“Elevated Mexican Food” Worth Your Money
Cosme is an elevated Mexican restaurant located in Flatiron serving contemporary renditions of dishes inspired by traditional flavors of Mexico. We recently checked them out because although they are Michelin recommended, people had mixed reviews (but tldr, we LOVED it). We decided to order five dishes that night, specifically choosing ones that we wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else in NYC.
The blue crab relleno is one Mexican pepper stuffed with a mix of corn, onions, and blue crab then fried very lightly. The first bite of this was a flavor explosion! You get the freshness from the vegetables, the savory of the crab, and the spicy from the pepper and accompanying sauce. This was also served with warm tortillas so every bite was hearty and delicious. As another appetizer, we tried a dish outside our comfort zone — the hiramasa (yellowtail) tostada with Chicana chintextle (ants) sauce. Yup, ants as in bugs. If you’re feeling a bit spontaneous, I highly recommend this dish. The overall texture of the raw fish with fresh avocado and fried tortilla worked so well but that "ants" sauce was unlike anything I’ve had before. It was smoky, smooth, and savory. I hesitated before I took my first bite but I was so glad I did.
The duck carnitas are served on a huge sizzling platter topped with onions and cilantro. The meat is so tender that you could easily cut through it with a butter knife. The exterior of the duck had a slight crisp while the interior was soft and incredibly juicy. We found the flavor and seasoning just perfect (not overly salty nor bland). On the side, they give you warm corn tortillas with both red and verde chili hot sauce to make your tacos. Possibly the best tacos I’ve had in NYC. Although quite steep in price, I think this dish is worth getting at least once (let’s hope your duck turns out as amazing as ours was that night).
As another entree, we ordered their mole which we had read great things about. As we are newbies to the mole game, we weren’t sure what makes a mole great but we knew that Cosme’s was unique. Although uninteresting to look at, the flavor of their mole was very smoky with a very slight hint of sweetness from the chocolate. Maybe not my cup of tea by itself but I enjoyed the combination of the sauce with the duck carnitas.
DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT GETTING THEIR CORN HUSK MERINGUE DESSERT — meringues flavored with charred corn husk powder and accompanied with a luscious, sweet corn cream. If you love corn like me, you’re gonna want to pick the plate up and lick it clean (like I almost did). Cosme also has a huge selection of cocktails, especially their specialty ones made with tequila. Next margarita Monday, you’ll find me here.
