Mejico

One of the best spots in Sydney for Mexican food, Mejico is certainly a must-book-in-advance type of place, it's so bustling. On a weekend it can play host to anything from birthday parties to bachelorette / bathelor parties. Although the decor is not exactly intimate, it certainly lends itself well to a night of boozing and eating with friends and familty.

On the other hand, if you don't book but go early enough / at an opportune time, you can nab yourself a seat at the bar and watch the bartenders make all kinds of Tequila-based creations, so that can be very fun too.

To celebrate my little brother's birthday, we decided to ask Mejico to "Feed Me" - a culinary trip of most of Mejico's signature dishes. The Feed Me menu is subject to change seasonally, and we are still eating from the "winter" menu, so I would expect some small changes to what this post shows in the next few weeks. Straight off the bat - I certainly wouldn't mind asking them to "Feed Me" again!

House Cured Fish

Curing fish with acid is such a genius way of enjoying fish without compromising on freshness and lightness. This is a very vibrant and appetite-whetting start to the meal - the dish packs a pleasantly strong acidic punch, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Cactus Salsa

How unique - I had never had cactus before, and I don't know of other restaurants serving cactus on their menu (maybe  I just haven't looked closely enough!). I couldn't distinguish any particular taste form the cactus per se - I think it's more a "vessel" type of ingredient that takes on the flavours it is given - but this dish packs a nice bit of heat. The corn chips appear to be house-fried, making them crunchy and fresh.

Corn lollipops

One of Mejico's signature dishes, these perfectly charred little segments of corn are drenched in the most delicious chipotle mayo and dusted with some fiery paprika. The corn is cooked just right, so each kernel bursts with juice and flavour.

Hickory & honey smoked brisket taco

These babies are one of the highlights of the night, hands down. Gorgeously smokey, baby-soft and drenched with sauce, I particularly enjoyed the pink pickled onions and cabbage, which are gently sweet and sour, balancing the salty brisket perfectly.

Grilled Haloumi

This simple dish was such a welcome break after the first few courses, which were all intense in their heat and savouriness. The haloumi is lightly drenched with agave and lemon, which makes it comfortingly sweet; and the crunched pistachios gives a nice little crunch.

Guacamole (not part of Feed Me menu), $15

How can one go to Mejico and not order their famous guacamole, smashed table-side and served with plantain (a type of banana)? So, despite feeling very full and satisfied with the Feed Me menu, we had to order this as an extra item. This seemingly simple assembly-operation is a symphony of creamy (acovado), fatty (plantain chips), tart (lemon juice) and fresh(Spanish onion, chili, herbs and pistachio).

Charred black onyx beef

Is there anything more beautiful to an omnivore than some perfectly cooked, slightly-pink steak lying on a bed of sweet onion puree and charred corn? To kick things up a level, Mejico also adds to the mix their house-made hot sauce, dragoncello sauce and cimichurri. Heaven.

Watermelon salad

So simple, so refreshing. Watermelon , cucumber, Spanish onion, pistachio, jalapeno and coriander dressed in agave - what a palate cleanser!

Potatas Bravas

I know I'm completely mixing languages here, but I want to say brava to these potata. Cooked so they are crunchy on the outside and creamy dreamy on the inside, these garlicky potatoes are topped with the same magical chipotle mayo as the corn lollipop - I would like ALL my food to be drenched in this sauce going forward, please.

Margarita Cheesecake

The magarita cheesecake at Mejico beats the ones at Indu by miles. On a bed of crispy coconut is a soft, almost mousse-like swirl of citrus and tequila cheesecake with tajin salt, so it has that tantalising sweet-and-salty taste. It is topped with a little chunk of sugar-coated dehydrated lime and some more toasted coconut. So small and delicate, yet so satisfying.

Churros

These were still piping hot when they get to the table - fluffy yet satisfyingly oily, these little swirls are dipped in a rich dark chocolate and served with a cajeta dipping sauce - cajeta being Mexican caramel, which on this occasion is a lot less viscous than most caramels sauces - but almost soup-like in consistency. A most sinful end to a very good meal.

Score: 4/5 
After the meal, I felt like I had been taken on quite a culinary journey of Mexico - Mejico takes your usual California-style taco joint or Tex-Mex restaurant up a level.
Cost: The classic Feed Me menu is just shy of $60pp. Worth it.
Address: 105 Pitt Street, Sydney 2000
Website: https://mejico.com.au/