| The problem with sequels is they’re rarely as good as the original. And, I’ll admit, that this is what I feared as I planned my first trip to Corazón de Alcachofa in Cabo San Lucas. Anticipation warred with nerves. My expectations were high, but I was worried, too. After dining at Artichoke’s Heart in West Hollywood, I was in love with the concept that has powered that location and its three sister restaurants, all named Corazón de Alcachofa, to success: innovative, market-driven menus created daily according the freshest, highest-quality local ingredients available. How would the newest addition to the micro-chain—a chic spot near Médano Beach—rate in comparison? The answer: wonderfully. The location is lovely; dine alfresco, in a glass-walled dining hall, or in a private room. Begin with one of the exquisite cocktails, perhaps the Alcachofa (gin, lime, and artichoke) or the Beso del Diablo (a chile-rimmed glass is filled with a margarita-like cocktail and adorned with two spicy mango horns). Appetizers include French-style mussels prepared in a white wine–butter sauce and the chain’s signature rib eye chicharrones, an inventive, delicious twist on that go-to guilty pleasure of pork rinds. Entrées, like the entire menu, rotate daily, but duck Margret makes fairly regular appearances as do the freshly made pastas. In fact, everything here is fresh, fresh, fresh. Living lettuce plants serve as creative table centerpieces … and the principal ingredient in many of the restaurant’s salads. The waitstaff is one of Cabo’s finest, willing and able to help with selecting a wine from its 150-plus labels or one of the desserts.
Avenida del Pescador 4312, Cabo San Lucas, (624) 143-4041, www.corazondealcachofa.com. Nightly 5 p.m.–midnight. AmEx, MasterCard, and Visa accepted. $$–$$$$ A.A.
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