This CDMX-Style Cantina is The Best Party in Brooklyn Right Now

By Scott Lynch

Months before Dolores finally flung open its startlingly green doors on Tompkins Avenue about a week ago, owners Emir Dupeyron and Cressida Greening threw a kind of preview party for the new place out on the sidewalk in front of their other restaurant Winona’s, located over on Flushing. The kitchen that night was basically a small grill, the seating was random and rickety, the menu was limited to a few types of tacos, and it was one of the best meals I’d had all year.

So when I sat down to feast at Dolores proper during its opening weekend, the place packed with giddy locals by 5:00 p.m., my expectations were through the roof. And yet, somehow, the restaurant is even better than I dared hope? Dupeyron, who grew up in Mexico City and has lived for many years now in Bed-Stuy, calls the spot a classic cantina—as much a bar as it is restaurant—and he wants everyone to drink and eat and laugh and linger. Heck, maybe even play some dominoes if you snag one of those four-tops up front with the nifty drink holders.

(Photo by Scott Lynch)

“Dolores is not a taqueria,” Dupeyron told BKMAG. “I don’t want people to have a taco and leave. We have a few tacos on the menu, but mostly it’s botana, which means ‘food of the day,’ small bites to entertain your palate while drinking and having fun with your friends.” We gleefully made our way through most of the botana over the course of about two hours of laughing and lingering, and everything was excellent. Big shout out to chef Damian Escalante, who’s also from Mexico City and runs the kitchen on a nightly basis.

Aguachile verde campechano, $18 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Papadilla, a fried corn tortilla stuffed with mashed potato, $4 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Tlacoyo de haba, blue masa filled with fava bean, $15 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Cephalopod heads will definitely want the Dolores aguachile, which is a perfect pile of pressed squid, octopus, and shrimp bathing in a bright and lively green sauce. Other drinking snacks that will make you happy include the papadilla, a fried tortilla the size of a hockey puck stuffed with mashed potato; the tlacoyo de haba, a blue masa torpedo loaded with fava beans and topped with nopales; and the sopes con picadillo, bursting with ground beef and refried beans.

Guacamole con totopos, $14 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Cochinita pibil, $18 for three (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Even the guacamole is fantastic at Dolores, the old warhorse given some pep to its step by the still-warm and heavily salted totopos they come with. And despite Dupeyron’s reluctance to turn the place into a taqueria, the tacos here instantly rank among Brooklyn’s best. In fact, I’d call the cochinita pibil turix—a trio of rolled tortillas plump with chunks of braised pork, infused with achiote and citrus, the whole thing sodden with a zippy habanero sauce—one of my favorite dishes of the year.

Lengua tacos, $20 for five (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Short rib asada taco, $8 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Chile relleno taco, $8 (Photo by Scott Lynch)

Also elite are the simply-adorned lengua tacos (tender tongue, onions, and cilantro—that’s it), which come five per order and make for an easily shareable entree of sorts. Other solid options include the short-rib asada taco, the cheesy chili relleno taco, and a daily special, which on the Fourth of July was topped with a big ol’ meatball.

If you’re looking for dinner dinner, every night Dolores serves up a different main course, like chicharron (on Wednesdays), or fajitas (Thursdays), or chamorro (a pork shank stew that rolls out on the weekend).

As far as cocktails go, partner and beverage director Leanne Favre mixes up a long list of $16 bangers. The emphasis here is on creative updates to cantina classics, like the Dolores margaritas on tap and a “Mexican espresso martini” inspired by a classic carajillo, with coffee rum and amaro. Agave also figures heavily in the boozy pleasures here.

(Photo by Scott Lynch)

“We keep it very simple here, almost like home cooking,” said Dupeyron. “The idea is: no fuss, traditional recipes, bold flavors. If you go to Mexico City, we want you to be like, ‘Oh, this tastes like what we had in Brooklyn!'”

Dolores is located at 397 Tompkins Avenue, at the corner of Jefferson Avenue, and is currently open on Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday from 4:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight, and on Friday and Saturday from 4:00 to 1:00 a.m. On all of those nights, the kitchen is open from 5:00 to 11:00.