El Centro Review

El Centro is Georgetown's new, hip restaurant, located in the space that The Third Edition, a longtime Georgetown bar for college students and young 20-somethings, formally occupied. The brainchild of chef Richard Sandoval, this is El Centro's second location, the first of which is located on 14th Street. El Centro has two floors and three bars, including an outdoor space and an outdoor bar.

El Centro specializes in authentic mexican food and unique Tequilas. The largest section of their menu is reserved for their extensive list of tacos, ranging from nopal cactus to duck to adobo marinated pork shoulder. El Centro's drink menu is also comprehensive--especially their margarita selection, which includes their signature "El Centro," frozen, strawberry, chili-ginger, mango, prickly pear, and pineapple-habanero margaritas.

The first thing I ordered at El Centro was their guacamole, which they prepare table-side. El Centro offers guacamole with bacon, tuna, or crab, but I decided to stick with their traditional guac.


This guacamole was some of the best I have ever had, and the chips that accompanied it were just as delicious. The balance of serrano chile to onion to cilantro was spot on, and I just about finished the entire serving myself.

For entrees, we ordered the shrimp huarache and the slow-roasted pork taco. Huarache is a flatbread dish made from corn masa, and the huarache we ordered was topped with shrimp, avocado, bean puree, and chipotle aioli.


The combination of the flatbread, shrimp, aioli, and puree was pretty bizarre, and was definitely my least favorite part of the meal. The masa flatbread wasn't bad, but all of the toppings made it soggy, which defeats the purpose of a crunchy flatbread.



The pork tacos, topped with avocado and pickled onions, were paired with a side of beans, rice, and salsa verde. The pork was tender, spicy, and delicious, and the avocado added a layer of creamy richness which cut through the spice of the pork perfectly. 

Overall, I enjoyed the guacamole and the pork tacos, but was underwhelmed by the flatbread. I didn't try any of the Tequilas or margaritas, but I will definitely be back for happy hour and some guacamole. But I'll skip the huarache.



Visit El Centro at 1218 Wisconsin Ave, NW 20007

or

1819 14th St, NW 20009

El Centro on Urbanspoon

1 comment:

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