Casual Dining in Weslaco Texas (and surrounds)
 

My husband and I have visited the Rio Grande Valley 3 times now in winter. We are headed back for a week or so in December. Typically our days consist of birdwatching for him and golf for me. Our days tend to start early, and we tend to be a bit tired in the evening. So, we aren't really up for fine dining.

However, I'd like to do a little better than we have done in the past, which was mainly stopping in chain restaurants or driving through MacDonald's and buying a salad. (Because we knew what to expect and we knew it would be fast and we wouldn't have to dress up.)

We did visit one local Mexican restaurant down the road from the Fairfield Inn and Suites and it was quite good (can't remember the name).

So, I'm wondering if anyone has any casual places in the area that are favorites? We are staying in Weslaco, but at any given time could be in Brownsville, Harlingen, Donna, Mission, Hidalgo.

There is a nice casual Italian restaurant just a few blocks from that Fairfield Inn. Milano's. Great house salad. It has been there forever and even attracts patrons from McAllen. Also in Weslaco on the east side of town is a place called Blue Onion. Good salads and flat bread specialties. Make sure your husband knows about Quinta Matzalan in McAllen, only about 20 minutes from Weslaco. You both should see the historic house that has been turned into a birding center, along with the nature trails there. And, of course, McAllen being the larger City in the area has any number of good restaurants to choose from. If you normally go over to Progresso Mexico for dinner or shopping, be sure to remember to bring your passports this year. New DHS rules in effect require that. Weather should be great most of December. Probably in the 70's to 80's, tho there could be a few days when it might drop lower. Welcome back.

Thanks very much Larry. I have seen the Milanos sign and wondered if it was good. Last night I did a little bit of searching. I found the Blue Onion and downloaded their menu. What do you think of Ciros or Casa de Marisco? Those both look close by. How is El Pato for a fast food place? It came up on the search is all.

I'll mention Quinta Matzalan to him to make sure he knows of it, thank you.

Would you believe we have never crossed the border when we have been down there? I'll pack the passports in case we make a run for the border this time(:

Thank you!

Toucan, sounds like you are coming prepared. I can't help you with those Mexican food restaurants. There are so many in my home city of McAllen that I have never been to those you mentioned. A word of full disclosure, I am involved with three restaurants in McAllen, none of which I mentioned since they are the type you don't care for - franchise restuarants - so there is no conflict of interest when I tell you about some of the ones you might like down here. El Pato is a local chain, fast food type Mexican food. We do go to one in McAllen, but mainly for breakfast tacos. However my daughter and family came in last night from NY and we picked up chalupas to go on the way home from the airport. I guess that kind of answers your question on that. You might also want to check out South Padre Island for your husband. The sea turtles there are a big deal and great to see. SPI is about 1 hour from Weslaco and really worth a day trip. Gabriellas, across from WalMart in Port Isabel has good salads and pizzas. Mamacitas on SPI is good Mexican food. My favorite place is a thatched hut type restaurant right on the edge of the beach called Palms on the Beach. Great breakfast, and other lunch and dinner specialties. A great setting. Kind of open air, so have a jacket with you. The turtle center is about 5 miles north of the bridge. Also if you have a chance, Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville is a good stop. Kind of similar to San Diego zoo, but on a much smaller scale. Crossing over to Progresso is easy and probably only 10 to 15 minutes from Weslaco. Arturos is the nice restaurant there.

Thank you again Larry.

I checked with my husband, and he has Quinta Mazatlan on the list. I checked out the web site too.

It's not so much that I don't care for chains as I thought we should try to check out some more local dining. I'm as fond of the Chili's Chicken Enchilada soup as the next person (perhaps more so as I don't ever order anything else there).

Thank you for the additional tips on SPI. We usually also spend a few days over there so I can get my beach fix. We'll be in Weslaco until Christmas day, then will probably go over to SPI. I seem to remember having a really good fish taco at Dirty Al's a few years ago, over by the Marina. I love going on the Dolphin/Eco Tours too.

Dirty Al's got pretty beat up during Hurricane Ike and was closed for several months. It has now reopened. We were there last Thursday night. Still as dirty as ever. Actually, not dirty but still successfully retains its attempt to be an unattractive but quirky place (note the sign on the front door.."Sorry, we're Open"), and also retains its reputation for good food. If you have time, do check out the Palms on Gulf Avenue. I think it may be called the Restaurant at the Palms. Also, if you just want to pick something up and take it to your hotel, apartment, or whatever, there is a place on Padre Boulevard called Zeste. It has gourmet food to go. You can eat there, but most people take out. The owners, Mike and Lisa, are very friendly people and fun to visit with. I usually stop in there for a glass of wine or an imported beer (or two) when I am out walking. The second part of my walk is always more fun than the first part. If you see a guy weaving down the street wearing a UT shirt and cap it's probably me.

LOL, I'll watch for you Larry!

Larry, Quinta Mazatlan is beautiful! We went there yesterday. Of course, I would have also liked to have gotten on the golf course next door(: But, I went to Tierra del Sol in Pharr instead.

Since you are my source of advice, would you recommend either Amberjacks or Windjammers for the Christmas Buffet on Christmas Day? We have to figure out something for that day.

Sorry, Toucan, I'm going to have to take a pass on recommending a place for Christmas buffet. I'd only be guessing.

Glad you enjoyed Quinta Matzalan. I was there about 3 weeks ago for a big charity event at night. It is really nice around the pool area with lights all around it. Hope you got to see inside the house as well as the grounds.

By the way, you might check out Arturo's in Progresso for your Christmas dinner. It's pretty close to you. Might be something a little different. Don't know if they are into buffets, but it should be a good setting for you.

Enjoy the rest of your stay here.

Hi Larry, yes, I did get to tour around the house. It's lovely and I bet it is very pretty out in the courtyard with the pools and lights.

We are moving over to SPI on Christmas Day for a few days, and I just happened to see the Christmas buffet ads in one of those weekly newspapers, I didn't know what restaurants might be open on Christmas.

Thanks again for all your notes here, I appreciate them!

If you're going to be at SPI for a few days you might want to visit the Sea Ranch Restaurant. It got damaged a bit by Hurricane Dolly and I think I saw a sign advertising that it would open on December 26 (strange that they would not open on the 25th, but if they are open that might be a good choice). It is a very good restaurant with a terrific ambiance. Definitely a sit down dinner place, but still casual. A bit higher priced than most Island places. We always take our out of town guests there when they are with us at the beach for more than two nights. Next to it is the hamburger/sea food joint called Dirty Al's. Also there is a Matamoros based restaurant called Garcia's that opened at SPI. It is very old world Mexican with table side flambe steaks along with Mexican selections. It has been closed for the past three months so I don't know if it was just for remodeling and repairs or is a permanent closure. I did enjoy it tho. Good Margaritas and Queso Flameado.

Make sure you'll see the Turtle Center at the north end of the island. Also at the south end (after you pass thru a toll booth for the state park. Sea Island is right before you get to the gate) there is a cove where you can often see dolphins. also get out and walk around the sea man's monument inside the park and see the concrete boardwalk along the ocean. not long but a nice leisurly 10 minute walk or so. Have fun