious. The highlight of brunch for me was the staff. The service was amazing - they were very attentive to our needs, cleared off plates quickly, and explained how the brunch was at up read more

Caracol - Aqua de mar margarita - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

We loved everything about this place from the service to the outdoor space, vibe and music and of course the food!! Omg the food - they know how to season food! We had: roasted oysters, raw oysters, baby back ribs, tuna tacos, and the pollo as well as the Caracolita, Naughty but Nice, Paloma mi Corazon and Don Julio straight. No complaints, everything was great! Those tuna tacos are on my list of favorite "fancy" tacos in the city now. Can't wait to return! read more

The happy hour oysters make this place worth it alone. Delicious gulf coast oysters you can't resist. The happy hour menu also has some other bites and libations to get your fill. I've also dined off the regular menu. They have beautiful entrees that are pretty good, but I wouldn't necessarily come here frequently to eat them. Valet available in the front or self parking in the garage behind the restaurant. read more

Caracol is a large, trendy restaurant featuring upscale Mexican Coastal seafood. I came here with three other coworkers for dinner. Our local host chose this restaurant since it offered something for everyone - a decent-sized vegetarian menu, lots of seafood options from ceviches to grilled fish and other goodies, and meat dishes with bold flavors, many of which involve variants of mole. They even offer turtle soup and frog legs on the menu. It was my first time eating at a Hugo Ortega restaurant, and I'm now a definite fan. Great innovative dishes and the quality is up there with Rick Bayless' RedO in LA. Unlike California, in Texas portions tend to be much larger for roughly the same price! I started out with the Spanish Octopus Salad, which had several large pieces of tender, grilled octopus along with roasted potatoes, carrots, and celery leaves. The pumpkin seed dressing was an interesting touch. (4 stars). My entree of choice was the slow-roasted pork shank with mole costeno. Super tender, as in fall-of-the bone with a nice, peppery sauce. The dish came with some smooth, fire-roasted sweet potatoes and Brussel sprout leaves. (5 stars) For dessert, I got a bit of a surprise when this big, chocolate baseball showed up with a wooden gavel. Apparently, this El Coco is a dessert made of five components each with coconut: chocolate coconut shell, coconut buttercream, coconut ganache, coconut streusel, and whipped coconut. All four of us are engineers and debated how they could have made this masterpiece. It was definitely on the sweet side, but definitely accentuated coconut with different textures. (4 stars taste, 5 stars for creativity and presentation). read more

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Great Mexican seafood restaurant! Went for Sunday brunch with a big family group and had the buffet. Every dish was creatively prepared and delicious. This was one of the greatest brunch buffets I have ever had. I can't wait to return. Update: I returned for dinner and Caracol did not disappoint. Went with the family and we each ordered a different entre to share, we could not decide which dish was better! Incredible restaurant. read more

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Best oysters in Texas Bruno was super sweet and hospitable and made me feel very comfortable considering I was dining solo @ the bar on business. Fab wine Will be back! read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

We had a wonderful experience at this restaurant the food was excellent the service Was top-notch. The ambience was a 4 but overall the experience was memorable. The taste of the food was one of the most wonderful experiences that I've had this seasoning was just perfect. I think these folks work extremely hard to please their customers and I certainly will Share my experience with my friends and return to patronize their business more often with my clients. read more

