Just like that Antojitos is now open! I was there a little before opening today, ready to be first in line. I was actually the first bar customer ever!
Currently, the restaurant is under a “Preview Phase”. Essentially, it means that while the restaurant is open and serving guests, it is tinkering with the menu as well as service. The restaurant is scheduled to be officially “open” next week, on February 5th.
For those unfamiliar, Antojitos is the first restaurant to open as part of CityWalk’s Expansion taking place throughout the year. Replacing the Latin Quarter, Antojitos offers patrons to take a journey through the cantinas, street carts, and markets of Mexico for unique tapas-style dining at Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food. Only the freshest ingredients are used to create craveable, made from scratch Mexican street fare in an environment of unmatched authenticity.
There was a lot to choose from to drink, including over 200 Tequilas!
I went with a Classic Mojito and couldn’t have been happier. The bartender also recommended the Sriracha Muchacha and the Stingray for cold days like this, but I’m not one for spicy cocktails.
It was no time at all before I had some chips and salsa delivered to me.
The tortilla chips are lightly salted but the winner here is the nice chunky salsa! For an appetizer I selected the Empanadas Tres Marias.
You get one mushroom, one chicken and one beef empanada. Each has a dipping sauce, a mojo, a rojo, and a verde. Be careful with these, as they can be quite hot when fresh out of the fryer. I knew I would like the chicken and beef, and was pleasantly surprised by the mushroom. (Wondering now if they would do all mushroom for the vegetarians out there). The chef was kind enough to arrange them nearest the dipping sauces that best compliment the meat or vegetable inside, however the bartender was nice enough to point out I was free to mix and match as much as I would like!
I hadn’t even gotten into my appetizer when my entree was delivered. I went with the Guajillo Chicken. The menu describes this item as “Roasted bone in chicken breast served with jalapeno corn bread, grilled pineapple salsa, and a smokey guajillo chile sauce.” After reading that how could I not choose it! Discussing the dish with the bar tender he offered his opinion that the corn bread was his favorite item in the restaurant. I love corn bread and this little guy did not disappoint. Add some of the pineapple salsa if you want it to be even sweeter! The jalapeno is not the star in the corn bread, which I was a little wary of going in. I only wish that the dish came with a second piece of corn bread. The chicken was not the star of it’s own dish but it played second fiddle nicely. Any level of spice that might have been in this dish was really subdued by the sweet pineapple salsa.
Now for dessert. The dessert menu was housed in this cool binding.
Once opened, the menu had two sides. One side was for hot coffee, and the other for foods/aguas frescas.
I love me some lava cake, so I went with the Molten Cajete de Leche. The menu describes this item as “warm cake filled with sweet cajete de leche, served with sour cream ice cream.” Yes you read that correctly, sour cream ice cream. I wasn’t sure if I would like the ice cream but I was in a daring mood and the cake sounded delicious. Take a chance on this one guys. The sour cream ice cream is the perfect contrasting element to the sweet goodness that is the cake. For good measure they throw in some chocolate shavings as well. At worst you’ll like 2/3, but I liked the whole thing.
Since it’s opening week, Antojitos was offering complimentary, custom masks to it’s patrons. Many designs were similar to Lucho-libre masks or sugar skulls.
I had a fantastic meal, and great time tonight at Antojitos. If you are an annual pass holder, don’t forget about those discounts! 10% for Preferred and 15% for Premiere Passholders.
I’m sure to be found frequenting this restaurant a lot over the next couple of years. Enjoy the rest of the photos of the new restaurant below and if you get a chance to eat there, let us know what you though by sharing your review on our forums!
