TOM PARKER BOWLES reviews Mexican bites on King's Road

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On King’s Road in London’s Chelsea, Tom finds a Mexican magnet for gilded young carousers.

At first we think we’re in the wrong place. That we’ve つまずくd into some Mexican-主題d nightclub 深い in the heart of Chelsea, where the bass 続けざまに猛撃するs, the lights are low and the sleek and glossy young folk wear their 信用／信任 like expensive eau de cologne. I half-推定する／予想する a smoke machine to belch into 活動／戦闘 as the throbbing Euro house reaches its 盛り上がり, and dancing girls 現れる from the 床に打ち倒す. But no, this is Ixchel, and it is indeed a restaurant. Albeit one I すぐに want to leave.

Yet once we’re seated, a couple of Tommy’s margaritas thrown 負かす／撃墜する our throats and the menu 熟考する／考慮するd (with an iPhone たいまつ), we realise that this is a 削減（する） above your usual half-baked Mexican mediocrity. 長，率いる chef Ximena Gayosso Gonzalez trained at Martha Ortiz’s Dulce Patria in Mexico City, and worked at her (now sadly shuttered) Ella Canta, in Mayfair. The food is said to ‘draw inspiration’ from the Yucat?n 半島, an area where the habaneros are hot and fruity, and the cuisine melds the 遺産／遺物 of indigenous Mayans with the cooking of nearby Caribbean islands. Sadly, no 調印する of cochinita pi bil, perhaps the 地域’s most iconic dish.

Still, seafood plays an important 役割, and while the scallops aguachile, マグロ tostada and prawn quesadilla have already run out, a crab tostada is excellent, the white meat freshly 選ぶd, the salsa macha 所有するing just the 権利 量 of nutty heat. And you can always 裁判官 a decent Mexican place by its salsas. They are the lifeblood of this magnificent cuisine, and there are four here, 範囲ing from a sharp and sprightly salsa verde to an incendiary scotch bonnet, with a truly 残虐な kick. Approach with extreme 警告を与える.

Pork belly taco blends good handmade tortilla with 井戸／弁護士席 brought-up pig, while an ensenada taco (from the 太平洋の rather than Caribbean coast) sees a finger of white fish encased in a golden, brittle 乱打する and 浴びせる／消すd in a punchy habenero crema. It would do credit to any seaside taco 立ち往生させる 支援する in the 母国. And as the music continues to throb, we give up trying to talk, and instead eat esquites ? 抱擁する kernels of 甘い white corn ? and braised short rib in a smoky, spicy adobo sauce, and sip a peppery Vivir Blanco tequila. 一方／合間, all around us, the gilded kids 提起する／ポーズをとる, flick their hair and flash those pristine gnashers.

About £50 per 長，率いる. Ixchel, 33H King’s Road, London SW3; ixchellondon.com