Hot Spots: Remington Mexican
What a hot little neighborhood Remington has become! Like its big brother to the north, Hampden, it’s now a hipster hotspot.
Like Hampden, Remington offers a worthy collection of food and beverage choices. Joining longtime mainstay Paper Moon Diner, foodies now have 29thStreet Tavern, W.C. Harlan, multiple choices under one roof at the sprawling R House, and Clavel. (Recently shuttered Parts & Labor won’t likely stay dormant for long.) Restaurateur Lane Harlan was the first of the new breed to set up stakes in this formerly neglected corner of the city, with her novel speakeasy-style cocktail lounge, W.C. Harlan. A few years later, she opened the Mexican-and-Mezcal themed Clavel, to huge success. And last year the restaurant doubled its size by absorbing the vacant space next door.
The changes to the space include a much larger back dining bar that looks into the open kitchen, where fresh tortillas are rolled out, cut, and fried up in vats of bubbling oil.
The new, second large dining room features rough stucco and exposed brick walls and a large windowed garage door that can be opened up to the street in nice weather.
Along the rear wall is an elevated mescal tasting bar that seats half a dozen. The original bar is still intact, as is the first main dining room, with its white plaster walls, palm fronds, and festive lights strung overhead. Both dining rooms pack up fast regularly, a testament to the restaurant’s popularity.
Speaking of the bar, I’ll admit I’m not the biggest fan of tequilas and mescal. But my drinking companion is, so I followed his lead and ordered the house margarita. I was pleasantly surprised at its smoothness and easy drinkability. To that end, I had three over the course of the evening.
And regretted none of it.
{Clavel, 225 W. 23rd Street, Remington }
