Flaco’s Cocina Latin Fusion Cuisine
Although I am partial to some St. Louis Originals, I try to check out new restaurants in St. Louis whenever I can afford it. I recently discovered a place called Flaco’s Cocina, which serves Latin Fusion cuisine. I find that fusions can be awesome or atrocious, so I had to find out which extreme this place would be.
Appetizers
I know high-end restaurants tend to snub their noses at the unlimited chips and salsa tradition, and in many cases, I can understand why, even if it doesn’t make me too happy. I am a huge fan of chips and salsa, and it’s hard for me to consider eating tacos without it. Flaco’s Cocina has a nice compromise – they offer one round of chips and salsa on the house, and charge $4 for unlimited. This way, you get to have a taste of one of their 4 homemade salsas and decide if you want to fork out the cash for more. Personally, I’d say it would be worth the 4 bucks if you are just hanging out and drinking. The salsa is fresh, with just a hint of a kick. The tortilla chips are served warm as well. I gladly would have eaten a few bowls of this, had I not been saving room for the Tres Quesos Dip or Warm Crab dip.
The Tres Quesos Dip includes Monterrey Jack, Parmesean, and Queso Blanco. It’s a melty mess, but it is quite tasty. I was very sad when we had scraped the last of it off the bowl. The lump crab dip was perhaps even more amazing than the cheese dip. So amazing, that I didn’t get a photo of it before it was devoured. The amount of crab was generous, and the texture was just right.
Drinks
Flaco’s really enjoys the art of mixing a drink. They have a full bar, ready to mix up any of your favorites or one of their specialities. You can enjoy things such as a traditional Brazilian caipirinha, pineapple or berry mojitos, flavored margaritas, dark rum cocktails, and more. Personally, my favorite is the Pineapple mojito.
Pineapple Mojito and Strawberry Margarita
Entrees
Their menue is quite a mix of different cultures. You’ll find the typical stuff like burritos, tacos, and empanadas, but Flaco’s adds their own twist. Instead of offering just ground beef and chicken, you have mahi mahi, shrimp, scallops, and several other seafood delights. Chicken and beef are, of course, available, but not without a unique taste. If you order the Axis of Evil Taco Platter (bonus points for a cool name) you’ll get to taste Korean Bulgogi beef, Persian Saffron Chicken, and Venezuelan Pork El Pastor.
Axis of Evil Taco Platter
As for empanadas, I would have to highly recommend their Lobster Empanadas, which are stuffed with lobster, shrimp and scallops, then drizzled with a coconut cream sauce.
The Verdict
Overall, I give this place a B. I’d have to say the meat in their entrees is all that holds them back from an A. I found that between the 4 entrees I have sampled, the Lobster empanadas were the best. The Mahi Mahi burrito I ordered could have done with some more fish, and less beans. The Axis of Evil was well done, but the Persian Chicken could have been a bit more moist. I also tried the Caribe Taco Platter, which has crawfish, scallop and lobster tacos. Once again, the lobster was great, but the crawfish could have been a bit better.
The tapas, appetizers, drinks, and portion to price ratio keep this place at a solid B. I would happily go here and eat nothing by chips, salsa, and dips while throwing back some speciality drinks.
