Candente is our local favorite. Great fajitas and friendly service. Happy hour daily from 3-6. Nacho special on Monday is spectacular.
Red Lady
Great food and Service by waitress
Doug Goehry
Fantastic service, relaxed vibes, and the brisket enchiladas were SO good!
Jason Bennett
Candente. A name that sounds like it could be a telenovela villain, but instead delivers bold Tex-Mex fire with a side of char-grilled ambition. From the jump, this place felt like the kind of spot where tortillas are sacred, tequila flows freely, and nobody’s allowed to leave hungry—or emotionally unfulfilled.
Let’s talk brisket nachos. Good grief. These things didn’t come to play—they came to conquer. Smoky, cheesy, piled high, and unapologetically extra. Every chip carried the weight of brisket, melty cheese, and the soul of Texas BBQ. If nachos had a hall of fame, these would be the Jordan-era Bulls.
Then came the medium skirt steak fajitas, which were good, not great. Flavor? Yes. Char? Present. Tenderness? Eh… let’s say the steak had commitment issues. It just didn’t want to break up with my molars. Still tasty, just a bit more workout than I bargained for.
But let’s not stop there—because we upgraded like fajita royalty. • Quail: Delicate, smoky, and probably hunted by candlelight in a mesquite forest. • Chile Relleno: A bold, cheesy middle finger to moderation. • Chili Lime Shrimp: Tangy, juicy, and basically a vacation in every bite. • And the other shrimp add-on? Imagine a Texas Twinkie got a little spicy, fell in love with the Gulf Coast, and showed up stuffed with shrimp instead of cream. It was weird. It was wonderful. It was gone in 10 seconds.
Final verdict: 4.5 stars, rounding up for vibes, nacho excellence, and the sheer audacity of that shrimp-stuffed fever dream. Would I return? Without hesitation. Would I drag friends along while swearing the brisket nachos will change their lives? Already scheduling it. Candente, you’re a meat-fueled, Tex-Mex fever dream—and I mean that in the best way.
Andrea Peel
The best Tex Mex in Houston, in my opinion. Fantastic fajitas and enchiladas (get the La Bandera and try one of each type and thank me later!), and the salsas are out of this world. We drive in from the suburbs at least once a month to eat here because it's our favorite!
Samuel Wood
Great food, with timely and polite staff. When it's cool enough, the outside seating is lovely
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Amin
Service was awful...on a Tuesday night. Asked for water three times and finally came 1.0 hr later to take our main course order, but not the water... Ended up just going to the bar to get water. Large group so tip was included, even though waiter was non existent throughout the night. Bummer birthday experience for Food that was great and good vibes. Maybe more luck next time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 2
Grayce B
The food here was delicious but the restaurant was kind of loud and smokey from all the fajitas. We were a large group and the restaurant was busy but our drinks were only refilled once or twice over the course of about 2 hours. On Tuesdays the large fajita is the same price as the medium so highly recommend getting some fajitas on a Tuesday night!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Brisket Nachos, Fajita, Refried Beans and Rice
cody king
Great quality food, also the restaurant is quite large, however the parking is not, and the parking garage spaces are too small causing people to double park, or be so close it is difficult to get into/out of your car.
I would say their signature style in food is their use of mesquite wood and you can smell the wood smoke when you come in and taste it in the food. I am a fan of their Mezcal Magarita, and their chicken enchiladas are my fav. They do brisket very well too.
Don't sleep on their 1/2 priced nacho Mondays and double up the value by coming during happy hour (3-6pm, need to verify if that is just weekdays or all week) for a $5 house margarita.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jose Villegas
Good food, nice service. Would definitely come again to try other things on the menu.
Great food, and service. Split large shrimp fajitas. Had the ceviche for an appetizer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fajita
Kevin Sinclair
Where do I start!! What an amazing place, food and experience my girlfriend and I had celebrating her birthday.
Candente is quite large, spacious and comfortable.
So we started with House Margaritas which had a lot of flavor and were strong...Oh my!!
My girlfriend ordered the Elote Salad from the lunch menu, and I ordered the Fajita Combo which was beef and chicken.
My girlfriend loved her Elote Salad which was packed with tremendous flavor.
The fajitas were amazing!..Well seasoned, marinated and flavored.
Our server was very friendly, engaging, and on a funny note I forgot to tell him it was my ladies birthday ahead of time, so when I mentioned it later, he came right back with a slice of the most delicious Tres Leches cake. Unbelievable.
The prices are decent and you can even host large groups and events.
I honestly could not get over how big and spread out the place was, and the bathroom was very clean.
Look forward to coming back and visiting again.
Vegetarian options: There seemed to be some selections.
Dietary restrictions: Not sure so please ask.
Parking: Some street parking plus a parking garage which was monitored by security.
Awesome stop, great service, friendly, tasty food and drinks! Yah gotta go!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michelle
Top Tex-mex place in Houston- hands down! Candente is one of those places you go and then realize how have I not been here sooner? Their BBQ twist on Mexican food is one of kind. I’ve had their chicken enchiladas, fajitas and brisket enchiladas and none have disappoint. Everytime we’ve been here the food is made to order, fresh, and hot. You really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. As a native Houstonian, this place is one of those restaurants I recommend to try. Also try their margaritas they have so many!
Parking: Garage parking connected to it. Only for Candente
We routinely eat here and enjoy the food. However, this most recent time both me and my husband got pretty bad food poisoning. If I were to guess it was the salsa since that was what we mainly shared. This is disappointing. I am now very scared to go back.
