Cafe Adobe

In Short – The interior is dark and cozy, with big tables and comfortable booths. Most people prefer the patio, which overlooks Westheimer Road and is shaded by palm trees and plants. In winter months, a fireplace is the restaurant's centerpiece. Tex-Mex is the reigning flavor on the menu, with typical fare including enchiladas, tacos, fajitas, nachos and anything else that goes great with a margarita. During colder months, tortilla soup is a favorite.

Editor's Tips

Save Money:: Daily happy hour (from 2pm-6:30pm) is best enjoyed on the thatched rooftop bar and patio.
Parking:: Even with the large lot, parking is at a premium during happy hour, so look for a spot on the street if possible.

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User Reviews (86)

ambiance	70.59000015258789% positive	“But do go there for the drinks and the cool relaxing atmosphere.” “The food is great, the margaritas are great and the atmosphere is very good as well.” “Cafe Adobe has great food, great service and a very festive atmosphere.” “Wonderful food, a patio with a gorgeous view and fast and friendly wait staff make this Cafe Adobe a real winner!” “It's loud, crowded, horrible to park at, and the wait can be very long, but it's a fun place to go and their margaritas really are the best.” “don't like the ambience of the Marq E location of Cafe Adobe because it feels like a cave.” “Been there several times and the food is just average Tex-Mex, but the patio is nice and the additional parking is a great improvement.” “This place is fun, especially in the evenings after work.” “like cozy places, but this one feels more claustrophobic.” “burst into tears, took a look around the parking lot and there were of course the fresh 5+ cars' shattered glass.” “The greeters desk, numbering cards and location of number displays were very poor.” “The ONLY reason I went was to have a quick drink with some friends and we didnt want to deal with annoying parking or valets.” “It's okay, but loud and crowded always, and the parking is terrible.” “Great margaritas, great place to meet after work, relaxed atmosphere” “Great food, decent service, and great atmosphere.” “Great atmosphere and the happy hour upstairs is great in price.” “cafe adobe is too expensive for the quatity of the food and atmosphere.”
drinks	83.33000183105469% positive	“The ONLY reason I went was to have a quick drink with some friends and we didnt want to deal with annoying parking or valets.” “They have good happy hour prices on drinks and food.” “I'm still wondering what those green wedges were sitting in a big bowl on the bar.” “the drinks are great , the food is just as good , and the service is divine.” “love the margaritas but be careful about how many you drink.” “But do go there for the drinks and the cool relaxing atmosphere.” “go and enjoy bad food and drinks!” “I'm still wondering what that big bowl of cut up green citrus fruit was that was sitting on the bar in front of me.” “It's a great place to meet up with friends sit back on the patio and drink a few margaritas.” “Cafe Adobe is a good place to grab a few drinks after work.” “The drinks are always great.” “for the money Cafe Adobe cant be beat in this part of town the queso flameado and the drinks are the best”
food quality	77.65999794006348% positive	“Great food, decent service, and great atmosphere.” “Cool place, good food, great variety of margaritas, nice patio upstairs.” “The food is great, the margaritas are great and the atmosphere is very good as well.” “The food was excelent and the magaritas are great.” “like to refer to this place as the "Cheese Wiz Factory", I have not experienced such awful Mexican food since "Chi-Chi's" was in full swing.” “Margaritas are tasty and STRONG.” “This is the place were the phrase "plastic mexican food was originated" too many good authentic mexican food in houston example: The Original Ninfas on Navagation.” “It still had great food and margaritas, but I have to agree that the wait and the service are not up to par.” “Good food, poor service” “They are very watered down and the food is always mediocre when I've visited.” “Have you ever been to a place where you know the food is good and you know what to expect?” “asked the bartender to make me a real margarita (that is 3 parts tequila, 2 parts Cointreau and l part fresh lime juice) and he said he couldn't because he didn't have any limes.” “Cafe Adobe has great food, great service and a very festive atmosphere.” “They have good happy hour prices on drinks and food.” “Great food, great service (with a friendly smile) although it can get a little slow when very busy, wonderful marguritas.” “Chips and salsa, lame.” “Shrimp Enchiladas are pretty tasty.” “The food is consistently good, the service is not.” “We often find ourselves settling for Chuy's with mediocre margaritas but excellent food, service and later hours.” “Best food and margarita's around.” “enjoy the Adobe Shrimp the most(Teryaki glazed shrimp wrapped in bacon).” “The best Mexican food in Houston is still at Otillia's on Longpoint.” “Wonderful food, a patio with a gorgeous view and fast and friendly wait staff make this Cafe Adobe a real winner!” “The food here is nasty!” “used to come here "at least" once a week, they have THE BEST margaritas, food, and staff there!” “Being a self-proclaimed "margarita connoisseur" I have to admit that their's is pretty amazing, but the food could be better and I wish the hours were more flexible.” “cafe adobe is too expensive for the quatity of the food and atmosphere.” “Well, the food varies; sometimes it's great and other times it is not but one thing that is consistent is the bad service in the dining area not the patio upstairs though - they're great.” “go and enjoy bad food and drinks!” “This used to be the place for great food and excellent margaritas.” “It's great because the people are wonderful, the food's great, and the prices are very reasonable and affordable.” “It was truly the best mexican food that i have had in a long time.” “Oh the ritas and food are great!” “They have added some seafood items that I liked, but the fajitas are still the best in Houston.” “Hot sauce here is great, as are