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Jonesing for any good mexican we gave this place a try and will definitely be back. It is miles better than Temacazal across the street, but they unfortunately don't have the waterfront location. Service was fast, friendly, professional and welcoming to our 19 month old who loved watching the table side guac prep. We split several dishes, all which was good to excellent:
- Guacamole: this was just OK. I mean, how hard is guac really as long as the ingreditnes are fresh. I have yet to find a place in Boston with better guac than I make at home. I actually think the table side prep hurts the flavor as guac benefits from some time to come together.
- Scallop ceviche: Definitely our favorite dish of the night. Extremely fresh scallops in some kind of chilie vinagrette with poblanos. This was really delicious and one of the best scallop peps of the night.
- Hamachi tacos: Another dish we would order again. The accompaniments were nice without overpowering the fish.
- Ahi ceviche: The fish was sort of lost in the fruit flavors.
- Carne asada tacos: Very good, well marinated and tender meat.The La Suprema margarita was one of the better restaurant margaritas I have had in Boston. I was impressed how smoothly things ran for the first week, they clearly have lots of FOH help from other outposts. It may be a chain, but there is such a lack of good Mexican in Boston that it is a welcome addition. As other posters pointed out, the cookies left in the car were a welcome touch. For the food mentioned above and 2 margaritas the bill was about $110 before tip, so it's not cheap.
I love the Seaport convenience, coming from where we are in Cambridge it is less than 10 min garage to valet at non peak times.
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re: Gabatta
opinionatedchef
May 13, 2012 01:19 PM
Oh boy oh boy! Thx for more details!
I know, gab, that you use the valet, but My Love will never do valet.He just has a thing about it. So does anyone have parking tips for this area? (plse don't be snide here; I am serious.) Is nighttime easier? Sunday easier? (though RM is closed today, Mother's Day, phooey) A certain street? We had luck the one time we tried out Legal's, a sunday iirc. Thks much.
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re: opinionatedchef
The valet is $13, so not totally unreasonable, but I understanding paying for parking being distasteful. I can't help with any street parking suggestions in the area. In most parts of Boston, parking enforcement is lax to non-existent on Sunday's in case you stumble across a street spot which may be a grey area...
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re: opinionatedchef
There are a lot of meters and street parking within a few blocks but it's pretty inconsistant as to whether any spots are available. Like most of the seaport area, most parking is lot based, but since the lots are typically a flat rate (and as much if not more than Rosa's valet rate), I don't think they are a better option.
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re: opinionatedchef
hotoynoodle
May 13, 2012 07:35 PM
generally, after 5 mon-fri, street parking is pretty easy, but start looking as soon as you cross the bridge. the spots around the hotels and all the new restaurants are usually full-up. parking enforcement during the week is quite strict. there are massport cops everywhere. but obviously, no meters on sundays.
now that the weather is fine, it's also a nice walk from the red line and right off the silver line.
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So, had dinner there with my wife this evening and was pretty impressed. First of all, service was excellent, showing none of the issues that typically plague a new restaurant in the first few weeks after opening. We had a reservation and were seated immediately, even given their full dining room and bar area. The server quickly came over to genuinely welcome us and talk about a few of Rosa Mexicano's specialties (margaritas, tableside guac) which we decided to indulge in.
The guacamole was solid, just like all of Rosa's other locations, though the avocados used might have been slightly overripe. We decided to get the enchiladas with a Veracruzano mole and the niman-ranch steak tacos. Both were really excellent, the mole nuanced and not overly chocolatey and the tacos with pickled serranos and a great escabeche. We were pretty full after the meal but took a look at the dessert menu anyway before commenting to our waiter that while we loved cajeta we were too full.
After letting us know he'd bring our check, he showed back up with the manager and two scoops of the sea salt cajeta ice cream and a small dish of their cajeta sauce (usually seved with their churros). The manager let us know that our waiter had let her know we were full but that we liked cajeta so they wanted to give us a little something extra on our first visit. A really nice touch that we thought was the perfect cap to the meal experience. Until...we got our car back from the valet and saw that they had also left us a little gift bag with some mexican spritz cookies.
Overall a service experience WAY beyond what I'd expect at this price point, and food that (while not rivalling la alta cocina of Mexico City) far outstrips any of Boston's other "upscale Mexican" places. Excited about the new addition to the seaport, and looking forward to keeping this one in the rotation.
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re: keith
hotoynoodle
May 11, 2012 09:23 PM
the cookies in the car is a VERY nice touch. way to send you home with a smile.
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re: hotoynoodle
opinionatedchef
May 12, 2012 10:50 PM
boy, I'LL say!! And this is the place that Darren Carbone(the talented former head chef of La Verdad -who was brought up from Doug Rodriguez's empire in Phila) left LaV for. So we're REALLY lucky to have it here! thx keith.I can't wait to try; maybe later today!!
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Alcachofa
May 8, 2012 06:00 AM
Walked by yesterday. According to the sign scotch-taped to the door, tonight (Tuesday) is opening night.
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re: opinionatedchef
Anyone try it out on opening night? Hoping to hit it up later this week and wondered how many kinks still need to be ironed out. Have always enjoyed my meals at the Union Square location in NYC. Nothing mindblowing, but definitely better than the recent myriad "Upscale Mexican" joints that have popped up around Boston over the past year +
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opinionatedchef
Nov 25, 2011 11:52 AM
coast, PLEASE remember to tell us when/if you find out they're close to opening! thanks.
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re: opinionatedchef
hotoynoodle
Nov 26, 2011 09:42 AM
original plan is spring 2012. there is no work happening on-site at this point.
