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Recommended Reviews - El Barracuda
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This was a difficult one to review. While my meal was amazing, my mom's was probably the worst she's had in PV. The restaurant was an easy short walk from our hotel, which was nice. Pleasantly located right up on the beach, so we got a good view. Started with two margaritas. Nothing special. I ordered the steak and shrimp, medium rare. She ordered the ribs and steak, medium. My steak was very flavorful and cooked well. The shrimp was pretty basic, but still delicious. I enjoyed what the server called a chimichurri sauce, though I'm accustomed to chimichurri bring a green sauce. Either way, it was still delish. The fries were incredibly disappointing- they tasted worse than McDonald's fries, as they weren't even salted. This is an unfortunate aspect of the meal as it's incredibly easy to elevate the fries, even if they don't want to make fresh fries. My moms steak was inedible. It was extremely tough and difficult to chew. She couldn't cut through it so she eventually tried to bite it like a caveman. Still couldn't be done. She had the same cut as me. The ribs had a good sauce on them, but they were very tough and difficult to eat. Her fries were the same. The service was just ok. Felt like our server would quickly rush off when something was dropped off, so we had to very quickly ask for something before they sprinted away. I probably wouldn't come back here.
El Barracuda is the GOAT taco restaurant!!! I'm talking the BEST tacos and taco eating experience... PERIOD!!! Every time I come to Puerto Vallarta I make it a necessity to eat here at LEAST three times!! Oh how I DREAM of this place and their shrimp tacos...!!!! El Barracuda is located in the "Los Hoteles" area of Downtown Puerto Vallarta. It is specifically situated off Paraguay and Nicaragua, behind the Oxo that is located on Francisco Medina Ascencio. This restaurant is casual, but extremely welcoming and offers some stunning views of the Bay of Banderas. You have the option to sit on their patio or sit below on the beach! The views are absolutely incredible and the vibe is nothing short of pure relaxation! And staff are also always fantastic. Once seating I always ask for a Pacifico beer. There's nothing like a Pacifico with some lime on a warm day overlooking the water. Servers then bring over chips and a few types of "salsas." One is a typical "salsa roja" or red salsa, another is a spicier, habanero salsa, and third is a chopped onion salsa. The habanero salsa is my favorite but all are fantastic! Spicy and flavorful! And their chips are absolutely phenomenal as well! Barracuda has a ton of menu options, but they are best known for their tacos (especially their shrimp tacos). I usually order their shrimp tacos "Toreado" style, meaning coming with chopped serrano peppers, cilantro, and cheese. I also recommend their shrimp tacos "Al Pastor" style, but personally like them "Toreado" a hair more. When my tacos arrive I always squeeze lime juice and pour habanero salsa on them, then get to work (aka DEVOUR)! These are the BEST tacos!!! So fresh and flavorful with HUGE pieces of shrimp!!! Like nothing else! I savor every bite each time I come here! And am always sad when my meal is over! Just be aware that El Barracuda is CASH ONLY. So bring pesos! This place is incredibly reasonably priced and you will get your food quickly. Meaning this is more of a lunch spot than a dinner place (in my opinion). It also doesn't get terribly busy at lunch whereas at dinner you might not get the seating spot you want (they don't do reservations). In a nutshell, if you're in Puerto Vallarta and are looking for the BEST tacos in the game, look no further than El Barracuda. Just go!!!
Feb 2024 Update - Enjoyed another great meal at El Barracuda during my most recent trip to Puerto Vallarta. Food is always good where on this occasion I had the Steak and Shrimp combo. The steak was a tad tougher than I like but the flavor/taste was OMG sooo good and was cooked to perfection. The shrimp was exceptional as well where you have a choice of style where I chose coconut shrimp that came with multiple dipping sauces that took the flavor profile to the next level. My only gripe about this place is their liquor prices which are on the high side with the volume of the drink on the smaller size as well (think large whiskey glass). Lastly the view is amazing with a nice ocean breeze blowing through the restaurant adding to the rustic tropical vibe. Overall a great meal/venue where the four stars are a result of the high liquor prices and not the quality of the food. This place would have been perfection for me if they had offered a Happy Hour like most of the businesses do in the area. Still a must visit though if you are in the area.
Best margaritas, best service, and best food in Puerto Vallarta. We LOVE this place!! VERY reasonable prices and the view is perfect! Sunset drinks, view, people watching and food are what you want in a vacation. The "Seafood Dynamite" is literally to die for!! The tacos are amazing, the Garlic Shrimp, scooped with salted chips is my FAVORITE!! Stiff, delicious drinks. Our favorite place in Mexico.
