COCONUTS HOT SPOT — Despite being peppered with a diverse selection of neat little restaurants, cafés and bars, Ari was missing something until earlier this month: Mexican fare. So it couldn’t have been a more opportune time and location for trio Alex, Tom and Jack to open up Casa Azul, a cobalt blue joint named and modeled after artist Frida Kahlo’s childhood home.
Earlier in the year I speculated this might be the year the Mexican food scene finally earns a place among the standard foreign cuisine selections instead of being limited to a small number of places such as long-standing La Monita and Sunrise Tacos. Mexican cuisine is a sister cuisine to Thai, and it’s about time it flourishes.
That Casa Azul opened to a fanfare of local support is a sign that it might be happening.
The Ari eatery is slated to formally open at the end of May, but right now they’ve got a compact menu comprised of dishes that are all safe bets, that is to say they’re not very experimental, and that’s alright, because this menu works nicely for locals trying Mexican for the first time. Jack, who runs the kitchen, puts Casa’s fare on the lighter end of the spectrum.
“Most Mexican can be big and messy…here it’s lighter and more simple,” he said. “And if there is such a thing, it’s healthy Mexican.”
Healthy? Maybe. Tasty? For sure, especially when accompanied by a Corona.
Homemade tortillas envelope a serving of al pastor pork that’s smoked in-house (authentic al pastor uses a spit grill, but this technique produces a much smokier, almost sweet, bourbon-like taste) decorated with fresh pico de gallo. Drizzle on some of the hellfire sauce, made from local chilies, if you’re into self-injurious behavior.
In the chile rellenos, a mess of gooey cheese, potatoes, onion and garlic inhabit a lightly fried pepper atop a bed of arroz. It’s pure comfort food hitting all the right fried and cheesy notes.
Aluminum foil wraps the carne asada burritos, perhaps the most pedestrian creation of the bunch, keeping the tortilla moist and tightly packed. Jack, the man behind the kitchen at Casa Azul, knows a thing or two about wrapping burritos; he’s been doing it for years. And when Casa Azul finds its stride, he plans to branch out into esoteric Mexican dishes like ceviche and mole.
The drinks don’t stray from the script either, with the exception of the Bulldog, a margarita with a Coronita (that’s a miniature Corona) emptied into the broth. These suckers perfectly quell the steadily building inferno that Mexican food unleashes upon your mouth, and it’s surprisingly easy to put down a few. They hit hardest when you stand up.
Coconuts Hot Spots are based on unannounced visits by our contributors and reflect their opinion. No freebies here.
Photo: Casa Azul
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