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I am SO excited! When I lived in NYC, we ate at the original Rosa on 1st Ave and 60th again and again and again. Whenever we visit NYC, we go back and the food is still great, service is still polished and the tableside guac is yummy and the frozen pomegranite margaritas are killer. I can't wait to visit the place in Boston.
My only comment about Rosa is that the original in NYC is very homey and comfortable, unlike the newer stores that are much more modern. The waterfall in the DC store is just odd, and the store on Columbus Circle in NYC is impossibly loud. I'm guessing the Boston location will be of the latter variety; too bad, but the food will still be good.
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hotoynoodle
Oct 23, 2011 11:56 AM
seriously? ANOTHER "high-end" mexican place? tezmacal is right across the street.
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re: CookieLee
MC Slim JB
Oct 23, 2011 12:12 PM
Yes, Boston can support more than one high-end "Mexican" restaurant. Can it support a dozen? Last I looked, we already had Lolita, Papagayo, Temazcal, El Centro, Mija, Ole, La Verdad, Casa Romero, a couple of Zocalos, and a couple of Sol Aztecas; you could probably include Tico in there, too. Looks like a bubble to me.
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Sol Azteca
914A Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02215Casa Romero
30 Gloucester St, Boston, MA 02115La Verdad
1 Lansdowne St, Boston, MA 02215Zocalo
35 Stanhope St, Boston, MA 02116Papagayo
283 Summer St, Boston, MA 02210Tico
222 Berkeley St, Boston, MA 02116Temazcal
250 Northern Ave, Boston, MA 02210El Centro
472 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118-
re: MC Slim JB
Well, I guess it's definition of high -end. I agree that Temazcal is high-end. I didn't feel La Verdad was particularly high-end. The Zocalo in Brighton closed, so I guess they couldn't make it there. I think the vibe at Rosa Mexicano is much more interesting than Sol Azteca. so that could factor in to a diner's choice.
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re: CookieLee
MC Slim JB
Oct 23, 2011 01:06 PM
I'm not dismissing Rosa Mexicano out of hand -- I welcome good new restaurants of any stripe -- but I have frequently questioned the market's ability to support the flood of new Yanqui Mex places that opened this year. One of them already came and went, Jalapeno's in Allston.
None of Boston's "high-end" Mexican restaurants are anything like a proper fine-dining restaurant such as you might find in Mexico City. Most of ours are more mid-range, pretty Americanized, and heavily reliant on moving tequila drinks and beer.
In calling them "high-end", I'm distinguishing them from modest places with Mexican chefs doing more traditional food, like Angela's, Jalisco, and El Amigo. In this context, La Verdad's prices and concept are comparable to most of the places I listed.
Zocalo closed its Brighton location and opened a new one in Back Bay.
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Zocalo
35 Stanhope St, Boston, MA 02116-
re: MC Slim JB
Not sure if you've been to Rosa Mexicano in NY -- it is definitely not perfect but falls in the high end, pretty good category in NY. I don't think any of the places here come close to their level of food, service, atmosphere, etc and think it will be a welcomed addition. IMO it will give the neighboring places a run for their money.
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re: gramercyfoodie
MC Slim JB
Oct 23, 2011 07:30 PM
Have not been, nor was I aware that it's a national chain with a dozen locations. Sietsema in the Washington Post offered a very mixed review of the DC outpost: high style, good execution on handful of dishes, poor seafood and desserts. I'll keep an open mind, but this sounds awfully similar to the place it will be down the block from.
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re: MC Slim JB
My experience at Rosa Mexicano in DC was good. The restaurants are beautiful, very professional, and the menu is more sophisticated than most Mexican restaurants in America. I'd say the menu is comparable to what you find at Olé...not at the level of what you find in DF, but more creative than most and a high level of finish. We liked what we ordered, but I read plenty of comments from others when I lived in DC that said there were occasional misses. So, pretty much what Sietsema said, and I usually do agree with him.
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re: MC Slim JB
threedogs
Oct 27, 2011 08:27 AM
"I'm distinguishing them from modest places with Mexican chefs doing more traditional food, like Angela's, Jalisco, and El Amigo."
Do you mean *Taqueria El Amigo on Moody St. in Waltham? I've only eaten there once, but it was so, so bad. Flavorless, dried out chicken in the tacos. Generally I love tiny casual places, but this was so bad it turned me off of Mexican food - at least for now. (and I'm one to cook Mexican type foods at home, too - even made a mole a few times that took ages to make).
*Edit: My mistake!! It wasn't El Amigo I went to & was disappointed w/the food - it was Antojitos Cafe on Moody St. Don't want to give anyone the impression that El Amigo gave me lousy food - haven't gone there yet... still need to wash the Antolitos Cafe memory out of my brain first thought...
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Taqueria El Amigo
196 Willow St, Waltham, MA 02453-
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re: yumyum
threedogs
Oct 27, 2011 09:50 AM
Arggh! My mistake - it was Antojitos Cafe I went to on Moody St.! Got them mixed up, I think, because I read up so much about all the good Mexican places to try. Def not because said brain is getting oldER...
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Antojitos Cafe
489 Moody St, Waltham, MA 02453
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enhF94
Oct 21, 2011 02:06 PM
I liked this place several years ago - hope they have the huitlacoche chicken thing on the menu.
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re: enhF94
opinionatedchef
May 12, 2012 11:03 PM
enh, huitlacoche, corn fungus, is a wicked hard thing to source. From what Darren (formerly La Verdad and now Exec Chef at Rosa Mex. Boston) explained to me, iirc,it's an autumn (corn harvest) thing but labor intensive to harvest, and rare. Most U.S. Mex restnts buy it canned (yuck) but the frozen is pretty good. So if you like it, you might want to always ask if its fresh, frozen, or canned, when you're thinking of ordering it someplace. It has to be one of the most unique flavors, yes?!
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