fajitas.” “Great chips, salsa.” “I'll admit the margarita's a great, but the food SUCKS.” “This is my very favorite place to eat in Houston - I love the food!” “The customer service was fine and the open greenhouse room was nice, but the food was terrible.” “We have recently moved to Houston and will continue our search for good Mexican food and good margaritas.” “The menu was filthy, there was a fly tooling about in the restaurant, and the food was mediocre.” “Been there several times and the food is just average Tex-Mex, but the patio is nice and the additional parking is a great improvement.” “the drinks are great , the food is just as good , and the service is divine.” “burst into tears, took a look around the parking lot and there were of course the fresh 5+ cars' shattered glass.” “The food was great it had a lot of flavor.” “food is good and the margaritas are great.” “really like this locations, they have a variety of maragritas to choose from and they food is great.”
menu variety	75.0% positive	“really like this locations, they have a variety of maragritas to choose from and they food is great.” “The menu was filthy, there was a fly tooling about in the restaurant, and the food was mediocre.” “Cool place, good food, great variety of margaritas, nice patio upstairs.” “Everything on the menu I've had is good, some really good.”
overall	100.0% positive	“This is a great place to hang out with friends and have margaritas.” “It's a great place to meet up with friends sit back on the patio and drink a few margaritas.” “Cafe Adobe is a good place to grab a few drinks after work.” “Talk about a great place to people watch.” “It is the best mexican restaurant in the United States.” “Great margaritas, great place to meet after work, relaxed atmosphere” “definitely not the best magarita place in town, but a nice place” “Use to be a great place.”
service	74.07000064849854% positive	“Talk about a great place to people watch.” “It still had great food and margaritas, but I have to agree that the wait and the service are not up to par.” “Great food, decent service, and great atmosphere.” “Cafe Adobe has great food, great service and a very festive atmosphere.” “Our waiter was verry nice and respectable.” “The food is consistently good, the service is not.” “the drinks are great , the food is just as good , and the service is divine.” “Well, the food varies; sometimes it's great and other times it is not but one thing that is consistent is the bad service in the dining area not the patio upstairs though - they're great.” “Wonderful food, a patio with a gorgeous view and fast and friendly wait staff make this Cafe Adobe a real winner!” “had my one year old grandbaby with me and the staff and waiters were great.” “Great food, great service (with a friendly smile) although it can get a little slow when very busy, wonderful marguritas.” “When we finally got seated we had this awful server that only had 3 tables in his section, including us.” “Good food, poor service” “have been going for years and still enjoy the people wathciong.” “It's great because the people are wonderful, the food's great, and the prices are very reasonable and affordable.” “This restaurant has always intrigued me evertime I would ride past this joint but after several visits I was not impressed the waitstaff had me wait over an hour before they would come to me I would have to waive down staff members to order.” “used to come here "at least" once a week, they have THE BEST margaritas, food, and staff there!” “love the setting and the service.” “never understand why people love this place.” “We often find ourselves settling for Chuy's with mediocre margaritas but excellent food, service and later hours.” “used to LOVE cafe adobe until one afternoon, when my girlfriend and I decided to eat inside ONLY to see a flying insect (because of guidelines i cannot type it in but they are brown and rhym with coach) on the waiter's shoulder.” “The dining room service is ALWAYS slow.” “Our waiter was friendly but a bubble head.” “Staff is friendly and helpful.” “maybe I was in the wrong maybe if you chose to sit on patio you are not entitled to good service well whatever the reason I will not be going to cafe adobe for a long time.” “asked the bartender to make me a real margarita (that is 3 parts tequila, 2 parts Cointreau and l part fresh lime juice) and he said he couldn't because he didn't have any limes.” “The customer service was fine and the open greenhouse room was nice, but the food was terrible.”
value	70.0% positive	“good prices.” “Great atmosphere and the happy hour upstairs is great in price.” “cafe adobe is too expensive for the quatity of the food and atmosphere.” “It's great because the people are wonderful, the food's great, and the prices are very reasonable and affordable.” “for the money Cafe Adobe cant be beat in this part of town the queso flameado and the drinks are the best” “and their so called "best in Houston" margaritas are overpriced, tiny and just plain bad.” “There are much better margaritas, way better mexican restaurants and many more delightful experiences out there than to waste money here.” “Now that they've raised the price and lowered the quality even the decent margharitas are no reason to go.” “Well Houston, I am assuming having your car smashed into and your stuff stolen is "too expensive" for all of you.” “They have good happy hour prices on drinks and food.”
wait time	71.4300012588501% positive	“It's loud, crowded, horrible to park at, and the wait can be very long, but it's a fun place to go and their margaritas really are the best.” “Cafe Adobe has been a long time favorite of mine.” “It was truly the best mexican food that i have had in a long time.” “The ONLY reason I went was to have a quick drink with some friends and we didnt want to deal with annoying parking or valets.” “maybe I was in the wrong maybe if you chose to sit on patio you are not entitled to good service well whatever the reason I will not be going to cafe adobe for a long time.” “The dining room service is ALWAYS slow.” “Great food, great service (with a friendly smile) although it can get a little slow when very busy, wonderful marguritas.”