Candente is our local favorite. Great fajitas and friendly service. Happy hour daily from 3-6. Nacho special on Monday is spectacular.
Great food and Service by waitress
Fantastic service, relaxed vibes, and the brisket enchiladas were SO good!
Candente. A name that sounds like it could be a telenovela villain, but instead delivers bold Tex-Mex fire with a side of char-grilled ambition. From the jump, this place felt like the kind of spot where tortillas are sacred, tequila flows freely, and nobody’s allowed to leave hungry—or emotionally unfulfilled.
Let’s talk brisket nachos. Good grief. These things didn’t come to play—they came to conquer. Smoky, cheesy, piled high, and unapologetically extra. Every chip carried the weight of brisket, melty cheese, and the soul of Texas BBQ. If nachos had a hall of fame, these would be the Jordan-era Bulls.
Then came the medium skirt steak fajitas, which were good, not great. Flavor? Yes. Char? Present. Tenderness? Eh… let’s say the steak had commitment issues. It just didn’t want to break up with my molars. Still tasty, just a bit more workout than I bargained for.
But let’s not stop there—because we upgraded like fajita royalty.
• Quail: Delicate, smoky, and probably hunted by candlelight in a mesquite forest.
• Chile Relleno: A bold, cheesy middle finger to moderation.
• Chili Lime Shrimp: Tangy, juicy, and basically a vacation in every bite.
• And the other shrimp add-on? Imagine a Texas Twinkie got a little spicy, fell in love with the Gulf Coast, and showed up stuffed with shrimp instead of cream. It was weird. It was wonderful. It was gone in 10 seconds.
Final verdict: 4.5 stars, rounding up for vibes, nacho excellence, and the sheer audacity of that shrimp-stuffed fever dream. Would I return? Without hesitation. Would I drag friends along while swearing the brisket nachos will change their lives? Already scheduling it. Candente, you’re a meat-fueled, Tex-Mex fever dream—and I mean that in the best way.
The best Tex Mex in Houston, in my opinion. Fantastic fajitas and enchiladas (get the La Bandera and try one of each type and thank me later!), and the salsas are out of this world. We drive in from the suburbs at least once a month to eat here because it's our favorite!
Great food, with timely and polite staff. When it's cool enough, the outside seating is lovely
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Service was awful...on a Tuesday night. Asked for water three times and finally came 1.0 hr later to take our main course order, but not the water... Ended up just going to the bar to get water. Large group so tip was included, even though waiter was non existent throughout the night. Bummer birthday experience for Food that was great and good vibes.
Maybe more luck next time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 2
The food here was delicious but the restaurant was kind of loud and smokey from all the fajitas. We were a large group and the restaurant was busy but our drinks were only refilled once or twice over the course of about 2 hours. On Tuesdays the large fajita is the same price as the medium so highly recommend getting some fajitas on a Tuesday night!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Brisket Nachos, Fajita, Refried Beans and Rice
Great quality food, also the restaurant is quite large, however the parking is not, and the parking garage spaces are too small causing people to double park, or be so close it is difficult to get into/out of your car.
I would say their signature style in food is their use of mesquite wood and you can smell the wood smoke when you come in and taste it in the food. I am a fan of their Mezcal Magarita, and their chicken enchiladas are my fav. They do brisket very well too.
Don't sleep on their 1/2 priced nacho Mondays and double up the value by coming during happy hour (3-6pm, need to verify if that is just weekdays or all week) for a $5 house margarita.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Good food, nice service. Would definitely come again to try other things on the menu.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Taco Birria De Res, Fajita
Restaurantji Recommends
Great food, and service. Split large shrimp fajitas. Had the ceviche for an appetizer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fajita
Where do I start!! What an amazing place, food and experience my girlfriend and I had celebrating her birthday.
Candente is quite large, spacious and comfortable.
So we started with House Margaritas which had a lot of flavor and were strong...Oh my!!
My girlfriend ordered the Elote Salad from the lunch menu, and I ordered the Fajita Combo which was beef and chicken.
My girlfriend loved her Elote Salad which was packed with tremendous flavor.
The fajitas were amazing!..Well seasoned, marinated and flavored.
Our server was very friendly, engaging, and on a funny note I forgot to tell him it was my ladies birthday ahead of time, so when I mentioned it later, he came right back with a slice of the most delicious Tres Leches cake. Unbelievable.
The prices are decent and you can even host large groups and events.
I honestly could not get over how big and spread out the place was, and the bathroom was very clean.
Look forward to coming back and visiting again.
Vegetarian options: There seemed to be some selections.
Dietary restrictions: Not sure so please ask.
Parking: Some street parking plus a parking garage which was monitored by security.
Kid-friendliness: Great place to bring kids.
Wheelchair accessibility: Wheelchair Accessible.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Elote Salad, Beef Fajita, Fajita
Awesome stop, great service, friendly, tasty food and drinks! Yah gotta go!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Top Tex-mex place in Houston- hands down! Candente is one of those places you go and then realize how have I not been here sooner? Their BBQ twist on Mexican food is one of kind. I’ve had their chicken enchiladas, fajitas and brisket enchiladas and none have disappoint. Everytime we’ve been here the food is made to order, fresh, and hot. You really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. As a native Houstonian, this place is one of those restaurants I recommend to try. Also try their margaritas they have so many!
Parking: Garage parking connected to it. Only for Candente
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Carnitas Dinner, Brisket Queso, Fajita
We routinely eat here and enjoy the food. However, this most recent time both me and my husband got pretty bad food poisoning. If I were to guess it was the salsa since that was what we mainly shared. This is disappointing. I am now very scared to go back.
Food: 1
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