Randomness Guide to London - Differences between Version 9 and Version 8 of Wahaca, WC2N 4HG

Mexican place in Covent Garden, opened mid-2007.

They put emphasis on using seasonal produce, sustainable fish, and free-range meat. (See this Times article by the owner.) They even offer a British wine — it's pricy though; a sparkling rose at £45. (Other wines start at £11.75, or £3 by the glass. All wines except the sparkling one are available by the 175ml glass, 500ml carafe, or bottle.)

We visited on a Thursday evening in July and a Friday evening in September; we had to wait a little while for a table on both occasions (30-50 minutes), as a consequence of their policy of not taking bookings. On the first occasion, shortly after they opened, they let us order drinks from the bar while we waited; on the second occasion with the queue almost reaching the front door, they let us effectively book a table and return later.

Our waits for tables may also be explained by the fact that although the restaurant is reasonably large, the tables are spaced quite widely apart. Similarly, each diner is allocated quite a bit of space at the table; a good design choice, since the street food options all come on their own dishes, so you do need some space to put them! Tables and chairs are rather reminiscent of chunkier, sturdier versions of canteen furniture, which works well with the turquoise and green of the walls and ceiling.

The staff were very friendly and enthusiastic, and practically falling over themselves to give us free stuff during our first visit — two refills of tortilla chips, guacamole, roasted nuts — I may have lost track of what else they assured us was "on the house". (The freebies didn't last past the initial month or so of opening.)

The food is very reasonably priced — burritos cost between £5.50 (marinated chicken, or sauteed summer vegetables) and £6 (char-grilled steak), and main courses between £7.75 (chargrilled vegetables with chipotle slaw and rice) and £11 (fish of the week with tomatillo sauce, rice, and beans).

The heart of the menu though is the "street food" section, which recommends choosing 2-3 dishes per person; these are all priced between £3.25 and £5, and include tacos, tostadas, quesadillas, and taquitos, with fillings ranging from aubergine, potato, and goats' cheese to slow-cooked pork. You can also get a set selection for two people to share, at £22.50.

One unusual starter is pork scratchings served with guacamole (£3). Bob says it's actually pork crackle rather than pork scratchings; whatever you call them, they were very good, tasty and light and not at all greasy. We also tried the Wahaca nuts (£2), which are supposedly "roasted with garlic and chile de arbol"; although they were perfectly nice nuts, neither garlic nor chilli was detectable.

The rest of the food was competent — but on our first visit Kake really wished for a slightly heavier hand with the seasoning. Nothing except the salsa had even a hint of chilli. Salt, and hence flavour, was also lacking in many of the dishes; notable exceptions were the aubergine, potato, and goat cheese quesadillas (£3.50) and the chorizo, thyme and potato quesadillas (£3.75), both of which include intrinsically salty ingredients. Fish tacos (£4.25) could have been great, but were let down by a greasiness which was both excessive and rather surprising, since it wasn't present in the other dishes. These problems had been redressed to some extent by September - while not fiery hot, the food was adequately seasoned and spiced. A quibble with the serving temperature of the food had also been resolved.

Like Dos Hermanos, we mentioned the seasoning problem to the staff during our first visit, and were told that it was a deliberate decision, and people wanting more flavour in their food should "fix" this by means of the chilli sauce and flake salt provided on the table. The chilli sauce and salt remain for people who still feel the need for them, and two bowls of spicy salsa were provided to us for spooning over the food.

Drinks were good. Classic margarita (£5.50) was perfect apart from the use of table salt rather than flake salt on the rim of the glass; Mojito DF (£6) was wonderfully appley, and the Reserva Malbec we ordered a bottle (£15.95) and then a carafe (£10.75) of went perfectly with the food.

Other reviews:

• Dos Hermanos
• Square Meal
• Londonist
• A visitor named Joe Cripson comments that he really likes this place, and thinks the food is the most authentic he's found since returning from his six-month trip to Mexico.

Comment added by Anjou: I thought the place was a little souless despite good efforts by the friendly staff. The fish tacos were very greasy good point and the rest lacked real flavour and kick. The churros and hot chocolate were delightful. The try platter was not particulary good however it is basic street food in bright surroundings. Happy to try and recommend will not be a regular returner. Too bad about beach burrito cafe in berwick st has closed where I was a regular. Anyone know any similiar gems

Comment by Damon: The owner of the Beach Burrito Café has two other restaurants in West London. See their site at eatmexicali.com.

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