Mexican heaven but at a price

Upon entering Mexican restaurant Catrinas on a cold weeknight evening we noticed that the staff outnumbered the patrons who were currently sat down with their meals. No surprises there: the time, the day, the weather. People must be nestled under a blanket at home, we thought.

But then we quickly noticed that the restaurant looked more like a cocktail bar than a traditional eatery. Slick, high tables with marble tops, an inviting bar with comfortable chairs, warm, soft lighting. We call this foreshadowing. By the time we’d left the place was packed with people, radiating with a buzz befitting a Friday night.

Small detail but when we first stepped inside, the staff gave us four or five seating options, and not all of them meant for two people. It seems insignificant but I appreciated it. A lot of restaurants try to limit you to the tables corresponding to the exact number of people in your party, or, even worse, usher you toward the tables closest to the door to make the place look lively. Major red flag.

To add another note on the staff, they were polite, courteous and attentive throughout the night. I don’t expect waiters to act subservient or excessively formal but hearing “of course”, “absolutely” or “excellent choice” does improve the overall experience.

fajitas

We kept it simple with our drinks, despite the alluring cocktail menu at hand, with a bottle of Czech lager and a mocktail. The latter was called a ‘virgin colada’, which combines the cream of coconut and pineapple juice of a pina colada but forgoes the rum. If you like those flavours, you will find it refreshing and sweet tasting.

Onto the food, I’ll say something short and sweet. If there are two of you, order three things, and remember that the fajitas are considerably more substantial than tacos or quesadillas. I say this with authority as those were the three things we ordered. We started with the tacos, which contained chicken breast, well-seasoned with peppers, onions and herbal butter. They were also topped with fresh guacamole, pico de gallo, and crisp iceberg lettuce, all wrapped in Gyoza skin. The shells were what caught me off-guard on these tiny tacos as they were the crispiest ones I’ve had in recent memory.

We followed the tacos with another sharing dish, the beef quesadillas. These might be my pick of the lot as the marinated beef, sauteed onions, green peppers and melted cheese combined for something truly delicious. Again, I must say that the quesadillas, which came with guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo on the side, are rather compact.

Finally, the main meal, which we again shared, were the chicken fajitas. The flavour profile is reminiscent of the tacos, but they come with soft tortilla bread for you to construct wraps. On the side you get a mozzarella and cheddar cheese mix, guacamole, sour cream, jalapenos and pico de gallo. Word to the wise, if you exhaust your six tortillas, another batch will set you back €1.

Sadly the full desert menu was not available when we visited as the restaurant is still quite new and hasn’t finalised everything, but they were happy to make us some churros. Think of something between a long doughnut and Cypriot pischies. Fried dough is fried dough, right? They were quite crispy, flavourful, drizzled with chocolate sauce, sprinkled with cinnamon, and served with a small bowl of vanilla ice cream. A perfect end to the evening.

All in all, a pleasant experience and one I would repeat again. Just be aware of the portions, your appetite and the prices, and you’ll have a good time. 

VITAL STATISTICS

SPECIALTY Mexican cuisine, cocktails

WHERE Catrinas, Kitiou Kyprianou, LB 3041, Limassol

WHEN Daily 6pm-1am, Friday-Saturday 6pm-2am

HOW MUCH €21 for seviche, €16-19 for tacos, €16-18 for quesadillas, €25-38 for fajitas

CONTACT: 96 822226