What Happened to Valentina's After Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives?

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Season 29, Episode 12 Aired February 15, 2019

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives visited Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ in the "Whole Lotta Comfort" episode, which aired February 15, 2019, spotlighting the restaurant's Tex-Mex take on Texas barbecue, including smoked brisket paired with enchiladas, tacos, and queso. The business ran out of a spot on Menchaca Road in South Austin, blending barbecued meats with Tex-Mex sides in a casual, trailer-turned-restaurant setting. According to Google Places, Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ is now listed as permanently closed. A September 8, 2026 check of the restaurant's longtime web address, valentinastexmexbbq.com, found the domain no longer connected to the business; it instead resolved to an unrelated overseas sports-streaming site, with no trace of the restaurant, its menu, or its ordering pages remaining under that address, reinforcing that the business is no longer operating there.

Food Paradise, Season 11, Episode 2

Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ appeared in the episode 'Handheld Happiness' for its Tex-Mex barbecue, a menu blending smoked Texas meats with Tex-Mex flavors such as fajita tacos. According to the Houston Chronicle, the business began in 2013 when Miguel and Modesty Vidal started smoking barbecue from an Austin trailer before growing into a brick-and-mortar operation, and it later relocated from its original Austin address to 308 S Main St in Buda, Texas. The Houston Chronicle reported that Valentina's closed permanently in April 2024, with owner Miguel Vidal confirming to the Austin Business Journal that the restaurant would not reopen at its Buda location. Google Places marks the Menchaca Road address shown on this episode as permanently closed, consistent with that later, wider closure of the Valentina's business.