Critics' choice: Reimagined Mexican-American fare

Hellbender

Queens, N.Y.

A life-size faux jaguar sits just above the diners in one corner of Hellbender, and "she's an apt spirit animal for this pro-tean establishment and its chef," said Melissa Clark in The New York Times. In Mayan mythology, jaguars travel freely between our world and the next, and Hellbender is equally nimble. "Is it still a bustling bar with exceptionally good food, or is it an exceptional restaurant with late-night vibes?" It's both, really, because chef Yara Herrera, who trained under Wolfgang Puck and David Chang, cooks so well and so soulfully that Hellbender shape-shifted to showcase her. "Herrera's playfulness and drive make even the simplest dishes remarkable." Don't miss the fruit appetizer, often salted apple slices topped with house-made chamoy, a sauce concocted from pickled fruit and spices. Herrera's "excellent" tacos include a mushroom option that has the brawniness of shredded meat. Her sushi training shines through in her aguachile and "all things oceanic." And yet the menu's star could be the al pastor pork ribs, slicked with a mix of pineapple, guajillo chile, confit garlic, and cumin. 68-22 Forest Ave.

Pedro's

Los Gatos, Calif.

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"It's nice when you can instantly understand why a restaurant has been in business for over 50 years," said Cesar Hernandez in the San Francisco Chronicle. "But it's even nicer when that place embraces evolution." That's how I felt dining at the recently refreshed Los Gatos edition of Pedro's, which has a second location in Santa Clara. New chef Julio Aguilera, formerly of two-Michelin-starred Saison, has left many classic dishes untouched. "However, the scope of the menu has expanded to include contemporary aspects of Mexican cuisine, introducing its audience to heirloom corn tortillas and coastal seafood fare." Pedro's remains one of the few places in the Bay Area that serves a great classic combo plate, with above-average tamales and chiles rellenos plus an exceptional shredded beef taco. Ask for the habanero salsa if you want more spice. Standouts among Aguilera's new dishes included a chile relleno with mushroom chorizo, tostadas topped with "melty slabs of tuna," and tacos that now employ tortillas from the esteemed local purveyor Bolita. The bar, meanwhile, "makes a mean avocado margarita." Raise one to toast Pedro's on a promising start to its next half-century. 316 N. Santa Cruz Ave.

The Guadalupe on Main

Mesa, Ariz.

It's "so far, so great" at this recently re-worked Mexican standby on Mesa's main drag, said Nikki Buchanan in Phoenix magazine. The two seasoned restaurant hands who purchased the former Casa Ramos Redux have kept many of the Ramos family's Jalisco-style recipes while adding "a certain chefy polish." Start with the "dangerously quaffable" purple-and-white vodka-rum cocktail named for Mesa's Buckhorn Baths Motel. The blackberry-relish-topped smashburger "illustrates how freewheeling the Guadalupe kitchen can be," and "I'll gladly return for the Jalisco hot chicken sando." Among entrées, the birria tacos are "out of this world," and the carne asada—skirt steak flame-grilled over lava rock—is "the best rendition I've had in a very long time." During several visits to the handsome but casual new dining room, "I've loved it all." 1526 E. Main St.