Tio Javi's Fresh Mex Bar & Grill

This review is based partly on my own food preferences, but you might love it! Service was GREAT! I don’t like the standard beans/rice combo offered here and other Tex Mex restaurants. I’m part of the approximately 20% of the population for whom cilantro tastes like soap, so I had a hard time finding anything to meet those preferences. Other people in my group loved the food. The service on a very crowded Saturday night was so OUTSTANDING I still had a good experience at a friend’s birthday party. I don’t know how the young man did it! If you like this menu, then by all means GO! I don’t but that’s just me.

My team and I are here for lunch and had a wonderful experience. We had a large table of 15, Emily was our server, and did an amazing job! The food was excellent also!

Fajitas were great- tender and flavorful. The queso fundido is something everyone who loves cheese should order. Service was okay- ran out of drinks, not attentive to prebussing. One of the top Mexican places in BR to try that’s consistent. Service is pretty quick- prices are somewhat similar to SG. Honestly SG and TJ are like brothers regarding food level similarity.

The service is exceptional! Nice atmosphere. Perhaps ai chose the wrong food but it was very average. Black beans were really good. Chicken enchiladas (meat and wraps) were quite dry as was the rice. Margarita was a little sweet for my taste.

Liiiiiisten.... do not go anywhere else to eat until you try this place! All this time, this hidden gem... we went to celebrate a birthday, and from the time we walked in, until we left, every single staff member was wonderful. Especially our waitress Miss Jenifer! Ma'am, you remind me of when I was young and I was a waitress. You went above and beyond!! Don't forget my advice about the milk!! This place is amazing and the food is the best Mexican food I've had in a very....very long time! Even our to-go order was on point! WE WILL BE BACK!! Thank you everyone who we made contact with there. Keep up the awesome work!! Definitely worth leaving Denham to battle the BR traffic haha!!

Went here for a business lunch. Food was very good. The green sauce and salsa they bring out with the chips are both excellent. I especially love the green! Best tortillas I've ever had. They are handmade throughout the day everyday right in the front where you can watch. I had the steak and chicken fajitas which were excellent. The person I was having lunch with had steak tacos which he seemed to enjoy. He ate everything.

Very pleasant experience. The service was great. The food was delicious. I love the fresh salsa brought to the table along with the handmade tortillas.

I've actually been dying to eat here for years. The atmosphere is lovely with talavera motifs everywhere. The tables are nice and cozy. The food was absolutely delicious and came quickly. The portions were great and my husband had enough for lunch the next day. Well worth the wait!

I haven't eaten here in probably 8 years. But I did use to work here. It was good. Damn good. The cooks in the back are legit. The management USE to be.. but who knows now adays. Affordable compared to.. I was there for a couple years. Idk if they do it now but call! Ask about happy hour. Ask about taco hour. It could be realllly cheap the time you go. The fajitas are worth it. ..if not.

Service was very attentive and food was great. Only gripe was it was a bit of a limited menu and wait since it's a smaller restaurant

First of all, the service here is top notch! You leave feeling like you've made friends. So far, everything I've tried was delicious! I did not take a picture of my meal, but it was a tamale, cheese enchilada, and a taco with rice and beans. It absolutely hit the spot! The salsa is fresh and yummy. I am not sure what the green sauce is maybe salsa verde, but it was my favorite! The bar is also a fun place to hang out and get food and drinks!

Still Great food and great service. Bottle beer only no draft. Would be nice to see draft on tap. Salsa is fantastic

Our meal was excellent and so was the service. It was a great Sunday lunch. I highly recommend the tuna tacos but the star of the show were our drinks. Blueberry lemon drop martini and the hibiscus spritz ---AMAZING!

Upscale Mexican with homemade tortillas and salsa. Big plate was a combo of several dishes. The chicken burrito was huge and could easily feed two. Our server was excellent. The decor was traditional Mexican. The prices were in line with what most restaurants are charging. They have an extensive bar.

My friend took me here for the first time a few years ago and I fell in love with everything hers. The food, the people, the atmosphere. Everything is always superb. You can really tell the workers here take pride in their jobs. From the fresh homemade tortillas to the employees themselves everything is top tier. I have never been disappointed leaving here and have loved everything I've ever ordered. Great food! Great service! Great business!

