Chris V.
Yelp
Fusion? More like con-fusion.
Chinitas is a restaurant on Water Street in Henderson that has "combined the savory flavors of Mexican and Asian cuisine" per their website. It looks like they've also incorporated a sports bar vibe as well as a country night. The parking lot in the back had ample space when I showed up during Friday happy hour.
Although I didn't get any entrees or tacos, I did try quite a variety of items. Unfortunately, most of them just weren't that satisfying.
Chicken Tinga Tostadas ($5.00 HH): actually one of the better dishes overall, with toppings that all make sense in my mouth. What didn't quite work was how the chicken was not shredded very finely, so it ended up being a chore to finish the process of biting.
Crispy Pork Wontons ($6.00 HH): I didn't get it. The wontons were crispy, but the pork was barely noticeable. The sweet and sour sauce leaned heavily toward sweet, and the overall flavor profile just didn't taste like anything I've had in Mexican or any Asian cuisine.
Chicken Lettuce Cups ($5.00 HH): another unexpected surprise, in a negative way. I'm not sure what to expect from bang bang sauce, but I didn't want a sauce reminiscent of peanut butter in an overly sweet way. With the fresh toppings and ingredients, it would have been a home run with a better sauce.
Elote Ribs ($5.00 HH): another miss. The underlying corn was a little too mushy and wasn't salted at all. For the "ribs" on the bottom layer, the mayo and cotija didn't cover all of the corn up as you would expect in elote, which exposed the underlying issues. The gimmick would have worked with better execution.
House Special Cauliflower ($10.00): our lone pick that wasn't on the happy hour menu. Our server recommended this over brussels sprouts, and I can say now that I regret allowing that question. The cauliflower was just too soft and grainy, not a good meat replacement. The sweet and spicy sauce was actually pretty enjoyable, but the dish was already lost by that point.
The Sashimi ($8.00 HH) dishes were a mixed bag. They all come with ponzu sauce, a bit of serrano pepper, and some shredded daikon. The yellowtail wasn't bad, but the bluefin was among the more boring and bland bites of raw tuna which I've had.
The California ($6.00 HH) and Rainbow Roll ($13.00 HH) were just fine, nothing exceptional. They felt a bit overly wet thanks to however they prepared the rice. You can get comparable if not better quality rolls from most if not all local all-you-can-eat sushi restaurants. I thought I was getting really full by the end, but it was just a reaction to subpar food.
Chinitas might be the kind of place where having alcohol is mandatory to distract you from the preparation of the food. Based on the hype, I expected something on par with the halcyon days of Soho Japanese Restaurant, but instead I got what's most likely going to be a first and final visit.