Mamasita, Collins St Melbourne

Hola amigos, who isn't always in the mood for Mexican. I mean, what could be better than downing some tequila and tacos. Have a second to think about it. I thought so, pretty hard to come up with anything better isn't it? Yes I know there is more to Mexican than tequila and tacos, however we have a soft spot for that special twosome. So one evening as we meandered about the streets of Melbourne during our last interstate visit we thought it was a good idea to have a bit of a snack revolving around that trouble twosome and ventured to one of the best Mexican spots in town, Mamasitas!

Up at the very top of Collins St it wasn't hard to miss Mamasitas despite its unassuming entrance, there was a line of people pouring out the door. We put our names down and waited in line as we were told the wait was roughly an hour. It was pretty early in the evening but it seemed bustling with activity as the noise filtered down the stairs. People were popping  in and out of the line but we persevered as the allure of Mexican food was too hard to say no to.
So upon surviving the line we made it upstairs where we could see why the wait was so long, it was packed out.  Our friendly waiter seated us by a window bench and gave us the menus to look at at and of course we said yes to the question it asked. Un Tequilla..Duh.?

Totopos - Tortilla chips with guacamole & salsa $8

To kick off proceedings we got stuck into the tortilla chips with the salsa and guacamole. So so good. The salsa had a nice spicy kick and the guacamole was incredibly smooth. Of course I couldn't resist napalming the salsa with some green and red habanero sauce, I can still feel that burn but so worth it. 

Having made plans to go out late in the evening we weren't really after a massive meal but we couldn't help ourselves so we ordered the filete de Cerdo Con Tamarindo $25. Pork fillet, tamarind chipotle glaze, braised cabbage, cranberries & apple pico de gallo. Really loved everything about this dish. It was presented on a slim wooden board and tasted as good as it looked. The pork was tender and the tamarind chipotle glaze was so tasty. The different combination of textures really worked well and just made us want to have more and more. No mucking around with bells and whistles, just plain and simple good food. 

What visit to a Mexican restaurant would be complete without tacos? None. So of course we had to order some tacos as well. We picked three to share; de Pescado $6 - grilled fish, lime, achiote paste & red onion salsa; de Chorizo $5 - chorizo, cabbage, chipotle, coriander & onion; de Frijoles con Nopales $6 - baked black beans, catus pico de gallo & queso fresco.

The tacos were soft and packed with flavour. They really didn't last long, a blink and they were gone. The chorizo was a favourite and of course had to have a bit of extra kick added. The habanero sauce available may seem like a good idea at the time; lets just say I'll leave it at that.

Now one dish that everyone needs to try is the Elotes Callejeros 'Street Style' chargrilled corn, queso, chipotle mayonnaise & lime. ($4.50) Wow. The flavour hits you the minute you take your first bite. Squeeze the lime all over one of these bad boys and you are taken to another place. Hands down we could've eaten these for the whole night. Such a simple dish yet so good. The grated cheese, the little kick of spice, the sweet juiciness of the corn really makes this a standout. Even our waiter said that no visit to Mamacita is complete without this dish and is one of the many reasons as to why people line up.

Keeping with the street style food we were having our waiter suggested we try Mexican beer the Mexican way. Venturing into new territory away from tequila I ordered a Tecate. Not knowing what to expect I was given a can of beer rimmed with salt and with lime perched on top. You are supposed to squeeze some lime into the beer and have a swig.  You get a mix of salt, lime and beer. Might seem weird but it actually is pretty good. It's a bit different from the conventional Corona & lime but hey when in Rome; or when in Mexico.

Salt & tequila go hand in hand with Margherita's though and of course we had to have one as well. Well balanced and not too salty, it was well made and didn't last long. Soon, there was a third glass on the table and the room was a little bit more festive..

So after such good food and drinks we couldn't say no to desert either. Surprise surprise. We had the Paste de Chocolate $11, a flourless chocolate cake with white chocolate & tequilla sauce & PX jelly. 

Don't let its small size fool you, this little cake packs a mean punch. It is incredibly sweet and rich and each spoonful creeps up on you. The white chocolate and tequila sauce & PX jelly do well to cut back on the sweetness and make this one very good desert.

Helado de Maiz $6 - sweet corn ice cream in a cone with caramelised popcorn just sounded too good not to order. The corn ice cream was fantastic, not overly sweet and topped off with caramelised popcorn just made it one of the best ice creams ever. They should start selling tubs.

The remains, well lack thereof really. 

Get there early, get a table and get stuck in is all we can say. Mamastita's is one cool place and well worth the visit when in melbournetown. With incredibly tasty and simple food it's hard to find reasons not to go. Living in Sydney is not a valid excuse by the way either. 


Mamasita Melbourne - http://www.mamasita.com.au/