Wahaca Whacky Supercross Weekender

Wahaca have launched a new cocktail and lamb dish for autumn. To be honest, any old reason to visit one of the best chain restaurants in Cardiff will do for us.

Cardiff City Centre Cocktails Food & Drink Mexican Food Restaurant

Editor , 17th October 2022 / 753

It’s Supercross Saturday in Cardiff. I loved supercross back in the pre-millennium days: Ricky Johnson, Guy Cooper and, later, Jeremy McGrath. In the noughties it was the battles between James Stewart and Ricky Carmichael – Carmichael was good but James always seemed to edge it for me. He was blisteringly quick. I used to ride myself but I’m nearly sixty now so don’t follow it as much. More of a MotoGP fan these days.

Anyway, Jennifer will be telling me off for rambling on…

With the prospect of a new lamb dish to try (and a cocktail or two), the three of us (Jack likes Mexican food too) head for Wahaca. Cardiff is buzzing – super busy. Despite this, the parking god, NCP, smiles upon us. Heads up, if you park in John Lewis, Wahaca is less than five minutes’ walk.

Today, we had a specific reason to visit. The announcement of autumn specials always gets our attention and, to be fair to Wahaca, their specials are always pretty good. As she wasn’t driving, Jennifer was keen to try the Mango Paso Cocktail, a “velvety combination of mango, rum, aged tequila, lime and a dusting of nutmeg. A Wahaca Cardiff original (made with egg white).”

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Was it velvety? Oh yes. Mangoey? Certainly. She did say she was expecting more of a kick but then a velvety kick never tends to floor you. I imagine this cocktail could be very dangerous indeed. After a few, like all good cocktails, the effects creep up on you. This was definitely a creeper.

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On to the food. We, of course, would order our usual cauliflower bites. Crispy buttermilk-battered florets with a Jalapeno aioli. They’re just delicious. But we were keen to try the new Lamb Birria Tacos – braised, spiced lamb in three grilled tacos served with a consommé “for indulgent dipping”. They were absolutely delicious. Being Welsh, we love lamb and this quirky twist on a meat we love was a big hit. “Indulgent dipping”? Hmmm, that sounds somewhat classy. I can tell you the greedy way we wolfed these down was anything but – there was more diving in than dipping.

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We also ordered some Slow-Cooked Beef Brisket Tacos and Pork Pibil Quesadillas (with melted cheese and pink, pickled onions). These are our go-to favourites. Super scrummy and perfect sharing.

With the spicy and savoury out of the way, it was on to the desserts. Well, it would be rude not to. For me, it was the Churros. Crisp Mexican doughnuts with an extremely rich chocolate sauce. I like a little ice cream just to temper the flavour. For the rest of the team, it was the vanilla and caramel ice cream. Just as indulgent but creamier. Absolute heaven.

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Having crossed the finishing line we were done and we all agreed that the Wahaca Autumn Specials were winners. Choosing which dish is favourite is like choosing between the previously mentioned Johnson, McGrath, Stewart and Carmichael. They’re all brilliant, but…

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Well, on this Saturday in October, was the new kid on the block going to take the trophy? Don’t get me wrong, it’s a winner but I’m going to have to revert to an old favourite – those cauliflower bites with the dip are just too good not to get the top step on the podium.