This is one of my favorite meals in Baton Rouge. I have come here approximately 100 times since I was a kid and have always always gotten this order! The fajitas are HUGE so always size down. This is the fajitas for two and we had 3 people at the table. We had a lot leftover! Their tortillas are to die for!

Easily the best Mexican restaurant in Baton Rouge, high quality and not overpriced like others. Excellent margaritas

Literally my favorite restaurant in BR!!!! The food is great! Servers are attentive, always a good time

We went for Father's Day today with Sanders being our server. He was just fantastic in every way. We both had a form of chicken enchiladas which were delicious. My raspberry margarita was so good. Very different in a good way! If you take a trip there, be sure and ask for Sanders. He will not disappoint.

Excellent meal, Julia treated us excellent with a beautiful smile. Perfect service. Food was excellent... ordered three beef tacos and rice and beans. Ambiance is great. Super clean

This place was right next to my hotel so I gave it a try. It was so good I ate here again before I left. The first night I had raw tuna tacos. These came topped with a mango salsa and avocado with some kind of sauce. The tuna was grade A, the salsa was fresh and the avocado was ripe. That is about as close to perfect as a raw taco can get. There was so much tuna in each one that I almost didn't eat the third one.... almost. It was Tuesday, taco Tuesday, I was surprised to find that all taco plates are 12 dollars on Tuesday. The next time I had enchilada suisa. This is a favorite of mine but usually the chicken is a little tough. At Tio Javi's the chicken was tender and cooked to perfection. This looks like an elegant dining place, white table clothes etc but it is very reasonable. I will certainly be back.

Tio Javi's continues its downward spiral for food and service and its upward soar in prices. This used to be our go to place for group dinners and after work gatherings, but it is clear that the restaurant doesn't really welcome that anymore. My colleagues continue to suggest Tio Javi's for work gatherings given its past reputation, but each time, we leave feeling as though our business was not welcomed. We are not your rowdy young crowd, and many in the group have held past restaurant experience or at least are respectful of the employees and go out of our way to simplify the experience of handling a larger group. The margaritas as of late taste more of fake sugar than authentic, or the sour in the mix is overpowering for the rocks variety. Depending on your bartender, other cocktails sometimes hit the mark, but other times, lack flavor or the proper amount of alcohol. Our last experience was for a late lunch after leaving work a little early, but our waitress seemed like she was rushing us so she could leave (i get it, her shift was soon to end, but they should have assigned a large party to someone who wasn't getting off a half hour after we were seated). The hard taco shells I had were soggy by arrival time, meat and toppings sliding off. And just about everything on everyone's plate was doused in liquid cheese or over sauced, drowning the flavor of the ingredients from shining through. Given the many other options out there and the many other places embracing larger groups, Tio Javi's is sadly falling behind on our gatherings radar. I hope the past few years have just been a fluke, and I do hope it rises back to its glory of yesteryear. However, if I am directing visitors to our city, Tio Javi's doesn't even cross my mind any more.

Our first time at this place and it didn't disappoint us. Our waitress, Jenifer, was very nice and attentive to us. Her suggestions were amazing and we chose the fajitas after her description. We loved the salsas! We ordered steak fajitas and we were surprised with all the sides, rice, charro beans, queso, guacamole, sour cream, pico and house made tortillas. It was an excellent choice and we were very satisfied. Also, we ordered the house margaritas, a bit to sweet for us, but ok. Definitely, we'll be back. (The ladies restroom was perfectly clean)

Food was really good food and service too. I was disappointed that it seems they have changed the chips they serve. Still decent but not nearly as good as the chips they had before. Cool spot for hanging out with friends or family.

Great food and drinks!! My husband and I shared beef fajita nachos with an order of guacamole and white queso. Everything was fresh and tasted great. I've had a margarita on the rocks and a frozen margarita, both really good but the margarita on the rocks was great. Good service too!

