Centrico – TriBeCa
211 W. Broadway
New York , NY
(212) 431.0700
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VdV Rating: 4
Food: Mexican
Greetings Chef Aarón Sanchez,
We just missed you at Centrico, where we had a fab lunch at the bar, and your main man Juan mixed us some mean Partida Repo Ritas. BTW, Juan was overall just as awesome, nice guy that gave prompt, friendly service.
So. You may (not) remember us – we (fictionally) met at a (make believe) event a year or so ago. Anyhoo, that’s what I told Juan as I slipped him my VdV biz card in hopes of it finding it’s way to you. See, I admire your success and fame. I aspire to it. I lied, yes. But you are here, so my crafty little plan is working.
But don’t worry Mr. Aarón, I’m no chef. No throw-down here. I’m just a foodie looking for a modicum of fame. Even 14 seconds. But better yet, the amount of time it takes to be a guest judge on Chopped or any of those other Food Network shows. Or somehow be involved on Chefs vs. City. A cameo! I know you can exert influence, and will hopefully recognize that our juvenile insights and (some think) witty banter could add some pizzazz somewhere or other. Drop me a line! Or have your agent call mine (me).
So, we just left Centrico for lunch. First impressions, the space is tres cool. Large and open, with high ceilings and awesome natural light from the tall windows on each corner. Centrico exudes authentic design without going overboard. Know what I mean? No La Cucaracha going on here, fella.
We bellied up to the bar, and got down to business. I mean, we had a flight to catch in a couple hours. One that I am on as we speak, Air France from JFK to CDG. Why oh why can’t they offer WiFi (pronounced wee-fee in Paris. And I guess elsewhere in France) on their flights?! Is it that expanse of H2O called the Atlantic? Hey all I know is, they (no, not the French, silly) can land a man on the moon…just sayin’…So don’t blame me for the lack of real time-ness. This’ll get posted tout a suite when we arrive in Paris.
OK, we ordered. It’s a good menu, lots of range and creativity. Like ‘Mexican Pasta with Albondingas’. Not that we were in the creative mood. But there was still plenty for us. Let’s take it from the top:
Chips + Salsa ($5), hmmm, I was a little concerned about the meal when these arrived, I gotta tell ya. VdV knows chips + salsa. Our man Juan gave us some comp Guacamole with our order (very nice), but we’re not huge fans of the avocado. How would he know, unless the other J was wearing her ‘I hate avocado’ shirt?
So, back to the matter at hand. Sorry Aarón, but the chips tasted out of the bag. They did, man, I was
bummed. Some had lotsa salt, others, none. And they didn’t taste like they were cooked on the premises. Blah. Waaah. Hey I can rhyme! The salsa? Well it was freshy fresh. Dougie Fresh, even. Nice and in-your-face tomato flavor, but…lacking spice, my man.
But dude, after that, aces! Your Grouper Ceviche ($12) was soma da best, if not…wait, it was THE BEST Ceviche ever. And I almost passed ‘cuz it was Grouper, and as any of you know I don’t like eating fish that is ugly or has a creepy name. You may remember my whinings about Cuttlefish at Betel in NYC (yes, yes, some d-bag emailed me to say it is a mollusks, not a fish).
Anyway, Grouper is a weird-looking fish. Kinda bloated and funky. But we went for it anyway and were handsomely rewarded. It was prepared with yellow peppers and mango, the fish was super tender and, put on one of the plantain chips with a little cilantro was the purrfect bite. You could taste the fish, but it didn’t taste fishy! Sweet + heat too, Bobby Flay would love this dish!
Next, the Beef Tacos ($12), two tacos with a pantload of charred steak on each double-stacked, obviously cooked on premises, flour tortilla. Nice and simple, folks. The way it should be. Tortilla + steak + grilled white onion + a sublime (sublime?), green chile salsa. Nice and fresh, vibrant tastes that tasted damn good together.
Next? Well, we ended with a salad. That’s how they do it in France! The Ensalada de Primavera ($9), with Arugula, Friseé, micro-greens of some sort, Fennel, Walnuts, Bleu Cheese and a light sherry vinaigrette. The other J scoffed at my decision to order salad, but she came around. The salad was very fresh, the spicy arugula rocked it and the fennel was sliced thin enough to add a soft texture to the crisp lettuces.
So all-in-all. The bottom line and all that. Would we come back to Centrico? Hells yeah! Sure, I would humbly suggest, Chef Aarón Sanchez to take a good look at your chips + salsa. But other than that, we dig the good vibe, very well executed dishes, rocking Margy’s, fresh ingredients and the overall kick-ass meal & experience we had. And that f’ing Ceviche! Bam!
