Saturday, December 11, 2010

Across the Border: Kings Cross: Food: Tomatillo Mexican Grill

Tomatillo opened on the strip in Kings Cross about three years ago and was the first of a new wave of Mexican restaurants in Sydney. Where once Mexican food in this city consisted of sloppy, cheese-covered burritos and corn chips with mince-meat and tomato sauce, Tomatillo offered marinated, slow-braised, shredded beef fillings, spicy home-cooked sauces and salsa with fresh tomatoes and coriander. 
And Quesadillas. I don't think I had ever eaten a Quesadilla in my life until Tomatillo opened. 


The main menu consists of Burritos, Tacos, Nachos, Quesadillas and Salads, but there are also other dishes such as Chipotle Glazed BBQ Ribs, Fajitas and Chili Con Carne. 


I usually order a Quesadilla or Burrito, with that lovely Barbacoa (shredded spiced braised beef). The Quesadilla is a large flour tortilla filled with the meat, cheese, grilled capsicum, onion, sour cream and salsa, and made up into a kind of big semi-circle sandwich. The Burrito is also a large flour tortilla stuffed with the meat, rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, lettuce and salsa, all rolled up like a doner-kebab. The tortillas are made from scratch on the premises so they don't have that weird smell that packaged, supermarket tortillas have. 
The chap behind the counter picks out the ingredients from the display:


And then puts the flat Quesadilla and foil-covered roll of Burrito inside this press for a few minutes: 


And then voila!

Quesadilla:

And Burrito:

I find Tomatillo is quite a good place to eat when I'm in a hurry (or just starving) because orders are placed at the counter, meaning you don't have to wait around for service. The food doesn't take long to arrive either. It's also a good place to eat alone, because if you sit up at the bar table (pictured below) you can be entertained by all the action in the food-prep area behind the counter. 


Not long after Tomatillo opened I remember speaking to the owner, Bill Komoroski, who is from the United States. Komoroski was telling me that when they took over the space on Darlinghurst Road and ripped out the previous shop's interior, they discovered the walls were made from convict sandstone. 


This little door, which is only about 1.5m high, leads to the Tomatillo office.

*
Tomatillo Mexican Grill
40B Darlinghurst Road
Kings Cross NSW 2011
02 9326 0900

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Place IS amazing. Went there on a visit from the states! Would love to make it back...Almost worth the 19 hr flight!

Violet Tingle said...

Thanks for your comment, anonymous. We are certainly blessed with good food and coffee in this lovely city.

Anonymous said...

I'm also from the San Diego in the US and this place is way below par. It get's a lot of hype. I assume from the owner who trolls the net. If you look at eatability, there are heaps of people "visiting" from the US who just happen to comment on this place as there only eatability entry just like on your page. There is much better and more consistently good mexican in Australia nowadays. This place rates a 4 out of 10 in my book. And that generous!

Bwana said...

I have to disagree with Anonymous. I'm a native of San Diego who's lived in OZ on and off since 1998. I have religiously tried every Mexican place that has cropped up over the years in Sydney and nearly all of them are not worth eating at. Tomatillo is one of the two exceptions to that. Given the availability of ingredients and having to cater to local palettes, they do a remarkable job of putting out tasty, affordable, authentic Mexican fare.

Anonymous said...

Closed down mid-2012.
Happy Hockers has moved in temporarily.

Guzman continues at the other end of the strip, along with the more upmarket Barrio Chino