3.5 stars overall. First FYI: CASH ONLY. Sign in covered patio above, if you look left of host stand. 3 stars for food- nothing threw me out of the park. *ajillo octopus- YES- that was good, not normal flavors I eat. Sliced Octopus was so tender!! Comes with complimentary bread and butter. Bread is good to sop up the flavors. Recommend! * fried fish and fries- was delicious. Fresh mahi mahi with lovely panko coating. * grilled fish taco- mahi mahi topped with a dry cabbage salad. No sauces. Bland and dry DO NOT recommend this one. * tomato, watermelon, goat cheese and roasted pumpkin seeds was refreshing and good, but not amazing. I wouldn't mind eating this again. * barracuda ceviche- it was good, nothing amazing, would eat again. *burger with fries was fine, cooked to preference, medium was perfect. *complimentary chips and salsa. *cocktails- watermelon margarita and sangria- both were good, light, fresh, but light on the alcohol. Ambiance- 5 stars!! So lovely being on the beach with sunset. They have covered patio that is lovely too. Kids finished early and ran to play in the rocky beach, stacking rocks and chasing waves. When I looked around with those eating, it was not all Americans, so it was good to see locals(?). 70% of the beach tables were Hispanic. That was a good sign to me. Their was also a live band playing with was fun to watch, and the restaurant music in the covered patio. Service- we went end of June, my understand is low season. Staff spoke English and were lovely and accommodating. Timing of kitchen was good, didn't have to wait long for meal to arrive. Value- perspective, can be fair or expensive in my books. I love cheap taco joints- so in that sense expensive. Fair for being beach side dinner. Recommend- if you want a lovely ambiance with fair food, willing to pay higher prices in CASH- yes!
Don't go there my whole group has food poisoning right after eating there. We had the mixto from the molcajete. The tacos tasted fine but the sauce from the mixto tasted funny like it's old. They also only accept cash so they up the USD and cad cash payment. They also took forever to bring things out. So travellers beware. We ate from taco stands and we never had this issue with food poisoning.
We came in with our 2 little kids and 2 friends, so we had a large party of 6. The hostess was super nice and told us she had a table inside, but that she would keep an eye out for a table down on the beach to be able to see the sunset snd fire show. Sure enough, within 10 minutes she moved our entire oarty down to the beach. The kids got to play in the sand while we waited for the food. The food was delicious and fresh with great flavors! There was a guy on the beach doing an amazing fire show! Overall this place was fantastic!
This place was in front of our beach front hotel in Puerto Vallarta. I didn't expect much because the back entrance looks like a bar. But after being sat immediately, we were brought our drinks. Great service! The food was pretty awesome, the drinks were flowing, and the scenery was pretty darn nice. If you are in the area, don't let the construction and ugly streets deter you. Just go here and order; let the food do the talking! Big kudos to this open air beach front restaurant with seating in the sand, and exemplary customer service!
3.5 stars overall. Came in with high expectations cause of the ratings and forums. Complimentary chips and salsa was good. Nice spice level. Complimentary bread tasted kinda weird, almost like too plain? Soda bread maybe. The mocktails were pretty good though. I appreciate that they had so many options on that front. Molcajete: not the best we've had but good for PVR Steak + shrimp: Really should not be calling this ribeye steak. This is NOT ribeye, this was more like prime rib which are completely different cuts of meat. My bf asked for medium rare. It first came out rare, not even rare, maybe even raw cause it was cold. Asked them to do it again and came out medium well....at least the fries were good but that steak was so not worth it.
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Wonderful beachfront restaurant. Very chill atmosphere with great music. Extremely fresh fish, definitely worth the price. Recommend the ceviche. read more
6 years ago
I attended this restaurant at at night 45 minutes prior to closing and the service was phenomenal the Vive and the environment the music made you feel at home and the food was very delicious and worth the price the servers were all very attentive I really recommend this place and to top it off you get an ocean view read more
2 years ago
4 years ago
Chill spot in cinco de diciembre! Took my friend for his birthday beach day outing. We grabbed some lounge chairs and set up camp. Ordered a few different drinks from the menu, shared pastor shrimp tacos and steak with mushroom tacos and a large order of guacamole. The tacos were excellent and guacamole had all the right accoutrements. Beach is a bit rocky in this spot and the tide was ripping strong so not much time spent swimming or wandering the beach. Service is slow so make sure you flag someone down if you need something. Great place for a beach day for sure! read more
6 years ago
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Beach-side seafood: every vacationers dream. Located right on the beach, this is a shorts and nice t-shirt type of restaurant. Ask for a seat on the beach, kick off your shoes and relax as you watch the sunset. The food is delicious and you really can't go wrong. My big recommendation is get as much seafood as possible - it is fresh and cooked to perfection. If I were to come back and only get one thing, it would be the seafood molcajetes. Think tons of seafood in a piping hot mortar bowl, over in a delicious almost mole (but not) sauce. The molcajetes comes with four taco shells and diced avocado to make your own tacos. The restaurant is cash only, so make sure to stock up on pesos before you come! read more
4 years ago
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3 years ago
Came here on the last day right before heading out to the airport and it was such a great ending to a great week. There's nothing better than a beach view with a Pacifico and Baja style shrimp tacos on flour tortillas! The red sauce they bring out in the beginning with chips is so addicting! I also stole a bite of my boyfriends beef burger and it was so delicious and you could taste it was fresh as well! read more
