White Sands

Being locals, we have driven by the White Sands numerous times but never stopped. Given it was the Friday after Thanksgiving, some of the other local places were closed. We had company in town so we thought we would try White Sands.
They were quite busy when we went in and for the first part of the meal, there was only one server. Another one showed up about halfway through the meal. So if you are in a hurry, I would not recommend this spot. Initially we thought that since they were busy, that would be a good sign but come to find out… they were perhaps busy because a lot of others were closed.
Food was mediocre. My husband ordered the biscuits and gravy, a favorite at any breakfast for him, and he said it lacked flavor.
I ordered pancakes and meat and they were okay… nothing special.
Given some of our other local favorites, I doubt we are in a hurry to come back here as it wasn’t memorable.

Great breakfast, very reasonable prices. Beware of the huge flocks of snow birds that tend to roost there in the winter months (usually between 7 and 10 am).

I ordered the crab stuffed jalapenos as an appetizer. I cut into one and it was stuffed with some green mush. I looked for crab and only found one speck about ¹⁄₁₆ of an inch. I asked the waitress if this was the crab stuffed jalapenos and she said it was. She said it was crab and seafood stuffing. It looked like broccoli and smelled like broccoli. I guess if i ordered the stuff crab it probably would contain this same horrible stuffing.

Breakfast tacos were worth a visit. Toco loco breakfast taco with chorizo, beans, eggs… everything will last you all day. Ask for Linda!

The food was okay, there better places at port Isabel that you can eat fried fish and shrimp. The reason why I give this place 3 starts was with the action that they took when they charged me. It was a party of 5 and they server charger us a 18% if you eat there please check your ticket at the end, the servers name is Rosendo, with out knowing I left a 9 $ tip and then he stiffed me with another 11 $.

New owners%#! Our old favorite… We will not go back.
Menu completely changed.
Salsa completely changed.
No full bar anymore.
Prices increased.
Food not as good!
Big mistake, new owners!

I’ll start with some notes to Unilocal staff:
1. IMO, It would be helpful to have separate listings for the restaurant and the motel.
2. The Marchan family is no longer running this property. Per the current management, it was forclosed in May 2013 and is now bank owned, so I’d recommend removing «Marchan’s» from the title.
This is a real gem of a property, located on the canals just west of downtown Port Isabel. With boat slips available, the marina onsite, the restaurant next to the marina, and the motel with 3 different room levels, White Sands has it all in a centralized location. It is an older property that has been well cared for. We’ve stayed there for one week each of the last four years.
The main reason we’re not giving it five stars is that the kitchenette room was not as clean this time as it had been in the past. There were a few dead roaches in drawers and in the freezer. The hot water heater went out on our last day, but the staff was very nice and upgraded us to a 2-​room suite. The suite was very clean and overall a nicer experience (more room, central A/​C, bigger dining area, comfy chairs and a sofa). Overall, the property is still in good shape and the current management seems to be trying hard to do well. I can tell you they’ve got some big shoes to fill. We’re a little nervous about what the future holds — i.e. who will be owning/​managing it next year.
We ate at the restaurant one day and it was just as good as we remembered — a solid restaurant with good Mexican food and seafood. My beef fajita plate had nicely cooked skirt steak with grilled onions and peppers, good rice and beans (refried only), and good corn tortillas.
Jenny if you were here in June, I’d guess that you caught them shortly after the change of management. They seem to be getting their footing now, but I remain nervous about the future of this gem.

It’s a marina/​motel with a restaurant and it was amazing! I had the fish and shrimp combo it came with a baked potato and coleslaw. The fish was delicious and fresh and the shrimp was perfect. The price was not bad 11.99, it was worth it I was full. They have all you can eat fish for 7 bucks! My bf got the chicken fried chicken and it was huge. There were locals, I never eat on the island what a rip off. Come to this place, it’s decent and the service was great. Very friendly,

Horrible food! I ordered the whole red snapper and waited 40 min for it (warned ahead of time by waitress that blackened and broiled takes longer) and was hoping for something good. Good sized fish brought but tasted so fishy hard to eat, first indication it was old fish and probably should have been tossed. The so-​called side salad was shredded iceberg lettuce you would likely put on a taco, served with typical dressing of your choice. Cousin ordered the country fried steak and potatoes… said her TV dinner tasted better than that and by the presentation of the food I was in agreement. Daughter had the grilled shrimp and fries, started crying and said it was «yucky.» I tried it and shrimp didn’t taste completely cooked through, texture not right and almost no seasoning to taste. Service sucked. Will definitely avoid in the future…

This is probably the most authentic place you’re going to find in the area. Good shrimp, far better than the tourist seafood joints in the area. Best tortillas I’ve had in Texas. My shrimp fajita was excellent. Breaded shrimp was likewise excellent — very light breading.
Cole slaw was a bit too sweet for me.
Prices were reasonable. Portions were generous.
Service was minimal and brusque, but in a home-​town family restaurant sort of way. Atmosphere was likewise. Parking is a bit tough as well. But it all felt authentic.