I'll start with the positive...The service is nothing short of amazing at the bar area. The bar tender was very attentive, kind and offered suggestions. The negatives....the food and premade margaritas. I ordered the shrimp tacos. The shrimp was boiled with no flavor, it's almost as if the cook was rushed and just wanted to save time so he boiled already fully cooked shrimp. It was incredibly rubbery and and smelled very very strongly of seafood which is pretty much the result of over boiling and letting sit in standing warm or hot water (just water and nothing else). They do use fresh vegetables but they too aren't seasoned in anyway. They have like an avacado green sauce to go with it. It too lacked much flavoring. Just think about the many Gordon Ramsay episodes where he would order seafood shrimp dishes and discover they were boiled l, flavorless and rubberized. I ate as much as I could stomach because I hadn't eaten all day. So like a taco and a half and rice and beans. The rice and beans tho were good. You could tell their charro beans were cooked and seasoned very well. You could taste the traditional seasonings and the onions, tomato's and other veggies cut up and added. The rice was full of flavor too. So if I ever go back, which will not be the case, I'll only order their rice, beans and chips and salsa. Their margaritas are made with a low end type of tequila which does not go down smooth, very brittle. I suppose some may love that, I like dessert tequilas because I enjoy the taste of the other things like fresh squeezed lime and the Addison of other fruits like strawberry and stuff like that so I didn't enjoy the margarita.

Service is terrible. Food is great. Place can be empty but you gonna wait 20 min to sit.

As a person who loves Mexican food, I can tell you I was SO happy with my visit to Tio Javi's Fresh Mex Bar & Grill. The food was hot, fresh, and the flavors were delicious. The portion was great. I loved the beef tacos more than the fajita chicken tacos as the chicken was a little dry. If I would have asked for a lime for juice on the chicken would have made a great difference I am sure. The flavor was still there. The hand made tortillas were fresh and delicious! If you are looking for excellent Mexican food in Baron Rouge, look no further. We started the dinner with complimentary chips & salsa. Also very tasty.

Tonight's dinner hit the spot! I started with the ceviche and it was pretty good. I feel like the citrus flavor could have shined a little brighter. The tuna taco meal was really good. I got them based on another yelper. I wouldn't shout them out quite as much, but maybe my portion size was a little smaller than hers. I couldn't finish the rice and beans- though they were what they stated. I got the churros to go, based on the bar tender's recommendation and they were also good! The service was kind from when I walked in until I left. It was a cool scene with regulars. That always speaks to good food.

The Best Taco's in town!!! Best dips and salsas as well! Best Fajitas and margaritas! Went today for taco's on this national Taco day. Had the Al Pastor and a shredded pork with slaw and pickled jalapeños and pickled red onions both are incredibly delicious. Service was wonderful as always can't wait to go back

Great service and great food. The margaritas are top-of-the-line. Every time we're in town it's a must to stop in for some tacos and margaritas.

The food was bland the yellow rice taste like cumin guacamole was just mashed avocados it's a nice place food not so good

Food was delicious, and they were extremely accommodating to my wife and her shellfish allergy, making a special batch of chips just to make sure there wasn't any cross-contamination. We will definitely be back!

Went to Tio Javi's for the first time this weekend and it was delicious! Ordered a margarita on the rocks and it was nice and refreshing. There was a regular salsa and Tio Javi's green sauce on the table when we arrived, both were good with their chips. I ordered chicken enchiladas with queso on top and the enchiladas came with rice and beans. The fajita chicken was good and loved that I was given the option of queso on top. Sopapillas for dessert to top off the experience! The portions were big and the price was not! It is hard to find good Mexican food and Tio Javi's is great! I will be back

Service was very good, the food was so bland we couldn't put enough seasoning to make it edbile. I never knew fajita meat could get so bland.

The food is always Amazing!!! The service was great too. The queso is a must and I didn't know I liked white sangria. I will always have Tio's when in the BR.

Good margaritas (but very sticky!) and service, but food leaves SO much to be desired. Like flavor (no sabor). Had Chicken Fajitas which is really frozen bland chicken slices on a bed of frozen onions heavily seasoned with black pepper, totally microwaved and served on a plate that was kept in an oven. The tortillas are also heated (improperly) in a microwave, and arrive with crispy and dried-out edges, so you can't really wrap the meal very well. The black beans were salty and out of a can with NO seasoning, and the rice is that industrial MSG-flavored stuff you get at all cheap Tex-Mex places. The guac was out of some Sysco container, too. The pico de gallo, surprisingly, was FRESH. Salsas are jarred, too. Nothing made on this site, but the prices are steep for 2 oz. of bland chicken. ALSO--THE EMERGENCY EXIT ON THE ELEVATED SEATING AREA IS TOTALLY BLOCKED BY A 6-TOP TABLE!!!!!!!! Scary. Don't recommend.

