Hellbender

"This sibling to Rolo’s has transitioned from a cocktail bar with food to a sit-down restaurant serving excellent modern Mexican American fare from chef Yara Herrera, an alum of Spago, Momofuku Ko, and Xilonen. The aguachile is served with a bright vermilion broth spiced with habanada peppers. The pork ribs al pastor are tender; the skin on the achiote-marinated branzino is blackened and crusty; and the roasted beets and ayocote beans salad features watercress shoots as a grassy complement. And if you spot something that looks like chicken tenders, that’s golden-fried Oaxacan cheese served with tomatillo salsa. Dishes rotate." - Caroline Shin

"Hellbender comes from the owners of the restaurant Rolo’s nearby. When it first opened, it branded itself as a cocktail bar. It’s still slinging carajillos and margarita pitchers, but it has reconfigured the dining room layout some to double down on its dinner offerings. There are fried Oaxacan cheese sticks, aguachiles, plus tacos (with lamb, mushrooms, or shrimp)." - Emma Orlow, Melissa McCart

"Sometimes it's critical to sip sweet cocktails through a bendy straw and eat a bathtub's worth of queso—that's what this new Ridgewood bar from the Rolo’s people is all about. Sure, you’ll drink more balanced rum cocktails in your lifetime (we hope). But the red-lit space with giant jaguar taxidermy and good Mexican bar food makes Hellbender worth visiting. The next time you're looking for a fun place to hang out in the neighborhood, bring a couple of friends and order lamb carnitas on soft corn tortillas and churros with a rich chocolate sauce. " - bryan kim, will hartman, willa moore, sonal shah, neha talreja, molly fitzpatrick

"The energy level at Hellbender in Ridgewood, a bar from the Rolo’s people, falls somewhere in the center of the going-out spectrum: it's a good, low-lit spot for maybe the tiniest bit of dancing, but mostly conversations with friends over henny coladas. Drinks are generally sweet and accompanied by bendy straws, like a rum cocktail called the Taxidermy Jaguar that you can drink while standing next to a taxidermy jaguar. What's more exciting is the Mexican-influenced bar food like lamb carnitas and choriqueso served with soft Sobre Masa tortillas. You'll run up a fat bill if you try to finagle a full dinner here. So we’d suggest sticking to drinks and a few snacks, like their $14 fried Oaxaca cheese sticks." - Will Hartman

"On February 29, Herrera is opening Hellbender Nighttime Cafe — with the Rolo’s team — a cocktail bar with bites at 68-22 Forest Avenue, at 68th Road, in Ridgewood. It’s her first time joining a business as a partner and as an executive chef who’s building things out from the launch. At Hellbender, Herrera’s food menu is brief — it’s a cocktail bar, first and foremost — but it includes dishes that are more than a cut above drunchies. There is a chamoy plate, where the fruit-based condiment — she makes her own — drips over shards of Asian pear and daikon, rather than the more typical jicama. Instead of mozz sticks, there are Oaxacan fried cheese sticks served with a side of tomatillo salsa. There’s a shrimp cocktail with Clamato, pico de gallo, and tostada. Plus, more entree-sized choices such as a fried tilefish sandwich oozing with cilantro mayo. Then there’s the sure-to-be-bestseller, the volcanic choriqueso — queso fans know how hard it can be to find in New York — served on a cast iron platter; it comes with a side of corn tortillas sourced from Herrera’s former employer, Sobre Masa. There’s also, of course, chips and salsa, among other bites." - Emma Orlow