My friend is one of these guys who will order one of every item on the menu, and so is awesome to go food tasting with. It is rare that one has an excuse to try the whole menu which at a restaurant like this is quite an experience. We decided to order every appetizer on the menu and the paella caribena which I knew how to pronounce with a flair thanks to Carlos’ efforts last time. I did notice that corn wasn’t on the menu anymore – not really unexpected. Yet our waitress did check in the back to see if they had a few ears of corn with which Chef Carlos could whip up his magic elotes. Unfortunately we were out of luck, but I did appreciate her checking – again, I’ll laude the service.

We started off with the Ensalada (salad) which was a beautiful dish. Seasonal greens topped with pmogranite seeds, radish slices, poloncillo, candied walnuts, queso fresco, fresh whole mint leaves and dressed with a guava vinaigrette. It was a fresh and delicious dish that actually accentuated our hunger. By the end of the dish, we were raring for the rest of the meal.

Next, we were served Pupusa – handmade yellow corn tortilla that were stuffed with pork and cheese and topped with curtido (fermented cabbage relish), tomato sauce and micro greens. Its worth a mention that this dish can also be served vegetarian style with beans and cheese but we were in a carnivorous mood. This dish was a bit heavy, but generally quite satisfying. The acid of the fermented cabbage and tomato nicely balancing the mealy tortilla.

We were then served the Pan con Pollo Sliders. The bread was Chef Carlos’ signature buns warm out of the oven, served with smoked chicken, tinga sauce, fennel slaw and sprouts. We, foolishly, only ordered 2 for the 4 of us – so we had to split these in half. In the long run, it was probably a wise decision because of all the food we had ordered, but these were so good, that it felt like a shortsighted decision in the moment. The chicken was perfectly seasoned and juicy pairing well with the rest of the slider’s components.

We then moved on to the Tacos de Pescado. Again made with a generous portion of perfectly baked red snapper, that rested on a freshly made achiote tortilla. It was served with purple cabbage, mango salsa and dressed with a poblano chili yogurt sauce and cilantro. It was almost a carbon copy of the dish we had previously, speaking to Chef Carlos’ consistency. This consistency carried to the taste as well – I was impressed.

We also had the Camarones Borrachos – fingerling potatoes with sautéed spicy wild prawns bathed in the Chef’s signature Guiso tomato sauce and topped with micro greens. Given how amazing the sauce was, pretty much any protein and starch combination would have been delightful. We ordered bread to sop up the remaining sauce.

And no meal would be complete without the Paella Caribena. Again, it was an incredible final main dish – complex in texture and flavor with a satisfying spiciness that wasn’t overpowering. I’ve described it before so wont bother again in the interest of space.

For dessert, I again had to order the Brigadeiro – Brazilian chocolate ganache truffles. While the cinnamon sugar and strawberry powder flavors were served again, the candied walnut version was replaced with salted bacon. I really liked the first two but have to admit the salted bacon was a bit overpowering. I think I would have preferred the bacon be chopped a bit finer and worked into the ganache instead of a hunk of the overly salty matter heaped onto the top of the brigadeiro. Oh well, you can’t win em all.