Los Felix Review - Coconut Grove - Miami - The Infatuation

"Editor's note: Los Félix has revamped its menu. We'll update this review when we've had a chance to check it out. At some point during dinner at Los Félix, you may forget you’re at a restaurant. It could happen while chatting with the staff, who have seemingly graduated with a master’s degree in The Art Of The Dinner Party. Or it might happen when the lights cut out and the disco ball starts spinning, making the entire restaurant feel like a very fun living room. Like any great host, Los Félix leaves you basically no choice but to relax and have fun. But once the plates start hitting the table, the dinner party illusion fades away. Because the food at the laidback Coconut Grove Mexican restaurant is better than the sweaty cheese plate you’ll encounter at a friend’s house. And it is this effortlessly fun energy combined with some really excellent dishes that make Los Félix such a great spot. The menu consists of mostly Mexican small plates, and extends well beyond just tacos. Options change often, but If you see them on the menu, prioritize the sope, crudo, tostada, and tetela. The ingredients used in each dish also rotate based on seasonality and availability, so we can’t guarantee what will be involved in all the aforementioned dishes. We’ve had the tetela stuffed with sweet potato one visit, and black beans the next. But on both occasions we considered ordering another before we’d even finished. If you’re pretty hungry or here with more than one person, go for the pork cheek carnitas. The tender carnitas are served with warm tortillas, and everyone at the table can dive in and make their own tacos. It’s one of the more filling (and delicious) dishes, and the best taco option on the menu too. Because of its small size, Los Félix is probably best for a date or small dinner with a couple friends. The size of the dishes—all relatively small—is another reason to keep things intimate here. Come with someone you have no concerns splitting a single tostada with or keeping a conversation going for 90 minutes. It’s best to come to Los Félix when you want a bit more than just a meal, though. It’s a reservation to make when you want to be at a dinner party, even if you don’t have the social energy to actually organize or attend one. Food Rundown photo credit: Tasty Planet Tetela This little triangle of joy will be stuffed with something delicious - whether that be sweet potato, black beans, or some other seasonal ingredient. But one of the best parts about this dish are the grilled mushrooms that border the tetela like a crown of deliciousness. Tuna Tostada This is one of our favorite things on the menu. The tuna and tostada are both great, but what really makes the dish is the paper-thin layer of sliced beetroot that covers the tostada like a blanket. The little dollops of caviar don’t hurt either. photo credit: Tasty Planet Arepa The arepa is overflowing with braised pork belly, plantain, queso fresco, and avocado, and—much like Sade’s 2000 single “By Your Side”—we wouldn’t dare change a single thing about it. The plantain really balances out the richness of the pork belly. Just know that you will eventually give up and eat this with a fork and knife. Pork Cheek Carnitas If you’re trying to get tacos, skip the al pastor and shrimp pibil. They’re fine, but the pork cheek carnitas are much better. The fall-apart-tender pork cheek carnitas comes with a handful of fresh tortillas so you can assemble your own tacos. But even if you run out of tortillas, the carnitas is good enough to just eat with a fork. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings Crudo Kind of like the tostada, the best part of this crudo is the thin layer of jícama that covers the plate. It’s slightly sweet and adds a really interesting flavor to the whole thing. This is a crudo worth getting even if you’re kind of sick of the hundreds of crudos on every menu in Miami. photo credit: Tasty Planet Raw Chocolate Tart You don’t have a lot of options for dessert here, but we’ll make your choice easier just in case. Get this. It’s fudgey and (obviously) chocolatey, but not overly sweet and it has a nice crunch thanks to some walnuts dispersed throughout the base." - Ryan Pfeffer