Undeniably one of the best meals I've had in my Yelp career. I'd like to thank Houston Restaurant Week for that experience. Unfortunately, the capital of this great state no longer has this. It was a few years ago when I personally called out the organizers of ARW on social media for blowing smoke up all our a**es. Yeah, next week we promise menus are coming led into a month and then dead silence. Houston Restaurant Week(s) here I come! Even more exciting..It's Ol' Rooster's birthday month. After surveying all the options online my wife and I drove a few short blocks from our hotel and settled into the patio at Caracol. Service initially was a bit spotty; seems they really didn't have a server for us at our dining time of 4PM. Half way thru our experience there was enough support staff opening up the patio to launch a coup in a small country. I get it. I'll search for a residence at Del Boca Vista phase 11 when I finish this review with and seek an early bird restaurant to my liking. Don't discount the old folks or even the almost old folks. We're not late eaters anymore. Especially when you factor in multiple courses like you do during HRW. I even added a twist with my choice of a dozen oysters for a starter on top of a progressive meal. First half was wood roasted while the other was served raw with salsa bruja and lime. Salsa was akin to an interior style mignonette. Great start to the meal! I attracted the wife to this restaurant because of the vegetarian offerings. She started with a small sampling of pozole while I tried a Mexico City style campechana with shrimp, octopus, avocado, crab, and serrano chilis. Not as much heat as I would have expected from the pepper; a wonderful blend of flavors from the sea made this a delicate surprise. Next would be the wife's watermelon salad versus my arroz con langostino. I actually preferred my wife's dish to mine. The rice was really heavy and since I was staring down a ribeye for the next course I chose to eat about half of the portion. My steak was perfection served with a Texas blackberry mole, roasted potatoes, and guajillo butter brushed aparagus. Wife has a giant cauliflower....steak....LOL. That mole was perfection along with the fatty bits of the ribeye! I've giving the dessert round to the wife. Caracol's signature dessert "Coco" sphere was half dessert and half Gallagher video. My gripe with my dessert was the restaurant took great care even grilling lime slices for serveral of my drinks and pairings. The peaches in my rustic mini pie would have been so elevated if they would have received the same treatment. Still a 5 star showing for this place. Dynamite meal start to finish. read more

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This restaurant is fabulous. It is my girlfriend's favorite restaurant in Houston. She is the most beautiful woman in the world. Definitely a fan of this place . Good deal for restaurant week. read more

We went on a Sunday for brunch and it was amazing. They have all you can eat oysters and oyster shoots. The oysters are really fresh and doesn't contain an smell. They also have a table for cold foods and hot if you are not an oyster fan that is good. Will be back again. read more

Caracol - Raw oysters - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

I wd give this 5 stars. The food, the ambiance, the service was top notch. Well done!!

Decided to grab a late brunch from Caracol before we went to a pool patty! My cousin found this restaurant via yelp and was initially attracted to the ambiance. This inside is beautifully decorated but because the weather was incredible we opted for outdoor seating. It had nice flowers and foliage and. A pretty fountain. The service was incredible and we were seated immediately. We decided to share a pitcher of sangria. And for appetizers we split the guacamole which was really good. For my meal i decided to do a mix and match of food. I ordered 6 raw-oysters and they were really good! My girls recommended that i "dress them up" so I added horseradish, tarter sauce as a spicy sauce! So good. I also ordered the pork tacos and rice and beans (also really good and nice sized portions. I left really full and happy. read more

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Valentine's Dinner Special Review: this is so long overdue but, here it is! I came here with the boo for Valentine's Day dinner special and it did not disappoint. There is complimentary valet parking and once you come in you are immediately greeted. The ambiance is great, the light fixtures and the decor is beautiful. I had a Paloma which was just right! Our five course meal was everything that we expected. From the scallops to dessert. It was flavorful and for the price it was totally worth it. read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

Stopped by on a Saturday night (make reservations), and the place was packed. A very lively and diverse crowd. The location itself is a bit strange. Food is a bit pricey, not huge portions either, but quality of food matched the price. For an appetizer I ordered Cazuelitas de Langosta, it's 3 small pieces. They were delicious. For my entree I ordered Shrimp in Chipotle, a few shrimp over a bed of rice. It was also very yummy. For dessert ordered the Churros, 3 come in the order with some chocolate ice cream, it was one of the better Churros I've ever had. The service was great. We were sat as soon as we arrived. Our server was great, knew exactly when to come and check in. Appetizers did take a bit to come out, but entrees came out quickly. Definitely recommend but the menu can be a bit difficult if you aren't use to authentic Mexican food. Recommend looking up before going so you know what you are ordering. Can't wait to come back. read more

Caracol - Shrimp in Chipotle - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

Late night trek to Caracol - Awesome experience and Caracol Nailed It! From calling ahead to inquire if reservations required or if we could easily hang and sit and enjoy in the bar, to easy garage validated parking, to friendly greeting upon arrival, to Bruno - our amazing Server, and his efficient side kick that was on top of it thru out our entire experience, to recommended dishes on-and-off the menu - absolutely wonderful! A late nite treat of Gulf raw oysters, char'd oysters, grilled octopus tacos, char'd Brussels sprouts that were prepared to perfection and cold waters that were always filled to the brim along with refreshing bevvies from the bar...... this was a fun and great experience .... and highly recommend! You only live once.... what are you waiting for?! read more

