I had gone here once before, just for before movie drinks, and had a good experience. This time I came after, and spent time diving into this Cal-Mex operation. I had the diablo brisket tacos and the fish tacos. Worlds apart, but both awesome. The brisket tacos were rich, savory, and spicy. The fish tacos, battered, were light and flavorful. If I had to choose between the two, I would go with the brisket, which was my server's recommendation. They have shrimp, chicken, and carnitas tacos. They also have big plates--burritos, barbacoa, Baja bowls. I had several drinks: the sangria, the Santeria, the mezcalita. All of their drinks are delicious. Some light. Some a little sweeter, but most not at all. Love the complex flavor profiles. This night was made exceptional by my server, whom I think was also serving as the host. Patricio. He made great recommendations and made sure I was well attended all night. He was so amazing that at the end of the night (the restaurant was about to close, so don't make it a thing), I asked him to take a shot with me. I looked at the dessert menu, which had some great stuff on it, but they were out of the cheesecake, so I turned to the liquid dessert menu. I landed on the fuenteseca cosecha mezcal because it had a basil flavor profile. This is the shot I asked Patricio to take with me. I bought one for both of us. It was one of those New York moments (if you go through enough of my reviews, you'll see I've had many) that you never forget. The meaning of Patricio is "noble." Thank you for your hospitality and sharing some delicious mezcal with me.

I used to live in CA, and have had a hard time finding really good Mexican until my recent visit to Mexicali which was an excellent experience! From the moment I walked in, I was impressed by how beautiful the atmosphere was! The food was nothing short of amazing. You can really tell that they source their ingredients well because everything tasted incredibly fresh and flavorful. Each dish was a flavorful and balanced, making it clear that a lot of care and attention goes into their preparation. I ordered the shrimp tacos, and they were fantastic! The chimichurri marinated shrimp paired with the corn mango salsa, avocado, and chipotle aioli created an explosion of flavors. I also tried the chips and salsa trio, which was my favorite I've tried in NY so far! It was great and perfectly balanced. To top it off, the watermelon margarita was incredibly refreshing and the perfect complement to the meal. The service was also top-notch. The staff were fast, friendly, and very attentive, which made the dining experience even more enjoyable. I can definitely see myself becoming a regular at Mezcaleria. It's rare to find a place that combines great ambiance, excellent food, and stellar service so seamlessly. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a fantastic dining experience in NYC!

Good and drinks always on point. Great after work spot for drinks or weekend nibbles. Service is quick and friendly. Ambiance is earthy, noice level can get loud at times. The Mecalita is the best drink!

We came here for an early dinner around 5 on a Friday and were able to be seated immediately. The inside has a nice ambiance with the front of the restaurant being open-air. We were able to order off of the happy hour menu which offered some great prices! We tried the chips and salsa and guac, the nachos with steak, and the brisket tacos. The salsas came with three different types, one being fruity (mango I think), a salsa verde, and the dark red one was definitely my favorite!! The brisket tacos were spicy and full of flavor - definitely the best of what we ordered. The nachos were lacking a bit, nothing special, wouldn't order those again. I think overall we really enjoyed our meal here but the portions on the guac could be bigger!

I'm from SoCal & refused to get Mexican food in NY (for obvious reasons). This place was amazing! This guy def brought the flavor & quality from San Diego! Service was great, ambiance was lively. Highly recommended.

The atmosphere was perfect, had a younger crowd, but not too loud. Pretty authentic food. The Barbacoa was amazing, with with a deep rich sauce and perfect portions. My wife had the pork chop, again perfectly seasoned and really good. I did the Mezcal tasting and it was interesting, I am glad I did it. Learned about something new.

My coworkers and I headed to Mezcali for lunch the other day, as it was open on Mondays and convenient to where we had planned to get together. The restaurant was large, spacious, and decorated in a modern, yet rustic way. Our table was in the corner, giving us a lot of room to spread out and get comfortable. Our friendly server brought over the menus, and I was thrilled to see that the restaurant served dishes made with ingredients sourced "locally, ethically, and from our home state of California". To me, this signified higher quality menu items. Before digging into our own dishes, we shared chips with guacamole and birria dumplings. The guacamole was mild in flavor, but otherwise enjoyable. The fried tortillas were crispy and well-salted. The dumplings were shaped like little pouches that were filled with slow-braised short rib. They were sprinkled with cotija cheese and sitting on a plate coated with cascabel salsa and dope sauce. These delicate noodle and savory meat bundles were an unexpected option on a Tex-Mex menu, but were a pleasant surprise. I went with the Salmon Grain Bowl for my main dish, as it seemed like a heartier, healthier option. The large bowl of vegetable quinoa was topped with haricot verts and blistered cherry tomatoes. The dressing was supposed to be an unusual blend of cucumber basil vinaigrette, morita pepper, and truffle oil, though I did not really get much spice or truffle flavor. The dish also had a chunky filet of crispy seared salmon, which was cooked to perfection. Mezcali offered a diverse and interesting menu in cool digs. While it was quiet at lunchtime, I would love to check it out at night to see what its dinner and bar scene were like.

First day in New York for a weekend vacation. After dropping our things at the hotel; we took a little break all and ran into Mezcali. If you haven't gathered by my recent reviews, I loveeeeeeee Mezcal Margaritas. So immediately it was a yes to stop by. I entered and although there were three people at the host stand, two talking ti one another "no hello" the third person turned around and greeted us immediately. The ambiance was very beautiful. I can tell this was a spot people dropped by for happy hour. The dimmed lights and mixture of music was perfect. We were sat and our table and our server greeted us immediately. We were informed that it was indeed happy hour. So we tried a few things. There were several serves adding us, which made the experience 10 times better. Each server offered their recommendations and we were satisfied! My wife ordered quesadillas which were so tasty and the ingredients were fresh! For the able we had, salmo tostados (these were light and amazing, such a cool way to incorporate raw salmon) and Elote (my favorite). I had their mezcal margarita, which was my favorite while being here in New York! If you're in New York, stop by. I am unsure about street parking but there is near by public transportation. They also have an amazing happy hour menus!