5 years ago
8 years ago
Our dinner was incredible here last night. Awesome restaurant, great service, and frequented by lots of local PV regulars, which added so much to the charm of this place. Our first course was the pan de camaron (shrimp with garlic and rice in a skillet). So, so, yummy. On the house, we received chips and salsa. The house margaritas were the best we've had in PV. Just strong enough, but not too boozy. They were about $5 US a piece, and worth every penny. I switched to wine with dinner, and the Sauvignon Blanc was great. My date had the tacos al pastor (expecting pork, but getting shrimp, but they were very good regardless and his fault for not reading the menu carefully). I had the chicharron con mariscos (just shrimp and fish, because I don't really care for octopus) and mushrooms. Everything was delicious. The sunset was beautiful. We chose to sit in the restaurant and we were glad that we did because the waves were a little big that night. They came up and under most of the tables on the beach, so be wary of the tide when you chose where you'd like to sit. Also, cash only. We will be back! read more
4 years ago
We could not have asked for a better welcome to Vallarta than Domingo Divertido (Sunday Funday) at El Barracuda/El Solar Beach Bar! We walked a short way down the beach from our hotel to El Barracuda's front door. The hostess informed us that all of the tables both inside the dining room and out on the sand were full, so our choices were either at the restaurant's bar (with our backs to the sunset) or at a table in the adjoining El Solar Beach Bar, with the exact same menu. El Solar por la victoria! We were seated at a high top table with an unobstructed beach view. As it turned out, in addition to perfect sunset viewing, we also had a front row seat for an excellent jazz/funk/rock cover band. Perfecto! The very best way to start our vacation. The two appetizers we shared were deliciously fresh and flavorful. We had the tuna sashimi and the Peruvian ceviche with the catch of the day, goldfish (not the aquarium kind). They also brought us lots of condiments and accompaniments like bread, chips, crackers, salsa, and various dipping sauces. We also shared an order of shrimp pastor tacos which were just okay. We should have gotten another order of the tuna sashimi instead. As for cocktails, I enjoyed the sangria and Mr. P. had some watermelon margaritas, with shots of tequila on the side (because he is loco). This place is definitely a locals' favorite and feels not just beachy but Mexican beachy. One of our waitresses was barefoot. Dogs were walking around inside. The people around us did not seem to be tourists. The vibe was warm and friendly. My only regret is that we didn't get to go back again before we left town. No se aceptan tarjetas de crédito (credit cards not accepted). read more
10 years ago
Thank god for yelpers! So happy to find this place during my trip to Vallarta! The lime cucumber jalapeño mescal drink was awesome and so was the Agua Chile (shrimp ceviche with lime and Serrano chilies sauce) Loved the sunset here too! Very lively restaurant on la playa.. You must come here if your craving seafood! read more
8 years ago
Delicious food with an amazing view. We literally sat on the beach. Their mezcalitas were delicious I recommend the jalapeño one. There is literally noting on the menu that didn't look good. I went with a big group and we all shared. We also go a fire dancing show by some street performers. It's a great place and they accommodate groups really well. read more
5 years ago
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10 years ago
A first, and definitely not last time in this wonderful dinner spot. The atmosphere, service and food were all exceptional. When we first arrived we were offered a table inside. Noticing there was a vacant table just outside, we asked to be seated there. The open expanse of beach on either side have us the feeling we had this place to ourselves. The waiter and assistant introduced themselves, took our drink order and left a menu. The waiter suggested the tuna sashimi, Which was more like a carpachio and delicious. For entrees, we chose the fish with cilantro sauce and the seafood casserole. Equally amazing! read more
8 years ago
AMAZING experience! Food is insane, the view is unbeatable and the staff are on point! They're on top of everything. Not pushy, quick to anticipate needs and friendly. This spot is right on the beach. You can sit on the deck in the shade, or right on the sand with a table and umbrella. Tacos are insanely good! HIGHLY recommend! read more
5 years ago
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Barracuda and octopus ceviche is a 10. Shrimp pastor tacos are a 10. View is 9.5. Atmosphere is a 10. Margaritas are legit. Amazing place. 5 stars all day. read more
3 years ago
4 years ago
Lovely breezy beach side restaurant with fresh seafood and great view. We had a bottle of wine, some tuna sashimi, shrimp stuffed cheese chicharron, and fish and shrimp steamed "barracuda" style. The sashimi was good, the chicharron greasy and savory. The fish barracuda style was a little schizophrenic, with jicama and cashews showing up randomly with some snow peas, and it was a tad over cooked, but still tasty. The meal came with lots of condiments, salsas, pickled onions, and toasted sesame seeds etc. Also, buttery rice and vegetables and some bread. We were starving so we ate every scrap of food including the condiments, and it was really pleasant to sit and drink cold wine and watch the beach action. Service was fast and friendly. read more
9 years ago
Excellent seafood served on the beach very similar to the office in Kabul San Lucas. Probablyone is a better places To eat in old downtown Puerto Vallarta. One of the best deals on high and beer tequila and seafood on the whole beach. I highly recommend it when visiting. read more
7 years ago
More info about El Barracuda
Paraguay 1290
Col. 5 de Diciembre
48350 Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco
Mexico
Directions
322 222 4034
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Visit Website
http://www.elbarracuda.com/
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