The Strong Buzz

“Centrico”

July 24, 2005

There are some restaurants that just breed fun. They have a laid back vibe, an easiness that invites laughter, an energy that strips off the heaviness of your day. These places aren’t meant to be taken seriously—they want to make you forget your troubles and smile, not think about the world and frown. It’s been my experience that many such restaurants share one thing in common—a key instrument of joy, a vision in silver. Yes, you guessed it. The frozen margarita machine. Just try not to have a good time when frozen ‘ritas are on tap. It’s impossible.

There is a frozen margarita machine at Centrico, the latest project from restaurateur Drew Nieporent and his Myriad Restaurant Group, located in the space that was most recently (and for almost 10 years) Layla. And there is fun to be had in the form of thick, frozen margaritas (and tequila cocktails), and a menu of modern Mexican eats from chef Aaron Sanchez.

We gathered at Centrico last week to celebrate my dear and amazing friend Susie’s birthday last week, and started out our night as any evening at a Mexican cantina should—sucking down several rounds of thick frozen margaritas. These are fantastic—limey and tart, with a slight initial brain freeze quality. (Brains need to be frozen once in a while. It’s good for them.)

Centrico is a departure for Drew and his crew in a way. He may be all about fine dining at Montrachet, Tribeca Grill, and Nobu, but here at Centrico, things are a lot more lose. It does not scream three stars. It says neighborhood joint. Come in for a cold beer and a taco. Have a margarita with a friend. Unwind after work. Repeat.

In keeping with this Mexican chill out vibe, the place has a casual, minimalist air, with copper topped tables, weathered terra cotta walls, and mile high windows that give the large room a clean cantina feel. Unfortunately though, the design is almost too underdone. The room feels almost unfinished, like something else needs to be in there to bring all the pieces together. In fact, the design of the room is the weakest link in the restaurant. It actually takes points away from some very fine cooking.

You may know Aaron, a handsome devil with serious amounts of charm, from Paladar, his juicy Latin American place on Ludlow Street. For Centrico, he is focusing on his roots in Mexico, serving a nicely edited menu that focuses on modern Mexican recipes (from various regions), and the lessons he learned from his mom, famed Mexican chef and cookbook author, Zarella Martinez.

Since there were seven of us that night, we needed an ordering strategy, and instead of deciding what we wanted to have, we took the opposite approach and just knocked off the items that we were not as interested in trying, and ordered the rest of the menu. (It was an alarming amount of food. And it was all pretty good, so we were dangerously full after our meal.)

Creamy guacamole with a nice kick and generous seasoning from cilantro and lime was served in a wooden mulcajete, with salty tortilla chips hot from the fryer ($9). Sure, you can get guac anywhere, but it’s important to check it out and see how it is, and it was great, and essential with those margaritas. We also demolished his Plantanos Rellenos ($7)—deep-fried, grease-free sweet plantains sliced into inch-long cylinders and stuffed with smoky beans and drizzled with crema fresca. I loved the nearness of the smoky and the sweet —two opposite flavors flirting with eachother, their contrast unveiling a deep connection. Picadas ($8) sounded quite humble—three little corn tarts, sort of like arepas, each one crowned with a different Mexican condiment—avocado tomatillo salsa, roasted tomato salsa, and queso fresco. Nothing to cause a stir, you would think, but the sweet corn tarts were so moist and fluffy, and the salsas so fresh and perfectly seasoned, that they were the surprise hit of the table. Fish tacos ($8), however, are not as good as they should be. (If you want a great fish taco, or any great taco for that matter, check out the newly opened La Esquina on Kenmare Street. It is brilliant. More on this next week,) For his fish tacos, Sanchez uses seared swordfish that he snuggles into warm silver dollar-sized corn tortillas, with a cucumber-mango salsa. I don’t know if my guilt about the overfishing of swordfish is to blame for this, but the fish just does not taste good or right. I’d rather see these with another sweeter fleshed, flaky white fish. And some larger tortillas—these were so small you could barely fit anything in them.

But we were completely blown away by the ceviches. Sanchez has pitch-perfect ceviche skills—great waves of heat, and generous squeezes of citrus juices to sharpen the flavors. Do yourself a favor and order the Plato de Mar—a selection of all the ceviches—razor clam splashed with blood orange juice; juicy shrimp in a bath of lemon juice turned up with jalapeño and softened with mango; sweet scallops in a puddle of coconut milk, fired up with Serrano chiles and tart lime juice; and chewy conch pumped up with habanero, cilantro, and orange juice. These are a pleasure to devour.

Our entrees were uniformly good, and some were excellent. Birra en Estilo Jalisco ($19)—short ribs braised Jalisco style in an ancho chile broth, were phenomenally flavorful and ridiculously soft, the meat so tender it was not just falling off the bone—it was leaping off. Conchinita Pibil—slow roasted suckling pig ($17) marinated in achiote, garlic and bitter orange—was served pulled into meltingly tender strands. Both of these dishes come with those same tiny little corn tortillas from the fish tacos, and some chopped onion, Mexican oregano and juicy wedges of lime for a make your own tiny taco experience. I like this idea, but again, the tortillas are so small it’s hard to fit much more than one little hunk of meat in there. And you need to get some rice and beans in there cause his rice and beans are killer.

The conversation stopper that night was the Pescado Michi ($19)—the pan-seared market fish of the day, which was halibut. (I’d substitute the halibut into those fish tacos). Sanchez gives it a nice golden sear that caps the moist, flaky flesh, and serves it with a sauce that is insanely basic but just so wildly good—lime juice, oil, cilantro and serrano chiles. Drizzle some on top, and it wakes up the whole fish, it’s like fireworks. You will want to pour it on everything you eat for days to come.

I like Centrico and think it is just what the neighborhood needs. No, it’s not the best Mexican food in the city. (La Palapa and Suenos—those two places rock in my humble opinion.) But Centrico is pretty good, and in some places quite impressive. Right now the place feels a little unfinished, and a little green, in terms of design and service, but it’s only been a few weeks. It will get there. But even as it is right now, it works as a fun, convivial setting where you can and should gather among friends and take advantage of that margarita machine.

Centrico is located at 211 West Broadway, at Franklin Street, 212-431-0700.

Andrea Strong