El Capataz

El Capataz is many people’s go-​to place for going out to eat in Laredo, probably because Laredo doesn’t have many options between greasy-​spoon Mexican fast food and super high-​end fine dining. El Capataz has dark décor in a explorer theme (think rhino heads mounted on the wall) marred by a thousand giant TVs in the main dining area. The new dining area, thank goodness, is much quieter and has no TVs. The food is a somewhat strange mashup of Mexican flavors and American gastropub fare. The best, by far, are the fish tacos. There are not really many vegetarian options on the menu, though there are some good pescatarian options. Other than the fish tacos, there is also fish and chips which many people like. The drinks are good, but beware the frozen margaritas. They have almost no alcohol in them. You’re better off exploring some of the amazing and different craft beers they have on tap. Probably one of the strengths of El Capataz is its focus on craft beers – a rarity in Laredo.

The food is amazing and they have a great drink selection. You can share the appetizers so it brings down the coast a little. The fish tacos are so amazing, you may need seconds! Great experience!

Menu has many selections to get creative
Food is decent. Restaurant is kept nice and clean. One server for 20+. Tables
Manager Is to young and has not develop people skills. Over all we had a nice meal.
I will come back for the food. Service lets just say they are working very hard to meet the guest needs.

Has good food but the price you pay for the El Capataz Salad should be illegal. Iceberg lettuce with one artichoke heart cut up into 4 pieces and watered down dressing calls for a sub par salad. The burger on the other hand is hearty and done right. Cocktails are good with decent beers rotating on tap. I’m only posting such a low review because of how horrible the salad was. Overall the place is about 3.5−75 stars.

best restaurant in town until tabernilla opened which I believe is owned by the same people which says a lot. My favorite dish is the prime rib with the horseradish cream sauce, that pepper crust that encases all that flavor into the meat is just perfection. They have a great selection of beers, and even have mezcal and sotol with the orange slices and sal de gusano who hi think is a great apéritif. Service has always been great no complaints from me and prices are reasonable. Other great things I’ve tried are the fish tacos, mussels, and burger. Always look forward to having a great dinner and drinks with friends till they kick us out lol.

I had the prime rib tonight 13oz and it was perfect. I have eaten here but mainly appetizers and they were great also. I was a little hesitant to order the prime rib but I am glad that I did.
I have not had a bad meal and always have great service. I would highly recommend this next time you ate around the area.

Great service and amazing food. Love the pricing but more expensive than some in Laredo. Great kids menu and one place I will revisit!

The Prime Rib is the best ! My wife loves the fish tacos ! Service is always excellent. Also nice crowd and good drinks.

This is my second time here, visiting from out of town, I ordered the appetizer goat cheese in tomatoes sauce. It was delicious. Perfect for sharing

Really, really cool place. Atmosphere, food and beer are awesome! Different from most places in Laredo but it’s small so get there early or you’ll be waiting an hour for a table for two. Seriously.

I’ve been living here for 3 years now and it’s my favorite place in the city and neighboring towns. Always celebrate my birthday here. If you’re new here or visiting this is a must place. Everything on the menu is delicious.

Exceptional food and only place in the city with decent craft beer selection, I love this place!

The best prime rib I have ever had, so good I can’t order anything else. Service is also superior than most establishments.

Prime rib, fish tacos, fish and chips… amazing. Easily my favorite restaurant in Laredo and always has interesting and new beers on tap.

Sorry… Wrote review for wrong restaurant.

The wait at the door without acknowledgement should’ve been a clue. We gave them the benefit of the doubt. Proceeded to the bar after being told of a 15 – 20 min wait. Bartender and bar back looked at us several times in the literally 15 min we sat there with no menu, no drink order taken without even a nod. FAIL! We actually went next door and ended up having an unbelievable dinner! If your reading this go 500 ft left of this front door!
Thanks for the response but I can definitely tell time and understand whether or not I have a menu. Obviously you have more than several that were overlooked recently as I did not mention to you what day we were there. Nice try but ironically, I’m the one being honest.

Came in for dinner, tried to sit at the bar. We were handed a drink menu and never looked at again. Waited at least 15 minutes before we figured they didn’t want our service. The only person thattalked to us was the lovely hostess. She at least thanked us for coming in.
Luck we went next door to Palenque. Had great service and awesome food! Best steak and shrimp in town!

Looking for a place to drink/​eat and watch the game? Well this place has numerous big screen TVs around the restaurant to watch your sports team play. Their portions are quite small and a little expansive but very good. Very fast service too.

This is some of the best bar food that I have had.
Great atmosphere a solid selection of beers and a great food at a reasonable price.
While there are a couple of other restaurants that I enjoy in Laredo, this has become my go-​to place. The only caveat that it gets crowded on the weekends.
As other reviewers have mentioned the fish and chips is excellent.

Let’s be honest. People don’t flock to a city like Laredo for the cuisine. No, people are in Laredo for other reasons, and my reason for being there is always work related. That said, El Capataz is a solid choice for Mexican-​inspired seafood and other tasty options while dining in the «largest inland port in the U.S.»
El Capataz is a bit of an oddity. Part sports bar, part tequila bar, and part restaurant, you can go in expecting a halfway decent selection of draft beer and tequilas to choose from. The menu consists of two sides of a laminated card (presumably for easy wiping from encounters with said beverages), but don’t let that dissuade you.
My tablemate and I tried the ceviche, as well as the «Corvina Valenciana» (drum fish) and the fish tacos. Yeah, we’re seafood people apparently. The ceviche was good, although it was shrimp-​based instead of fish-​based, which we didn’t expect. It didn’t matter, the ceviche was delicious. The fish tacos and the Corvina were also excellent, and I was excited to get so much good seafood in this «inland port» city.
Service was good and attentive, if a bit slow – but I’ve noticed that is typical for border towns, so I’m not holding any grudges. I will say, however, that El Capataz is loud, and with TVs plastered all over the walls, I felt a bit odd paying $ 14 per entre in Laredo in what really sort of felt like a sports bar.
A couple other notes on the Unilocal listing. 1) While listed as «dressy,» this place definitely isn’t, at least by any normal standards (that’s a good thing). 2) El Capataz is NOT open ²⁴⁄₇ (I think they closed around 11p on the Tuesday I was there).
My bottom line: When in Laredo, try the seafood, tequila, and beer; and try them at El Capataz.