Casa Enrique Opens a Mexican Seafood Restaurant in the West Village | Eater NY

"After Casa Enrique lost its Michelin star, I visited Quique Crudo at 27 Bedford Street, a small seafood bar where about a third of the menu borrows Casa Enrique staples (sopes, enchiladas, fried oysters) but feels more elevated despite being cooked on induction burners in a kitchen barely wide enough for two cooks. The menu includes new experiments—scallops with potato hash, “steak tartare” tostadas with capers and cornichons—and a lobster ceviche that’s half Mexican mariscos, half tom yum: an oil-slicked marinade of coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass and lobster stock with a whole lobster and spoonfuls of salsa macha, which at roughly $60 makes it one of the priciest ceviches around. Both times I visited the dining room was only half full; in the open kitchen Cosme assembles dishes with tweezers for beautiful presentation but slow service as orders pile up. The place also feels like a bar: nearly 40 cocktails that nod to Mexico City (carajillos, “aguachile” margaritas, espresso martinis, la bandera) and around 20 seats—best at the bar with the open-kitchen view, worst at the cramped railing—where seating is a coin toss since the bar doesn’t take reservations. Quique Crudo is open Monday–Thursday 5–11 p.m. and Friday–Saturday 5 p.m.–midnight." - Luke Fortney