Apache Boulevard in Tempe has long been an international restaurant row. From the campus of Arizona State University to the Mesa border, the thoroughfare has been home to foods of many nationalities in strip mall locations fitting the “hole in the wall” stereotype of what previous generations might have called “ethnic restaurants.” Apache is now becoming more dense, and some recent restaurant arrivals are occupying a more upscale niche than would have previously been thought possible while at the same time maintaining the corridor’s culinary diversity.
Cocina Chiwas, a full service restaurant from the same owners behind the more casual Tacos Chiwas, is one of the harbingers of Apache’s transformation. The restaurant is the most prominent retail tenant in the expansive Culdesac development, an apartment community located directly across the street from the Smith-Martin / Apache light rail station. While the restaurant’s main entrance faces an interior plaza, the wraparound patio offers a direct view of passing trains. Shaded bike racks are found in a prominent location outside the restaurant.
Cocina Chiwas challenges the stereotype that Mexican food must be casual and cheap in order to be authentic. While the restaurant is not inordinately expensive or formal, it offers a different experience than the combination platters and free chips and salsa that characterize many old-school Mexican restaurants. Instead, it focuses on modern food rooted in regional traditions from Chihuahua, the owners’ home state, and beyond. Likewise,the restaurant’s open, airy design offers an alternative to the dark booths.and banquettes of older restaurant aesthetics.
The restaurant is often busy, and reservations are recommended. Customers should be aware that Cocina Chiwas has adopted the growing practice of placing time limits on reservations. While this may be understandable from a business point of view, the tenor of enforcement needs work. During a recent visit, a group was reminded of the 90-minute limit not only upon arrival but also just 45 minutes later when they were only halfway through their meal. Visitors should be assertive and claim the full time needed to enjoy the food at a reasonable pace.
The restaurant is otherwise performing at a consistently high level in both the front and back of the house. The menu is full of hearty and colorful dishes not found on standard Sonoran menus, and the staff are well trained in the nuances of both the regular offerings and daily specials. Many of the dishes categorized as small plates are substantial enough to work as entrees. The tacos de papa are fried tortillas with mashed potatoes, crema, cabbage, and mild salsa verde.A trio of them is a meal in itself. Similarly, a carne asada tostada overflows with grilled meat.
The generous guacamole is full of watermelon radishes, grape tomatoes, what appears to be the output of mashing multiple avocados, even though a server swore it was just one big one. A quesadilla is simple but effective with tender meat, diced onion, cilantro, and melted cheese on top of one of the supple tortillas fans of Tacos Chiwas have already come to know. The blurring of boundaries between appetizers and entrees works in the opposite direction: Heirloom blue corn empanadas stuffed with beef cheek are described as a main dish but are easy to share.
In terms of entrees, there’s enough bone-in meat on the menu to make Fred Flintstone happy. Pollo asado con polenta succeeds largely due to the choice to use dark meat on the bone. A chicken leg and thigh with crisp skin are placed over creamy corn meal accentuated with onions, cherry tomatoes, and pomegranate arils. Costilla de res is short rib, sliced and seasoned in a manner similar to Korean kalbi and served over rice. A recent special offered a plate of carnitas tacos with flavorful pork, mostly tender with a little crispness around the edges.
While poultry and red meat are an emphasis here, there are alternatives. The Farmers Plate is a bountiful vegan entree with roasted carrots, cauliflower, and whatever else may be available roasted and served with fried quinoa. The elote is roasted corn on the cob generously slathered with mayonnaise and dusted with cotija cheese. Seafood is often found among the specials. Camarones salsa blanca, one recent feature, contained big shrimp in a simple white sauce with micro greens, corn, peppers, and toasted slices of Noble bread suitable for absorbing the flavor.
Among the dessert, the tres leches carrot cake has been brought over from the Tacos Chiwas menu. Heavy and dense, it is ample for feeding an entire table. Its base flavors are augmented with cajeta and a top layer of berries and seasonal fruit marinated in its own juices. A simpler and lighter option is a sweet slab of panna cotta with pecans. Cocina Chiwas has a full bar that offers the restaurant’s signature “Chiwarita,” its own versions of classics like palomas and piña coladas, and creative cocktails like a “Trip to Chile” with pisco, pineapple, and cilantro.
There is a substantial wine list, and draft beers include Mexican favorites and rotating local taps. The house sangria is enlivened with a little rum for a kick, some light carbonation, and a sprig of rosemary for an herbal note. Restrained in its sweetness, the drink is a suitable accompaniment to the restaurant’s nuanced food. With big projects like Culdesac and its neighbors now replacing mobile homes and motor hotels along Apache Boulevard, it will take places like Cocina Chiwas to match the market while also retaining the corridor’s international variety.
2001 E. Apache Blvd., Tempe AZ 85281
http://cocinachiwasaz.com
PHX Rail Food 