In what feels like a bold move amid a pandemic, a new restaurant has opened in the Bishop Arts District. Blue Cenote Tex-Mex Cantina is large space — 6,250 square feet to be exact — with two bars, one that flanks the indoor dining area and another for the outdoor patios.
The 11 TVs above the bar in the main dining room were being programmed last week. If you squint really hard, you can just imagine streaks of blue, green, silver and red moving across, shooting game-winning shots, making ALL the field goals and hitting some dingers.
The menu is a mix of bar food and Tex-Mex. I called in my order, and when I got there the bartender told me the nachos are no longer on the menu (the website I used to order just hadn’t been updated yet) but they made them anyway. That's a bummer because they're solid and seemed like they would have tasted extra good on their patio with a beer on a future date.
When I was paying for my order, I spied a guest's chilled mug of shrimp cocktail and a beer in front of him; he seemed to be breaking the place in for a good time.
There are also wings on the menu, salads with a house-made lemon vinaigrette, quesadillas, burgers and tortas. The cenote burger has grilled serrano peppers, caramelized onions and a “cenote sauce” on a brioche bun.
Other highlights include queso that comes with poblano, pork chorizo, guacamole and pico de gallo.
House specials include a pan-seared white fish, blackened salmon and a shrimp-and-bacon mac and cheese. They also have Sunday brunch.
This new cantina could definitely be serve as the area's newest watering hole. Hopefully one day soon we'll all be able to test it out for ourselves, while cheering on our local teams.
Blue Cenote, 312 W. Davis St. (Bishop Arts District). Open 2 to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.