Cuerno
Mexican restaurant · Midtown West ·
Expertly grilled prime cuts, tacos de autor, and fresh seafood
Expertly grilled prime cuts, tacos de autor, and fresh seafood
"A Mexican riff on the steakhouse, where $38 steak tacos are prepared tableside and the theater of service takes center stage." - Bettina Makalintal
"In Midtown, the new Mexican restaurant that opened in June is a thrilling, high-energy, tequila-soaked mash-up of restaurant, dinner theater, and shrine to steak that can fix a bad day fast. As the first U.S. outpost from Alberto Martínez and Victor Setién’s Costeño Group, Cuerno lives up to its “vibrant Mexican steakhouse” billing: richly marbled Demkota Ranch Beef is aged 24 days, salted with flaky Colima sea salt and black pepper, then seared over a Josper charcoal grill that cloaks steaks, fish, and vegetables in a caramelized crust while sealing in juices—there may not be a reason to eat steak anywhere else. Past the bland façade of the Time Life Building, the room explodes into a party of guitar-forward Mexican music, tequila-fueled electricity, roaming carts, flaming steaks, and chile-rimmed margaritas; the A de Arquitectos design evokes an open-air hacienda with vaulted ceilings, exposed brick, hand-carved woodwork, and a central tile mural by Saltillo artist Federico Jordán of a smiling skeleton tipping his cobalt-blue hat from atop a bull. Dinner kicks off with a complimentary, refillable salsa buffet (including a warm smoky tomato-garlic molcajete, mild macha, zippy jalapeño, and the fiery piquín limón) served with a little booklet; I liked the lime-and-serrano-bright guacamole and we loved the Japanese hamachi crudo dressed in an aguachile flavor bomb with salsa rasurada, while the truffled cauliflower mash-up was overwrought—skip it. Chef Oriol Mendivil’s steaks range from an eight-ounce filet mignon to a 52-ounce salt-crusted tomahawk, plus 16- and 28-ounce rib-eyes done in salt crust or norteño-style with pepper, garlic, bone marrow, and salsa piquín—no wrong answers. Don’t miss the tacos: the tableside Taco Taquero sees suited servers dice salt-charred skirt steak, scrape buttery marrow from canoe bones, and finish with piquín limón and fleur de sel into warm corn tortillas, and the Tacos Richi deliver a grilled-cheese-crusted tortilla stuffed with thinly sliced rib-eye, salsa verde, chicharrón, and avocado. The bar leans tequila with classic, tamarind, and pineapple margaritas, though the Cuerno margarita was one-note sweet and undrinkable for me; a smoky mezcalita is the better bet, and while the wine list boasts strong Mexican and French producers, pricing skews high with few bottles under $100. Desserts are terrific—especially the pastel de campechanas, a vanilla ice cream cake layered with caramel-coated Mexican puff pastry, pecans, and dulce de leche—which officially dethrones Carvel in my book." - Andrea Strong
"From the moment I walk in there’s a sense of importance: well-dressed crowds, big leather booths, a colorful tile mural of a skeleton riding a bull, and nonstop tableside preparations. The menu of Northern Mexican meats delivers expected starters—fresh guac and queso fundido—alongside standout items like a chicarrón de pulpo and a charcoal-roasted cauliflower with truffle and habanero. For the main event I love the Taco Taquero with perfect skirt steak and fire-roasted bone marrow spooned onto each tortilla, and the Norteño-style arrachera with chiltepin butter and avocado salsa; smoky mezcal and tequila cocktails make excellent pairings." - Charlie Hobbs
"A hospitality group with 50 restaurants across Mexico and Spain is bringing a Northern Mexico-inspired steakhouse to Rockefeller Center. The bi-level dining room will channel a hacienda with hand-carved woodwork and custom leather banquettes, and the menu features grilled octopus, skirt steak tacos with roasted bone marrow, and a range of steaks cooked on a charcoal grill." - will hartman, willa moore, molly fitzpatrick, sonal shah, bryan kim
"You can't shake a martini without splashing a steakhouse around Rockefeller Center, but Cuerno is a little different than the rest. The giant, bi-level chophouse comes from a Mexican restaurant group, and the shift from steak and potatoes to steak and tortillas is a welcome one. With a well-stocked tequila cart, wine glasses bigger than our heads, servers doing one-handed arm raises with loaded trays, and a roving tableside taquero, Cuerno has as much Midtown Manhattan in its DNA as it does Mexico City. It’s not just for show, though. The complimentary tortilla chips come with five excellent salsas, and a 52-ounce tomahawk is perfectly cooked and charred, then decorated with peels of onion holding pools of a lemony sauce. One whiff of the creamy cheesecake confirms it’s made with ripe manchego, which pairs well with the candied guava on top. video credit: Sonal Shah photo credit: Sonal Shah photo credit: Sonal Shah photo credit: Sonal Shah Pause Unmute" - Sonal Shah
