Casa Chapala Mexican Cuisine & Tequila Bar
9041 Research Blvd, Austin, TX
Crema's Take
“This vibrant Tex-Mex cantina thrives as a lively gathering spot that's equally welcoming at 5pm or past 11pm, with a spacious outdoor area and consistently fresh food that keeps locals coming back. While the specialty margaritas and traditional Mexican drinks are generous and well-crafted, what really sets Casa Chapala apart is the warmth of the experience—servers like Martha have earned praise for their genuine attentiveness, making it feel less like a transaction and more like visiting friends in San Antonio. It's the kind of place where you'll find families, groups meeting up, and solo diners all comfortable, trading the pristine coffee shop vibe for colorful, flashy energy and a kitchen that clearly takes pride in what lands on your plate.”
What to expect
Google Reviews
This was our first time and here and we were pleasantly surprised! We pass this place all the time and we finally stopped after a recommendation from a friend. The food was good, definitely not out of this world but very solid and quality with good portion sizes. Our server Bayron was exceptional and made our experience here amazing. He was funny and gave us recommendations for the food when we were on the fence. Very prompt and good with the refills on drinks and chips.Will definitely be back!
Came to Casa Chapala and had the best experience! Our server Martha was the sweetest lady ever—so kind, attentive, and made sure everything was perfect the whole time. The food was amazing and the drinks were great too. Definitely recommend coming here for the food, drinks, and outstanding service. Thank you Martha!
I passed this place around 11pm and it was truly jumpin!! I love the atmosphere even at 5pm!! The food is amazing! A go to anytime im in the area.
Chapala is a dual restaurant and catering group. They operate their restaurant like a flashy colorful Tex-Mex style cantina where you'll feel like you're visiting San Antonio. A great touch about eating at the restaurant is the table salsa is semi prepared in front of you. You can select how spicy you'd like it and they'll mix it together in front of you. Food wise, it's not bad. The beans are very good for being vegetarian. A waitress confirmed that there is no meat used to create the black beans, and also none in the refried beans. The pastor tacos (see my photo) definitely didn't taste like pastor. Or really anything. They kind of taste like...achote meat. Same thing with the green enchiladas. Nothing was particularly memorable, but I can't say anything was bad. Go at lunch of for the lunch specials, and drive in from the south for an easier time getting into their parking lot. I'd return and try something else.
Nice spot, loved the huge outdoor area. The drinks are pretty good and big size. The service was great and the food was hot and made fresh. My only issue was the price, the plates seemed very overpriced for what you received. For that I won’t be returning often, but worth a try for sure.
Crema Reviews
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