Caracol - Everything = Taaaalicious! - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

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Experience was better than i could have imagined. Lived in houston my whole life 40 years and upset this is my first time coming here. Gloria was our server and she was beyond helpful in every way with drink and food recommendations and even got us a dessert that was apparently only available on the HRW menu but should be available at all time because it was to die for. It was the Pastel de Mole Chocolate Criollo and it was flavor town to fullest along with the churros and hot chocolate. Definitely sneaking in during the week ti grab some more and can't wait to bring my parents to try the brunch! Thank you again Gloria!Baked Oysters read more

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The Latin host with braces not tall young man, kindly told us we can take a booth, but when me and my boyfriend asked "where's the bathroom?" He immediately said oh our bathrooms our out of service we asked both? He said yes, just happened like five min ago. We walked out, thankfully valet had not moved our vehicle at Caracol and kindly told us if you need a restroom and food go around the corner to Maxie's! And here we are, everything at Maxie's delicious read more

After the longest delay ever, finally made it over to Caracol! It was a beautiful, no humidity evening, so the outside patio area was divine! Our waiter Emilio was fantastic and very knowledgeable about everything! I started with the Caracol margarita and this hands down was the best margarita I have ever had- ever. The oysters were amazing in every sense of the word. The ceviche was some of the freshest I've ever had. I ordered the special with the mole on the side and enjoyed it, but didn't think it was a good representation of the true flavors of Coastal Mexican Cuisine. So, I will be back to try other dishes. Overall, a fantastic experience. I highly recommend trying it out. read more

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Snail! This is a magnificient Mexican restaurant. I learned about this place's chef, Hugo Ortega and his James Beard Awards. This isn't just any kind of Mexican food, it's more of a seafood focusing on wild Mexican flavors. We went for brunch, and started off with the raw oysters, which were gulf oysters. I wish I had gotten the wood roasted oysters instead. Once I walked in, and saw how they were roasting them on a sort of converted wood fired pizza oven, I wish I had gotten them served that way! Next time... I got a chili relleno, which was fantastic. I really enjoy the dish, it's more of a showcase of the poblano pepper than seafood, and I wish I had gotten more seafood! My brunch partner got ahi tuna, and had obviously out ordered me. But I nailed it for dessert- we got El Coco- an orb made of chocolate, filled with more chocolately goodness. It came with a hammer to smash open the chocolate. I'd never had to smash my dessert before. The drinks were great too- I got a tequila drink made with Tabasco soda, which was sort of like a paloma blanca. It wasn't Tabasco like the sauce, more like the state of Mexico. The restaurant was fantastic- I scored a table out on their patio which felt safe and everything. They did a great job with keeping us hydrated and the service was fantastic. I absolutely enjoyed checking out Chef Hugo's food. You can get his cookbook from the public library. read more

Food, service, and ambiance were great as they always have been. We decided to check out the bartenders and ordered several of their creations this trip. We were not disappointed, very tasty and artfully prepared and served. read more

Great tasting Mexican cuisine, fully authentic with great customer service No hassle with reservations read more

I had a lovely dinner here. The ambiance, service, drinks, and food were great. Their seafood was particularly good, I will be definitely be coming back! read more

Caracol - Seafood Near Me - Houston, Texas

This was my second time at Caracol and I found my experience again to be very good. I came with some coworkers for restaurant week, which has its own menu, with each pre fixe set essentially a compilation of four items off the main menu (just smaller portions). I had the "between the waves" set which included tortilla casserole, tuna, seared scallops and a flan dessert. Each item was good, the scallops were probably the star of the menu. My friends each got the "our style" menu, which also looked good, and they seemed to be happy. If I return again for restaurant week, I will probably try one of the other menus, as these were good, but seemed a bit safe in terms of flavor. Overall solid execution for food, and great service. Cocktails also tasty, but I almost wondered if mine was a virgin, as alcohol was so subtle. read more