I've been coming to this restaurant for approximately five years now, and I have never been disappointed. The food is freshly prepared. These people don't order pre-cut vegetables--they prepare their own--as well as make their own tortillas, and the food is always excellent. And if you are not driving, try the white sangria! Muy bueno.

Not recommended. Host & 2 hostesses met us--not a single smile from any. Food was undercooked and barely warm. No bartender, so beer from a can. Service was above average--waitresses were friendly and attentive, but good service can't make up for the rest. Go to Chili's or Drago's instead.

The food was good. Nothing special but adequate. The service was very good. Our server, Layton was great! The ambiance is lots of seats and typical Mexican flair. I would definitely go back.

Food was ok except for the tortilla that tasted raw/ undercooked. Service was good server keep checking on us which kind of got annoying . Ambiance was ok didn't see much to rave about . But in the end margarita hit the spot .

I decided to try them out on my birthday February 9 and I was definitely impressed by the food and drinks me and my friends ordered. The time it took to serve us was not long at all despite it being busy and the atmosphere was appropriate and not obnoxiously loud compared to other restaurants. I will be back again!

My wife and I are from California and we grew up with Mexican food, eating it once or twice per week. It's been hard to find real Mexican food in Baton Rouge because a lot of the restaurants serve a Tex-Mex version of it. The food & drinks are excellent here! Our group drank margaritas on the rocks! The chips, salsa, Avocado dip, enchiladas, tacos, rice, beans. Xochitl soup is a must try! If you are looking for great Mexican food in Baton Rouge LSU areas give it a try. Easy exit off the I-10!

This is the best Mexican in Baton Rouge. They have the best salsa! It is a roasted salsa so less acidic, which is what I love about it. Also they have an awesome, creamy green salsa. The table side guac is great too. There's no question they have the best fajitas in Baton Rouge. The chicken is sliced thin and the flavor is just awesome. I don't usually go for steak fajitas but I do here because it's always tender rather than chewy like lots of other places. Homemade tortillas of course, and you see them being made as you walk in. Love this place and when I want good Mexican, it is always my first choice!

post from yelpers were mixed. The person who recommend the caesar salad makes me want to delete them from yelp. But then again they may have ordered on a good day. i could have sworn they mixed romaine lettuce with iceberg lettuce and brown lettuce. Sad thing for me was i ordered it to go for my son. he decided to eat it way after they had closed. i asked them to put dressing on the side. They put it on the side and all over the salad the happy hour margaritas was great. The bartender was very nice. Would I go back?....No

Not a fan of the menu redo, price hikes, and getting rid of daily lunch specials. HOWEVER, by some miracle, they still serve the pastry-style chimichanga on Wednesdays. The old Wednesday lunch special is still around, by popular demand, and I'm a happy camper for it! Dinner at Tio Javis is fine and the drinks are finer. The dinner prices are comparable and selection of unique dishes will appease those with special dietary needs.

Convenient location if you're staying in one of the hotels next to it, but we will not be back. It's expensive Tex Mex. The tacos were good, the enchiladas were not good (and had yellow cheese on them). I'm sure there are better options close by

I honestly don't know why I go anywhere else for Mexican. The quality cannot compare. I would come back solely for the margarita and chips and salsas. But the homemade tortillas are second to none. My absolutely favorite dishes are the queso (the handmade table dish, not the dip) and the quesadillas. However, you really can't go wrong with anything here. Hands down my favorite in its class in BR.