10/03/11

Beware of the Parking Lot

by Curmudgen

It's nothing new as others have revealed. The insurance company agrees. This parking lot is a magnet for thieves who will break your windows to get whatever they can out of your car. It just happened to us. Seems to be some chronic problem with the area. Should have read CitySearch first. Then we'd have known the risk we were taking leaving our car unattended. . Beware.

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10/25/10

NEVER EAT HERE - TRUST THE REVIEWS

by Moe818

I have never written a review, but the restaurant was so shocking I have an obligation as a culinary student to do so. My husband and I both feel this place should be closed down. The chips and dips to start- the chips are greasy, the salsa tasted like can tomatoes with some spices, the guacamole dip was a slimy puree like nothing I have ever tasted. That made it clear that there ingredients are not FRESH. They are either all canned, frozen, or come pre-made. Next we ordered the corn chowder and a side of "real" guacamole for the chips, this is different then the slimy free stuff. I felt like I was on Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares bec I could not even swallow the soup. I had to spit it out. It was so vile I cant even explain what it tasted like. The guacamole was warm and so old that it had browned and the bowl was crusted over. As soon as we tasted it there was a panic that we were going to get sick from it. I sent it back along with the soup and told the waitress to tell the kitchen to taste the soup. Then she commented "oh no one really likes that soup." Oh dear. Next - Frozen Raspberry Marg and Houstons Best Marg - the frozen was decent in taste however it was clearly from a machince and the fruit was not even mixed, it was watery and not really frozen. My husband's 10 dollar drink did not even taste like a like anything, he would not even drink it. The main courses- I got the tamales and he got I dont know what it was beef wrapped in a friend taco...mine was decent but clearly frozen and not fresh the tomatillo sauce I guessed was from a can, which was confirmed later when we were leaving and walked outside past the kitchen where we saw an entire case of huge cans of sauce sitting out in the houston sun. Back to the meals, the refried beans were also from a can and lacked flavor, the rice was plain. My husbands taco was so greasy and burnt tasting he would not eat it either. I am really surprised that no one has shut this place down. They clearly violate sanitation rules by serving the old guacamole and leaving those cans out in the sun. They are over priced, nothing is fresh, everything tasted disgusting. With so many fabulous mexican places near by such as Chuy's or Taco Milegro there is no reason to ever go here again. I will make sure that people know that the food is not fresh, the drinks are not real, and they clearly do not practice proper sanitation. Please listen, this is an honest review. Do not go here EVER. In fact please spread the word this restaurant is a disgrace to our amazing food city. They should be ashamed to be open.

