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Mexican Street Food at Camacho Garage
We were finally able to visit Camacho Garage, the newest location from the team behind the award-winning Geronimo Tequila Bar and Southwest Grill, Shell & Bones Oyster Bar and Grill, and Nantucket’s Bar Yoshi! The restaurant is operated under the ownership team of co-owners Robert Bolduc and Marc Knight, and Executive Chef/co-owner, and Camacho Garage's namesake, Arturo Franco-Camacho.
Camacho Garage in New Haven
The restaurant features Mexican street food type dishes along with a bar menu that highlights beer, specialty cocktails, tequila, mezcal and other traditional and inspired Mexican beverages.
Located in the Westville neighborhood of New Haven at 36 Fountain Street (corner of Fountain Street and Central Avenue) the restaurant offers a fun and lively atmosphere with an elevated vintage garage theme throughout its indoor and outdoor dining areas.
Due to the 2020 pandemic, the restaurant has positioned tables with ample room to allow for dining at safe distances, and has many lucite dividers in place, at both the bar and in the main dining room between several booths.
How perfect for safe dining and social distance practices! In addition to the bar area and inside dining room, Camacho Garage also offers four season outdoor dining, with heaters for the colder weather!
We started with some cocktails from their specialty cocktail menu, from the "high octane" selections (with a nod to the restaurant's garage / petro theme) the King Julien's Pisco Sour, made with Barsol Pisco, Tamarind, Lime, and Egg Whites (so good...and sooo tart)
... and a Siamese Dream, made with Espolon Reposado, Hibiscus, Lime, Elderflower, and Strawberry. What a perfect pick!
For starters, we shared a Quesadilla de Huitlacoche made with wild mushrooms, corn truffle, epazote, onions, chihuahua cheese, and avocado, and you can put your own stamp on it by adding any of the following: chorizo, guacamole, shrimp, chicken, steak, or lobster (for additional costs). We decided to go seafood ALL THE WAY and added both shrimp AND lobster, because we're smart like that!
Quesadilla de Huitlacoche with shrimp and lobster
For our lunch we went with tacos, and a side of Mexican Street Corn. OMG - it was so good! I couldn't believe that corn (that is definitely out of season in February in Connecticut!) could taste this amazing!
Camacho Garage's street corn is dusted with a seasoning of chipotle mayo, cotija, ancho power, and just a hint of lime. Be sure you order one!
The tacos were equally good! We ordered the Fish Tacos, made with beer battered cod, red cabbage slaw, crema, salsa verde, and pico de Gallo!
... and the Camaron Ala Diabla, made with shrimp, arbol salsa, Chihuahua cheese, and pico de Gallo.
Camaron Ala Diablo made with Spicy Arbol Salsa and Shrimp
We followed up with dessert, and decided to share the delicious Tres Leches Cake! For those not familiar with tres leches cake, it translates to 'milk cake' and is made with a variety of different milks, such as condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream.
Served with a shortbread cookie, a dollop of creamy ice cream, and accompanied by fresh fruit, it had just the right amount of silky richness to end our lunch on.
Quite honestly, everything was delicious, from the high octane cocktails, to the savory dishes, to our sweet and happy ending!
Camacho Garage is a perfect place to enjoy a delicious lunch, dinner, or share some small plates with friends and family! Next time we're there we're anxious to try the duck and lamb items, and some of the Middle East inspired menu items. Let's face it, we know everything will be amazing if it has Chef Arturo's hand in it!
Reservations are accepted via OpenTable.com, or by contacting the restaurant at 203-691-1969.
Camacho Garage
36 Fountain Street
New Haven, Connecticut
203.691.1969
About Camacho Garage:
Camacho Garage brings acclaimed Executive Chef/co-owner Arturo Franco-Camacho’s exciting and unique tastes of contemporary Mexican street food to the lively Westville neighborhood in New Haven, Connecticut. With a small plates food menu heavily focusing on tacos with housemade corn tortillas, ceviches, salads, tostadas and guacamole made with fresh, local and seasonal ingredients, the complementing beverage program offers an extensive and unique menu of beer, wine, cocktails, tequila, mezcal and other traditional and inspired Mexican beverages. Located at 36 Fountain Street, the restaurant, with a sophisticated, vintage garage atmosphere, features indoor dining with a large bar area, outdoor dining with fire pits, a large shipping container bar and a heated, covered pergola, as well as takeout and catering services. For more information, visit www.camachogarage.com. The restaurant can also be found on Facebook (@camachogarage), Instagram (@camachogarage) and Twitter (@camachogarage).About Chef Arturo Franco-Camacho:
The Executive Chef for Geronimo Tequila Bar and Southwest Grill, Shell & Bones Oyster Bar and Grill and Camacho Garage, Arturo Franco-Camacho (Franco) is a veteran of the Connecticut food scene whose extensive repertoire spans from five years as Chef de cuisine on the prestigious QE2 to opening several of his own successful restaurants (Roomba, Bespoke, and Suburban) in New Haven and Branford, CT. He has also served as Guest Chef at the Director’s Dinner at the Sundance Film Festival.Chef Franco’s cuisine has been recognized as “Excellent” in the New York Times, and has received accolades from Connecticut Magazine, Yankee Magazine, Zagat and on Food Network’s “Food Nation with Bobby Flay.” He has been nominated for Chef of the Year by the Connecticut Restaurant Association and has been recognized as an Ambassador Chef by the annual Greenwich Wine + Food Festival. Chef Franco is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America.
Disclaimer: We were invited to Camacho Garage by members of their management and marketing team, however, the views and opinions expressed herein are our own.
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