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Had family in town and decided I'd take them to their third Hugo's experience. All these spots are great, but for people loving seafood Caracol really shines. It's easy enough to find, and valet is prompt as you pull up. Once inside you realize how bit the space actually is, and when it's early it's easy enough to hear yourself think. As the night goes on and it fills it gets quite loud though, with lots of glass and exposed walls. There are a ton of cool oceanic themed pantings scattered about, but they don't do much to kill the noise. Eating out in Houston is a raucous experience anways, so not a big deal. On to the food, started with the ostiones asados which were a great example of grilled oysters and had just the right amount of spice to them from the chipotle. The infladita de jaiba was great too with smoked crab meat, chile and corn. Mains came out which included bistec con mole negro, birria mascota, langosta puerto nuevo, and camarones en salsa de alcpararras. I had a tough time settline on the ribeye, as they had several moles on the menu, but the rich nutty flavor of the negro was well worth it even if I felt odd not getting seafood this visit. Lobster and shrimp dishes were both great, as was the short rib, though that may have been too rich for my tastes. Ended the meal with extra anejo tequila and mezcal, as well as El Coco and churros. I think my only complaint about the night may have been the pace of the meal, as we were there almost 2.5 hours. 90-120 minutes would have been about perfect, but not really even an issue when you're spending time with people you love. read more

I forgot to mention that they even had live music! How cool is that! Very pleasant atmosphere. Not sure if that has continued post Pandemic but it was definitely an enjoyable amenity. read more

The brunch here is wonderful! If you are looking for a brunch that is unique and not the typical brunch offerings then look no further. I dined here with a date around 2:00 p.m. I valeted which was courtesy but they offer garage parking as well. I suggest making a reservation which we had because this place was packed. They offer many different drink options. I had a blushing mimosa and pineapple mimosa. The buffet which I noticed online is priced at 37 a person. The buffet offers poached eggs, eggs Benedict, shrimp cocktail, stuffed peppers, vegetable tamales, meat dishes (I'm pescetarian so I didn't pay attention to those), grilled snapper to name some. They also have a huge oyster bar with shucked oysters and oyster shooters. They also have fruit bar and desert bar. The service was impeccable and the food delicious. Check them out! Dine outside! read more

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I don't understand why this place is busy ever. The food is Ok but overpriced. It's near office buildings and hotels so maybe that's why they get business. I've worked in LatAm for over 5 years, lived in Miami and currently live in Mexico part time. I don't see what's so great about this place. It seems like a 70s Miami bar at night with the blue lights. I've been here for business lunches. Social dinners. Work happy hours. Meh on all accounts. Service seems snooty. One time a valet driver went off roading in my SUV (he didn't think I saw him). He was a complete jerk about it. In a city that's known for food, skip this place. You're not missing out. read more

Still amazing place, we went a couple weeks ago to celebrate my friend's birthday. Service nice as usual, food amazing, however their margaritas are a big NO. My husband had to overpaid for a Margarita to actually taste good $29! Their original Margarita is a big NO. You should revise this recipe please. Since Hugo's is same chain, theirs are way better. It was your I think Caracol Margarita he ordered two, then they brought him another one that he can't remember and he ended up ordering the $29. He paid for every single one of them. We told our server so she could tell bartender read more

I visited here with a few vendors of ours after a training session. It was my first time here and they did not disappoint. They are located on Post Oak down town and we were able to walk over as we were training almost a half a block away. We had a few Happy hour special appetizers: Tortita de langosta which consist of mini lobster roll, ballo beans, avocado, chipotle mayonnaise. We also had Guacamole, Salsa y Totopos. Both were very good. Everyone had an array of different drinks. The service was exceptional for such a large group of people. Our waitress never let our glasses get empty. It wasn't very crowded when we first arrived @4 but as it got later the crowd picked up. Its a very nice place to have drinks and bites if you are ever in the area Their Happy Hour starts at 3-7 pm daily and Saturdays before 7pm. read more

Excellent and amazing service at this beautiful place. The best in upscale Mexican food! Great Manager, great and friendly staff . My first time last week felt like Royalty! I was amazed at the treatment from the get go!!! I make my rounds and love trying different cuisines, and have never experienced this VIP feeling anywhere in the surrounding area. Can't wait to go back!!!! read more