"Walk past Ixchel—a Mexican spot on the King’s Road—on any evening and you’ll probably get instant fear of missing out. It might be because you hear the live music, or you see people holding margaritas on a Monday night while sinking into a plush sofa like they have nowhere to be tomorrow morning. If you’d also like to feel like you’re on holiday, it’s easy. The Tulum-esque room does most of the work for you. On the ground floor it’s all bright shapes painted on the walls, bamboo ceilings, and cacti dotted around. Bring some friends and over-order on tacos, quesadillas, and small plates. They’re the best things here, like salmon ceviche paired with sweet, tangy mango chunks, and yellowfin tuna tostadas with thinly sliced Granny Smith apples. Downstairs is more of a cave-like space. Host a birthday around the huge 14-seater table, or take one of the private-feeling booths lining the edges of the room. It’ll be easy to forget that you’ve got an early start tomorrow. photo credit: Rianne Shlebak photo credit: Ixchel photo credit: Rianne Shlebak photo credit: Rianne Shlebak Food Rundown Scallop Aguachile The fish might change, but any of the cold, raw, citrussy fish dishes in the ‘para picar’ section of the menu should be ordered. photo credit: Rianne Shlebak Ensenada Taco A nice crispy piece of battered white fish is the centre of this excellent taco. It’s hefty while remaining light, crispy while meltingly soft inside, and garnished with pickled vegetables and spicy scotch bonnet cream. One of our favourite things to get at Ixchel. photo credit: Rianne Shlebak Chipotle Creamy Rice This sounded more exciting than it was. Ultimately it’s a paella-like dish with grilled octopus and garlic prawns. We didn’t get much of a chipotle flavour throughout and the flavours in general weren’t as strong as we’d like. Skip the big dishes and load up on the smaller bites. photo credit: Rianne Shlebak Crispy Potatoes We think this dish should be renamed to ‘Crispiest Potatoes’ because these incredibly golden bites were everything you want from a roast potato. Perfectly crunchy coating, with fluffy insides—and a nice salsa verde drizzled on top. Homemade Salsas There are four homemade salsas on the menu and you should get them all. They vary in spice level, from a mild salsa verde to a fiery scotch bonnet salsa. These are great for drizzling over any tacos you get." - Rianne Shlebak
