If you think that seafood in the desert is a mirage, you haven't been to Mariscos. With two locations to choose from, you'll be swimming in camarones, pescado and…French fries! That's right, almost all the entrées are served with thick-cut, steaming hot fries. It sounds a little weird but it works. Picture this: a huge plate piled with fresh avocado, rice and shrimp. There is shrimp with jalapenos and onions or shrimp with bacon, squash and peppers. Shrimp kebabs or country-style shrimp in a rich, smooth tomato sauce straight from the beaches of Mexico. Or fish. A filet stuffed with scallops, shrimp and octopus is deliciously chewy, flaky and crunchy all in the same bite. Fries cover a nice corner of the plate. For dessert, try the caramel custard; it's sweet but not outrageously so. The generous portion is shareable, dense and delicious. Marisco's even has a special hangover cure available for all you late-night folk: leche de tigre (that's 'tiger's milk') with shrimp, clamato and lemon juice-sure to bring you back to life in no time.
2874 Cerrillos Road and 537 Cordova Road, 983-2790.
Lunch and dinner daily. $$.
SFR Pick:
Camarones maneados (shrimp with Mexican cheese rolled in deep-fried bacon).
Santa Fe Reporter