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06/27/10

Flavorful Tex Mex

by mc777 , Citysearch Contributor

The one in Clear Lake just opened up a couple months ago and it is impressive. The service is great and the food is memorable. The lunch menu is great for those on a budget. They offer large portions for reasonable prices. I recommend the Seafood Enchiladas, Tamales with queso, Flautas, and Beef and Chicken mixed Enchiladas. You can get the last 3 in a combo for 7.99. They also have $3 margaritas for happy hour everyday.

Pros: food, service

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03/22/10

STAY AWAY!!!

by dbe26

Food is mediocre, at BEST...and their so called "best in Houston" margaritas are overpriced, tiny and just plain bad. Chips and salsa, lame. Go to El Tiempo. The ONLY reason I went was to have a quick drink with some friends and we didnt want to deal with annoying parking or valets. As Mickey said, they have a huge one across the street which they PROUDLY claim for their customers to use. What they dont proudly claim is ALL THE CARS THAT GET BROKEN INTO.

I was there 3/19/10.

I got there at 5pm got a drink, sat down, had a quick bite and was out within 30 minutes as I had somewhere to be. By the time I got outside, STILL in BROAD DAYLIGHT, 5+ cars were broken into. No games, they just went for laptop bags and school bags and even went so far as to stealing my makeup bag!!!! I, of course, was the lucky one who had not one, but TWO windows smashed out.

Management has no surveillance of any kind. Not even fake cameras to intimidate opportunistic thieves. What they do have, of course in SMALL prints, is that they are not responsible for thefts in THEIR lot. What's done is done. I burst into tears, took a look around the parking lot and there were of course the fresh 5+ cars' shattered glass. AND there was a TON of glass ALL over from previous break-ins.

Fool me once, shame on you, fooled you twice and many more times in future, NEVER GOING TO A POORLY MANAGED PLACE LIKE THIS EVER!

To add, when we went inside to talk to the manager, he was EXTREMELY rude...did not offer to give anyone a drink or anything, just kept repeating himself like a broken record that they werent responsible. Apparently they had security at one point, but it got "too expensive" for them. Well Houston, I am assuming having your car smashed into and your stuff stolen is "too expensive" for all of you. If so DO NOT GO TO CAFE ADOBE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Unless you enjoy the inconvenience of having to wait for an hour and a half for police or sitting on the phone trying to get your car fixed or feeling violated by some thugs having your personal belongings...in which case, by all means...go and enjoy bad food and drinks!

Pros: NONE!!
Cons: FOOD, GETTING YOUR CAR BROKEN INTO, EVERYTHING

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10/23/09

I'm confused!!!!!!!!!!

by nupers

I thought that margarita's were made with tequila.... not at adobe! It tastes like they use wine or something else. Attn bartenders, cheap liquor is for your own parties at home, not at the place where you get paid! The food is similar to Taco Bell! YUK!!!! ADOBE, you keep changing the menu and prices, but fail to keep up with authenticity for sure!

Cafe Adobe

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What People Are Saying About Cafe Adobe

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Editor's Tips

10/03/11

Beware of the Parking Lot

by Curmudgen

10/25/10

NEVER EAT HERE - TRUST THE REVIEWS

by Moe818

06/27/10

Flavorful Tex Mex

by mc777 , Citysearch Contributor

03/22/10

STAY AWAY!!!

by dbe26

10/23/09

I'm confused!!!!!!!!!!

by nupers

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