After a good dinner here, I decided to come back to try their breakfast. I ordered a Taco Loco con Todos. The thing was huge… I thnk even bigger than the ones at Manuel’s or Isabellas. The taco was filled with egg, chorizo, ham, potatos and beans. It was good… but the flavor of the Shrimp con Todo at Manuel’s is better. The taco at White Sands needed tomato, or salsa or something.
If you’re looking for a breakfast joint that offers good food and isn’t near as busy as the other Port Isabel popular spots, give White Sands a look.

The popcorn shrimp basket was very good and hubby said his all you can eat fried fish was very good also! Excellent service and wonderful water view!

As my husband & I were sitting in the restaurant for the umpteenth time, I made a comment about the tortilla soup and he asked me if I had reviewed the place. I realized that I had not.
Well, it is a favorite of ours! Hardly a weekend goes by that we don’t go there at least once if we are here in PI. My husband, the early bird, goes for breakfast & if he orders the taco con todo he brings me leftovers. Most times he brings me this huge takeout of delicious ice tea since I seem to be addicted to it (not really) but it does last me all day. That is until happy hour, lol! For a late lunch we will go over & have hamburgers with real fries, shrimp salad, popcorn shrimp, corn fajita tacos that come in 4’s & are so juicy you really need a double tortilla. Their bloody mary’s are really good & I have been told that the margaritas are good too. Their lunch specials & dinner specials are cheap. Today we had an early dinner with 3 & 2 drinks each (not tea) for $ 14.00. I did only have a cup of tortilla soup, delicious by the way, but my husband’s popcorn shrimp with fries was enough for me to eat off of so I didn’t order my shrimp salad.
Service was great today. Sometimes it is spotty because they are still getting used to staying open later & the crowd is getting larger because of the good food & reasonable prices. But even if the service is slow, the staff is friendly and as accommodating as possible.

The portions are huge and the prices are low.
The food is great too. I ate here on the recomendation of one of my favorite Unilocalers and as always, she was right.
I split the beef and shrimp taco with a friend (I think it was under $ 7.)
I have also had breakfast here that was amazing.

Definitely not the fanciest place near the island, but for a very modest price, you get a clean, safe place to stay, extra friendly staff, convenience to a darn good restaurant on site with excellent prices, and just a hop skip and a jump across the causeway to SPI.
All tile floors, as a beach/​marina hotel should be, kitchenettes available.
The cheapest hotel I could have gotten on the island this weekend was a Motel 6 for $ 124 night. I got my double room with a kitchenette at White Sands for $ 89/​night.
I definitely will be back again.

Shocking that I haven’t reviewed this spot! We’ve been eating here for well on 20 years. Their food has always been really good and in true God Bless America style, the portions are gigantic and cheap as hell.
Things that stick out as extra special:
50 cent margaritas from 11 — 7 pm day
$ 1 bloody marys from 11 – 7 pm every day
best iced tea ever
huge diet cokes
blackened shrimp salad
blackened fish tacos
anything fried
super yummy hamburger
fajita con todo taco
breakfast con todo taco
The atmosphere is Port Isabel chic. Paintings of gulls, caricatures and «Brittany’s Gallery,» line the walls. There’s lots of teal but you’re not going for the décor. You should be there for the tacos filled with (get this!) bacon, ham, egg, beans, cheese, tomatoes, green peppers, egg, onions, sausage all wrapped in at least an 18 inch tortilla. See my pic… it’s as long as my forearm and twice as wide.
Long story, even longer: It’s unassuming, maybe even a little sketchy. But the thing you can count on here is that it’s gonna fill you up and never let you down.

Heading to the beach from Brownsville, Marchan’s is where I stop for breakfast. The breakfast tacos are delicious and their ginormous size is just silly for the money.
Heading back to Brownsville from the beach, Marchan’s is where I stop for a late lunch. Their fish and shrimp is fresh and wonderful. Don’t be fooled into paying more for seafood at a fancy pants restaurant, Marchan’s has got it down.