What a great time! It was restaurant week here and one of my local favorite where on the list so it was set on Tuesday I would go. Being that restaurant week is always so jammed packed I called to schedule reservations for me and my friends. Easy peasy the hostess took care of everything and when we arrived we were taken to our table. Our waitress Sandra was literally the best! I had checked the menu earlier trying to figure out what would be the best for $25 I know right. Along with it being taco headway it was also happy hour. I opted for the large frozen margarita and add grand marnier for some added spice! DO IT YOU WONT REGRET IT! Timing was everything we had little over and hour until happy hour ended but with the size it might take just that long. After all our drinks came and the rest of our party showed up our waitress came back to take our appetizer order we all got the same thing (Chile Con Queso) amazing *chefs kiss. As we sat there and ate and ate we notice our second meal would be coming I got the shrimp and chicken fajitas and this is where it fell flat. It was less food than the normal menu which we under the impression. We only got two shrimps what's a girl to do with that. By the time dessert came we were stuff and also had a nice buzz I got the churros which was my first time I typically don't get desert out. But I was so happy to be able to try it. They where fried so nice soft and the whipped cream was amazing if I could just get a side of that. I'll let the skimpy shrimp slide because Taco Tuesday is near!

When I travel to Baton Rouge, I always stop at Tío Javi's. This time was no exception. The food was good as always!

We chose this restaurant based on its location next to the hotel we needed to go to for a concert. We were short on time and figured we would be okay here for lunch given the positive reviews. We placed orders for three entrees. We watched as all of the people around us - everyone that came in later than us - get served. The salsa and chips that were served while we waited were good. Our server was excellent and came to check on us frequently. However, we waited 45 (!) minutes for our food and still had nothing. We were forced to ask for our food packed to go at this point or else we would be late for our event. When we opened our to go packages later, we found that they forgot to pack two of the beans and two of the rice sides. Ugh. The food was mediocre at best and bland. The avocados were nasty and black. The adobo chicken was too dry to eat. Steak tacos are the size of street tacos (but not priced as such). We won't be back again.

Finally decided to try this place, from friend recommendations. And being a Texas girl, i'm picky about my tex mex I'm so glad we did!! We were promptly greeted, very friendly, and seated. Our waitress, Angelina, was absolutely charming and amazing! Very genuine and totally got my husband's quirky sense of humor. The manager was great, stopped to see how we were and chatted with us for a bit. The food was seriously delicious!! I'm an enchilada snob, and they def delivered a wonderful meal! That con carne sauce is one of the best I've ever had. The rice and beans were tasty too! My husband had the fajitas, they were delicious as well! We cannot wait to go back! We were treated like family and stellar food!

This place is wonderful fresh tortillas omg the food was delicious and they give u plenty the chips and salsa and the green salsa are really good staff was friendly and the food was out quick and served hot just like it should be we will be there Friday and I'm bringing my family the music you guys play is great I'm from texas and I will tell everyone about tio javi's you guys really got it going on just how a restaurant should be running who ever the managers are you need to know just how much u are appreciated I don't mind spending my money in a good establishment well spent and thank you for your service to all your staff!!!!

Tio Javi's is an excellent Mexican restaurant. They have some of the best fajitas that I have had, comparable to Ninfa's or Pappasitos. Prices are reasonable, well worth a visit.

This restaurant has excellent food and the service is always great! Don't miss their happy hour!

Tio Javi's, how do I express not only the ambience, the amazing staff behind the bar but how incredible their food is. I ordered a lunch special at dinner bc I eat small portions. I was so impressed they allowed me to do that without hesitation. I had grilled blackened shrimp tacos, cilantro lime rice and churro beans. Absolutely fresh and delicious. The rice was perfectly seasoned and textured, the beans were flavorful and the shrimp were perfectly grilled. The tacos were loaded and they definitely didn't shy out of the stuffing of the tacos or rice portion. I've definitely found a new favorite place, not for taco Tuesday but for any day of the week. Oh how can I forget- the most important is the chips and salsa you get as you wait. If you love crispy, thin, unsalted tortilla ships- these are perfect. Filling so be careful. They will kill your appetite

The place is fancy now that Ruth Chris's has bought them. This was my first time since the ownership change and you can definitely tell it has taken a turn for the better. The food is better, and more expensive. The menu is slimmed down and the service is better. I ordered the Texas combo and didnt have any complaints. That combo comes with a cruncy beef taco, cheese enchalada and 3 strips of fajita meat along with rice and beans. You still get the red and green salsa and chips to start. I didn't order any margaritas, but the customers around me had drinks and they seemed to enjoy them. We will definitely be back.