olita, usted es hermoso (you are beautiful)… Tendre lo que ella tiene (I’ll have what she’s having)…” -Yours Truly, sometime last week.

Considering that Alaska is actually American soil, Vancouver’s new Mexicasa, Lolita’s, is technically a south of the border hot spot. Wedged into Davie Street like a jalapeño between two slices of cheese (a hardware store and a flower boutique bookend the casa) Lolita’s locale is less than typical for a cantina. The food and drink, however, are muy muy fantástico.

Largely appealing in design, this small taste of Mexico is cleverly trimmed with wooden beams and tables of the like giving it the sand and surf vibe of a true Mexican hideaway; it’s intimate in the lull hours and hopping when the sun sets on any given weekend. (If it were beachside instead of roadside I would be completely fooled, waiting for the waiter to offer me a shark tooth necklace at an outrageous price). That’s the true appeal of Lolita’s: I feel like a tourist even though I’m three blocks from home.

The fusion of food makes Lolita a counterpoint to tradition and stretches out the ordinary (quesadilla) making it extraordinary (wild mushroom quesa with goat cheese). The spins on favourites are overwhelmingly mouth watering with turkey tenderloin sometimes filling in for chicken and chilli pumpkin seeds adding flair to the old Caesar Salad staple.