La Playa By the Bay

The Margaritas including the top shelf are weak. There was one bus boy Nd the waitress never checked on us. There was live music -- conjunto -- it was great. This won't be our post.

Somebody was hammering away on something the whole time we were there. Loudly. The food we ordered tasted great but both entrees arrived barely warm. My wife had the El Yucateo plate, breaded fried eggplant stuffed with shrimp and sauteed pico de gallo and chile con queso. Wifey had borracho beans and rice with her meal. I had the Carne Guisada, tender hunks of beef stewed in a Mexican gravy. I had rice and refried beans and flour tortillas with mine. First time we've eaten in what sounded like a blacksmith shop. Skip this place.

My experience at La playa By the Bay was likely my least favorite during my most recent trip to Corpus. We chose the restaurant out of convenience as it was located just a quick walk from the office, and that is about where my praise ends. Boasting a typical Mexican/Tex-mex menu the choices are nothing new, and proved to be a little disappointing for everyone involved. Speaking for my own soup, there was definitely a lack of flavor that I am so used to experiencing in San Antonio. In a very strange turn of events, for some reason our server disappeared halfway through our meal and we (as well as about 75% of the restaurant) were on a time constraint to get back to our event. Had the server been present and collecting checks in the time we all sat waiting, this would have been no problem for anyone involved. However, once she spawned back into existence, she requested we form a line at the register rather than getting checks table by table...this, dear readers, was not a good idea. Somehow this caused the process to take far longer and many members of the event were late back from lunch. You can let things come and go, if the food had been stellar then it's worth the wait! But sadly it was not and the added confusion took even more away from the experience. I may be willing to give it another shot, but with plenty of other places within eyesight, it won't be any time soon.

We were wanting a plate of nachos and some drinks. This place was right across the street from our hotel. Arrived here at 8:30 on a Saturday night. When you first walked in, it stinks. Whatever the smell is, it was strong. There were a few tables occupied and we were told by the hostess to sit anywhere you like and she would be "right behind us". That never happened. We waited 12 minutes and no one came by or acknowledged us at all. We left. You only get one chance to make a first impression.

La Playa (By The Bay) has been through so many transitions of owners and management over the years it has been hard to keep up with. Apparently they are in the process of changing names and everything else again. The food has always been pretty good given Corpus Tex Mex standards. The atmosphere has always been nice with a solid Tex Mex vibe. So for those reasons, I return from time-to-time. It's a downtown touristy restaurant, for sure. Where they have been hit or miss a lot over the years is their service standards. They have ranged from horrendous to lackluster. Not so this evening! My server, Grace, was super nice and accommodating. Everyone else that was working appeared to have a decent attitude as well, which was refreshing over the somewhat apathetic one I have come to experience. The food was pretty decent, but somewhat bland. This is where my travel Redmond's Real Salt came to the rescue!Overall, I would say this place sits at a solid three (3) stars at the moment. I am adding one (1) for the experience with my server this go around. I will be back sometime in the near future to see what direction they are headed.

Hello. I want to start this review off by saying the only reason I'm giving this a one star is because our server was nice. Now as for the rest of experience where do I even begin. My gf and I were visiting town and thought we'd try this place as it was a couple minute walk from the hotel we were residing at.Upon entry we were greeted by a nice gentleman whose name I can't remember. Was our server/host for the night and told us to sit wherever we liked. We opted for a booth in the back and upon sitting down we noticed some things were off but wanted to be optimistic. The seat cushions looked like a raccoon was living in them. Absolutely huge gaping holes along with multiple slashes and gashes. A couple of others things I also wanted to point out is that we noticed our menus AND our silverware look like they hadn't been washed since the store opened!! I will say, the karaoke you're met with upon walking in was a nice touch. It gave the establishment a cozy warm feeling that I enjoyed which looking back now was the only good thing I can say this place has going for it. Our server then asks us what we would like to drink in which I order a sweet tea, and my girlfriend orders a coke, nothing fancy. We had already taken the time to look over the menu and decided we wanted the re fried bean quesadillas as our appetizer. As far as the wait it wasn't too bad at all, we got our appetizer and began to chow down.The food itself was alright. It ran us $12 which given the portions we were met with, alongside the decent taste, it wasn't an unfair price in my eyes. Our server then returns and asks what we like our entree to be. My girl and I both opt for the cheese enchilada plates. Now, unfortunately we didn't even get to try our entree. As we were waiting there was a baby roach walking alongside the wall next to me and my girl. ABSOLUTELY disgusting not to mention we sat and watched it walk all over the rest of our quesadillas and our drinks. The fact it was a baby roach means there very well could be a nest close by. That was all I needed to see. I instantly asked for the check and when met with the offer of moving seats I said heck to the no! I've never been in an establishment so filthy in which I was met with a roach. Definitely won't ever be returning. It is ridiculous we even paid to be quite frank. But oh well.

Band was actually pretty good until the drunk owner decided to sing karaoke instead of letting the band do their thing. Shane.

This is seriously in the Top 3 worst meals I've ever had.This place was very close to our hotel so we went on a Sunday night. Service was actually really fast, although the server looked absolutely miserable but we were pretty much one of only 3 tables in the restaurant so it wasn't busy.Ordered cheese enchiladas. I'm a vegetarian, so I asked if the beans had meat in them. He said no.Get my plate and bite into the enchilada and it's full of ground beef. No problem. That happens. I told him and he said they put beef "gravy" on top. On cheese enchiladas?!I asked for a new one without the "beef gravy." He rolls up with what may be the most disgusting thing I've ever been served.It is a greasy tortilla stuffed with cheddar cheese. No sauce on top, but just more cheese and a bunch of sour cream sauce. It was a mound of cheese. Totally inedible. I usually make do with whatever but it was soo gross.Rice was bland. Beans had ham or something in them. I ordered tortilla soup and it had tons of mushrooms in it (Um?) The booth we were in looked like it had been slashed up in Freddy Kreuger. I shudder to think what the kitchen must look like. Do not eat here.

They have good drink specials and tasty, cheesy Tex Mex. Friendly service. I'll definitely go again.

Chips were dripping in grease and hard to chew I had to spit out. Queso was disgusting. Chicken on the fajita avocado salad was inedible. No toilet paper or paper towels in the bathroom.