Restaurant Review: Mesa Coyoacán

Restaurant Review: Mesa Mesa Coyoacán

A new neighborhood gem

New is a subjective term of course, as I did just moved to this awesome little triangle of Williamsburg that I never knew existed until a few months ago. I have to say, other than one run-in with a truly terrible laundromat, this neighborhood is wonderful, quiet, and thriving. It definitely got a transplant of young blood when the rest of Williamsburg did, but it still holds a lot of the charm that I’m sure has been there for many years. This charm is what drew me to Brooklyn in the first place, and what was slowly shriveling away near the Williamsburg waterfront—I’m once again proud to say I live in Brooklyn and not some Soho-wannabee subsection of Williamsburg, now full of pretension and just an overall boushiness that left a major sour taste in my mouth when I moved…no offense to anyone that lives over there.

Mesa Coyoacán opened back in 2009 and currently mainlines authentic Mexican cuisine right into the heart of Williamsburg’s food scene. It’s food is classic and a welcomed change from the usual burrito restaurants littered around the city. I’m not a huge fan of this Americanized Taco Bell style of cooking, so I usually stay away from it—Qdoba and Chipotle are not staples in my diet. Mesa, on the other hand, is something I could really get used to. I’ll cut to the chase… at the end of our meal, my girlfriend and I looked at each other and said, “We’re coming back here.”

We started with guacamole and elote asado. The guacamole was fresh and well done and the elote was classic and extremely tasty. For anyone who hasn’t had elote asado, it’s just grilled corn covered in mayonnaise then topped with queso fresco and sprinkled with chili powder and a squeeze of lime—a must have for your late-summer barbecues. We each had an order of tacos; I had de lengua, or cow tongue with a salsa verde, and my girlfriend had de cochinita pibil, or braised pork with annatto, habanero, avocado, and pickled red onion. This was the real winner and I could have had another order, easily. The meal was served with four different sauces ranging from mildest to hottest: The first was fruity, the second was tangy, the third was smoky like chipotle, and the fourth was habanero and knocked me on my ass… all were great in their own way. The whole meal left me feeling extremely satisfied without that sickly feeling of being over-full.

Our drinks were both fantastic. We sat right at the bar, which was lively but still offered a great dining experience. Mesa boasts a really extensive and impressive tequila and mescal list, if that’s your thing. It is not mine, so I went with a drink from their list of margaritas. I went with a tamarind margarita, which was tangy and had a spicy salt rim. My girlfriend got the jalapeño infused margarita, which had a nice hint of heat along with it. Both were made professionally by our affable waiter and bartender, so the service also gets a thumbs up.

From start to finish, everything was great with Mesa Coyoacán, which is a relief for me. When I move to a new neighborhood, the first thing I do is walk around each of the blocks looking for major landmarks—restaurants and bars are typically on the top of the list. I keep mental notes of all the places I need to try out until they hopefully transverse their way from the new and fresh section of my list to the old favorites. I can see Mesa making its way over to the latter section in due time. Until then, I look forward to eating my way down their full menu, trying every dish they serve. 

- Adam from Tipped Mixology