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Little Mexico Cantina

For our latest girl group meet up, we decided to make Little Mexico Cantina our destination. I had already been once this year, so knew what to expect. So, when looking for a good time with drinks in hand, I recommended a drive out to Steveston.

This hot spot for great Mexican cuisine and tasty cocktails, served by a band of personal-able staff is a fun one. And one I often recommend for their house-infused tequilas. Enjoy them as is as a shot to best make out to fruit or spice’s flavour profile.

But it is best mixed in to one of their margaritas. Each blended with Triple Sec, lime, and organic agave syrup, plus your choice of tequila.

On the table today (as chosen by its drinker was the Jalapeño margarita, a Strawberry margarita, and my Blueberry margarita done up bulldog style with an overturned mini bottle of Corona beer crowning it. The latter is the showstopper and the one to get.

And if you ask the bar nicely, they can also pour any of their margaritas into a special glass, like with this zesty and refreshing sweet Mango and lemongrass margarita.

If you are looking for something non-alcoholic they also have a great selection of mocktails including the berry forward From The Wood with blackberry, lime, elder flower, and cranberry juice. You get the same nuance of a cocktail in layered depth, but none of that fun buzz.

A new favourite for me is the Red Hot Sour. It hit the spot with its smokey and sharp flavour, more savoury than sweet. Spiced infused whisky, lime, and organic agave syrup. It is mixed like a margarita, but with aged whisky which makes all the difference. The heat helps curb the sweetness, leaving you with a great tangy and tingly aftertaste.

As for food, the girls were big fans of their house chips, so much so that we needed to order a second basket. We just wished there was more salsa included for a more generous chip to dip ratio.

The Sautéed prawns with coconut, pico de gallo, and a mango habanero sauce was a nice one. Served with two pieces of garlic toast for dipping, I liked the creaminess of the coconut milk broth and could have drunk it just like that. The thick cuts of bread were like sponges in soaking up all that sweet curry-like flavour.

During the last visit I could not taste the tequila in the Tequila infused prawns, so was happy that today, there was no hiding it. Its sharpness was well balanced by the tang of the tomato, and the chips included made the ideal platform to showcase them on.

The Poppin’ jalapeños is a fun appetizer. Cheese stuffed, bacon wrapped jalapeños served with sautéed peppers and onions; then topped with chipotle mayo. It comes to the table sizzling on a skillet and eats as exciting as they looked. Gooey cheese, slight spicy pepper, and salty crispy bacon with a tangy and cooling dip that works well. Can recommend.

Enchiladas are the Mexican staple of corn tortillas filled with shredded chicken, and your choice of sauce, topped with a blend of cheeses, and served along side rice and beans. This is the mild version with a mole sauce. It eats like a build your own bite saucy platter. Delivers as intended.

You can purchase tacos one at a time for $7, but save $3 when you purchase 3, so we went with the following. Each is built the same as the other, but with a different featured protein as the star of the dish.

Tinga de pollo with pulled chicken, chipotle mayo, queso. and cilantro. The chicken could have used more queso to give it more umph.

Fish is pan seared “catch of the day” with pico de gallo, chipotle mayo, pickled cabbage, and cilantro. The fish had a nice crispiness to its texture, given freshness from the salsa.

Carnitas with Mexican pork confit, onion, cilanrto, and pico de gallo. The pork was the tastiest with a nice seasoning to match.

Also included in the buy 3 and save promotion are their tostada . Like tacos, but with a crispy fried shell-base instead of the soft tortilla. More crunch for a better munch. The following are their 3 vegetarian tostada options.

Mushroom tostada with local roasted mushrooms, onion, blended cheese, cilantro, chipotle mayo, and pico de gallo. There were plenty of mushrooms loaded on to this. Earthy morsels given some zest from the nacho cheese sauce that coated, and freshness from the pickled onions.

I enjoyed the Chickpea tostada with chickpea, guacamole, pico de gallo, and cilantro. It had a lovely creamy yet starchy consistency to it, that parallels the soft guacamole and fresh juicy tomato topping. All of which are a great contrast to the crispy tostada shell.

And the Frijoles tostada is mashed black bean, wrapped in crispy blend cheese, and chipotle mayo. The bean was more like an omelette, cheesy and filling.

And we couldn’t walk away without trying the churros. House made and served with a dulce de leche dip and vanilla ice cream. Cinnamon and sugar sweetness in a crispy chewy package.

In short, for some Mexican comfort eats and a good time with plenty of drinks, make Little Mexican Cantina your spot.

Little Mexico Cantina
3131 Chatham St #150, Richmond, BC V7E 2Y4
(604) 272-5123
littlemexicocantina.ca

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