Mariscos Villareal

Mariscos Villarreal probably isn't for everyone. But that's okay. If you enjoy seafood, it's for you! If you enjoy authentic Mexican food, but aren't in the mood for meat or tacos or burritos, it's for you.
The menu is extensive, and features whole fish platters as well as shrimp, octopus and other seafood options. Most come as part of platters, complete with garlic toast, a small salad, rice and French fries. Complimentary basic ceviche tostadas are part of any meal.
The restaurant is decorated in a fun. Nautical theme. Table service is offered. There is no alcohol served, unfortunately. Prices are moderate. Don't expect to eat here for $10 because you are ordering seafood, not chicken or ground beef!

Presentation was good food wise was horrible i ordered shrimp and had the worst seafood food poisoning i had ever gotten in my life.... I do not recommend going here at all the food was odd and had mushy texture and weird taste i had to go to the E.R and they told me i got Ciguatera poisoning when i got back home to Chicago if anyone ever want to ge here please don't go in all this place should not be open for business

Food was very good and priced right. Place was busy even though it was kind of late on a Sunday.

WOW! Impresses from the moment I walked in... mariscos tostada as an appetizer, amazing guacamole to keep things going and fish fillet relleno with shrimp, octopus, crab, pineapple, peppers, rice... OMG! SO full, but so friggin good.
I will make a 2 hour trip from Omaha specifically for this place!!

I had the fillet relleno, and it is a truly awesome dish. On top of the perfectly-cooked filet (crispy skin and all), there is a mix of shrimp, octopus, shredded krab (yes, with a "k"), peppers, other veggies, and pineapple in a garlic cream sauce. It is a delicious symphony of flavors and textures, highlighted by the sweetness of the pineapple.

Even though the fries and salad that came with this dish were on the same plate and thus soaked with the cream sauce on the bottom, I still very much enjoyed them, too. As with most meals there, it was served with garlic toast, a basket of plain tostadas and habanero salsa, and a ceviche tostada as an "amuse bouche." Basically, a giant amount of delicious food that I should not have attempted to finish single-handedly, but did nonetheless.

The staff are very friendly and a little bit of Spanish goes a long way, as others have noted. Combined with the great food, this is five stars for me.

The place is a bit difficult to get to if you are not on the side of Hwy. 30 going by the front of the place (westward); I had to circle the block three times before I found the entrance, and even then, the parking is way in the back. Definitely not easy access if you are heading east.


OK... so let's not kid ourselves: this place is a splurge. There are not (m)any other places I know of in the area with lunch prices between $20-40. It's an all day menu, to be fair, and there may have been specials I missed. But still, this is not L.A. or NYC and I am concerned they have priced themselves out of the market, here. You get a tremendous amount of food for the money, but why not smaller portions at lower prices? For now, it is a great choice if you plan to share or if you are on an expense account, but difficult to justify as a regular dining option. The only "cheap" option on the menu is the $4 ceviche tostada that they include with most meals.

That being said, I'm also NOT eager to go to a cheap seafood restaurant. There is a fine balance to having good, reasonably priced food, and I don't think these guys have struck it yet. Everything was of good quality, and I appreciate that. Notice I say, "quality," and not, "fresh." This is GI, so again let's be honest: they bring in quality frozen seafood and treat it with respect, enough said. The end result still does not diminish the five stars in my book, but you have to wonder what a ballsy move it was to open this place. Rafa's Tacos was amazing and this place is just as good if not better. I hope they make it!

Fantastic spot in Grand Island. The food was amazing. The langostine and ceviche is worth the price of admission!!!

This is the building that was formerly Rafa's Tacos. I had been to Rafa's once. It was OK, but nothing to differentiate it from other Mexican places in town. Last week, I saw a temporary cover on the sign outside that said Mexican seafood! We decided to give it a try this weekend.

When we walked in, we couldn't tell from the layout if we ordered at the counter or at the table. They told us to pick a table and brought out menus. They serve authentic Mexican Coke. I did not even check to see if they serve traditional American Sodas. Didn't appear they had a liquor license, yet for beer or margaritas. They brought out a tostada shell covered in a form of ceviche that was quite tasty! They also brought out tostada shells, and a plate with fresh-cut limes and a very spicy, yet flavorful salsa!

The menu is primarily in Spanish with occasional translations that would be like if we tried to translate English to Spanish in Google. A little knowledge of Spanish seafood terms will be handy! I ordered the Camarones Diabla (spicy shrimp). They cautioned that it is very spicy. I told them I understood. I grew up in a home where jalapenos were as common in cooking as green peppers.

My wife ordered the stuffed pineapple. This is a pineapple cut in half length-wise. They core it out, then fill with a mixture of shrimp, crab, octopus and pineapple and a white creamy/cheesy sauce. My wife is allergic to shrimp. She asked if it was possible to order the dish without shrimp. There was just enough of a language barrier that we we made sure they understood the situation. Once they understood, they asked if there was anything else that may be a problem and listed several ingredients. We assured them it was only the shrimp.

The platters arrived with large portions of the main course, rice, french fries, a lettuce salad and a slice of garlic bread! It's an interesting combination, but they all tasted very good! It was nice to have the starches to take the edge off the diabla sauce! It's a delicious sweet and hot red sauce, but the spice will get your attention! The shrimp were firm and flavorful. My wife said the stuffed pineapple was delicious! The crab was small pieces, but very good flavor. The octopus was cooked perfectly. It is very easy to play it safe and overcook it. If you do, you feel like you're chewing on an eraser. That was certainly not the case! You could taste the freshness of the seafood and the texture was as good as any place we have had seafood, including coastal restaurants!

Neither of us could finish the large portions on the platters. Our bill with sodas was around $42. Pretty reasonable for this quality of food and quantity of food! We will be back!

Amazing spot, I wish it is open late night hours, and not close so early :) Interior design is really original and pleasant and relaxing, Caribbean style (much like the one full of surfers and hippies we met elsewhere one year ago) ... Very casual style with top notch seafood !!!! -- much like the one in famous Los Angeles harbor (in San Pedro, https://www.yelp.com/biz/san-pedro-fish-market-and-restaurant-san-pedro), yet ... so much better ....

Authentic menu. Many menu choices...our family of 4 each had something different and it was great! Visit prepared to practice your Spanish!

A bit pricey but that comes with the territory since it is seafood. But everything we had was delicious! The shrimp empanadas are a must! For 7 dollars you get 3 big ones.