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“Los Dados”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Latin/Mexican	MeatPacking	Moderate	Good

udents, Heather, had just written a piece comparing guacamole from various Mexican spots around town so after we all had tasted Los Dados’ version, we asked what she thought. “I love it. It’s great,” she said. “It has a nice kick, and it tastes really fresh.” I agree. This guac is creamy and chunky, with bits of tomato and onion lending both sweetness and sharpness to the mix. What’s more, it’s served with homemade soft tortillas and a basket of nicely salted, freshly fried corn tortilla chips that were among the best I’ve had. They’re thick enough to hold up a good heavy scoop of guac, and thin enough to be audibly crispy. While we were scooping up guacamole, bussers arrived with complimentary baskets of chips, served with three salsas—a smoky chipotle in a ramekin, and two squeeze bottles, one filled with vibrant salsa verde—limey and spicy at the same time—and a dark brick red salsa roja kicked up with Serrano chiles. This chip set-up goes a long way to get a night started off well. The drinks kept it going.

While I was all about the margaritas ($35 pitcher, $10 a glass)—fresh and tart, if just slightly too strong, Hannah was falling for the Sangria. “This is the best Sangria I’ve ever had,” she said, pouring herself a bit more from the carafe on the table ($45 pitcher, $10 a glass). “There’s no aftertaste of fruit punch and it’s really smooth. I could drink this out of a beer funnel.” Let me assure you that Hannah, who is very pretty, with straight shiny dark hair and perfectly manicured fingernails, is not someone I could ever see using a beer funnel, so that may give you an understanding of just how good this Sangria was.

But Sangria and House Margaritas really only make up a small percentage of the cocktail list that offers seven margarita variations including cucumber, strawberry-guava and hibiscus-blueberry, and drinks like The Dandy—Makers, strawberry, basil and honey ($11) and the Chili Palmer—42 Below Passion Fruit Vodka, passion fruit and Serrano chile. In short, if it’s great drinks and excellent chips and guac you’re after, the bar at Los Dados may become your future part-time residence.

Before I get to the details of the food, I need to point out that the team at Los Dados does need to work on service. This has been an issue since the beginning, and while thi ... [more, click below]

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Posted: November 12, 2007

Other restaurants in MeatPacking :
+ Paradou   + Florent   + One   + Bivio   + Spice Market   + Ono   + 5 Ninth   + Fatty Crab   + Del Posto   + Morimoto   + Los Dados   + 5 Ninth   + Merkato 55   + Scarpetta   + The John Dory   + The Standard Grill   + Bill's Bar & Burger   

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