With a new look and a new menu, Lolita, 106 S. 13th St., makes us feel like there is a new chica in the Gayborhood — strutting her stuff and competing for our Mexican-cuisine affection — and frankly we are finding her really, really hard to resist.
And considering the long-standing Mexican-food institution just across the street (that rhymes with “Gel Mez”), that is saying something.
Lolita’s new street-food-inspired menu may not be extensive but its focus is laser-like on delivering dishes that stand out among the stiff competition in the city, while providing diners with a sleek, relaxing environment to set the mood for their feast.
The tacos keep things simple and effective. The cornflake-crusted mahi tacos ($12) deliver a satisfying crunch and depth of flavor that can compete with any of the best fish tacos the city has to offer. The camarones tacos ($12) are even better, with spicy hot-sauce-marinated shrimp and an apple-citrus salsa that gives them a surprisingly bold kick. The filet-tips tacos ($12) take a welcome detour into the wildly popular Korean-taco territory with kimchee and jicama, giving them a fresh blast of flavor.
Lolita knocks it out of the park with other Mexican staples as well. The street-style corn ($5) was a must-have, dressed with chipotle mayo, ancho spices and lime juice. The queso fundido ($11) was a cheese-lover’s heaven, a tasty vegetable-laden dip existing in a tricky but perfectly rich and gooey middle ground of solid and liquid. It’s available as a vegetarian dish but you can also opt to take it up a notch by adding spicy chorizo.
Lolita takes nachos to a new level with its shortrib chilaquiles ($15), tortilla chips piled high with the usual suspects like beef, black beans, salsa verde and avocado puree, as well as some unexpected but amazing twists like a fried egg, giving the dish a pleasing range of flavors and textures.
Lolita is one caliente mamasita. The king of Gayborhood Mexican food isn’t dead, but there is a queen throwing her culinary weight around. And we are not above cheating on either one of them.