RESTAURANT REVIEW: Maximo
ADMIN NOTE: Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed a new page on the site: Future Reviews. This is a long list of restaurants and bars that I have not yet had the pleasure of visiting, but intend to check out and write about in the future. If you're wondering when I'm going to write about a certain place, if it's on there then it's coming at some point, though it'll probably take me a decade to get to all of them.
Like most others from the Lone Star State, I grew up eating Tex-Mex food basically every week. Every Thursday after piano lessons our family would go have dinner at Mama Ninfa's, before later switching to Lupe Tortilla, then El Jarrito, then Ruthie's. Nowadays I'm partial to El Tiempo to dine in and Guadalajara Hacienda for takeout, though the amount of choices is borderline overwhelming. Back in the day I preferred nachos, though these days I lean towards quesadillas (or of course fajitas if sharing). Tex-Mex has been one of my favorite things to eat since I was a kid, but it was only later in life that I discovered the joys of authentic Mexican cuisine.
Lately I've been exploring the vibrant, maize-forward, smoky chile-centric flavors of our neighbor to the south, and venturing more into the seafood that is so prominent there. Just a couple of months ago I had an outstanding dinner at Belly Of The Beast – where chef Adrián (!) Torres previously cooked – that left me athirst for more. When Maximo was recently awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand and landed at #14 on the Houston Chronicle Top 100, it shot up to the top of my aforementioned wishlist, and I made a reservation to try it out ASAFP.
The restaurant is located in the charming but upscale West University neighborhood, just a block from the GOAT brunch spot Tiny's No. 5 and its dangerous companion, Tiny's Milk & Cookies (the Memorial location of which has probably caused me to gain more than a few pounds). There's a sizable cactus-lined patio out front and a surprisingly small interior, with earthy reds and browns evoking a distinctly Mexican feel around the dozen or so tables. They offer a startlingly well-priced (for this economy) 5-course tasting menu at $45, but since I had eaten a few similar items recently, we opted for a la carte instead.
To start, a couple of anojitos. Papas Bravas, a take on the classic Spanish tapa (can tapas be singular?), featured fried potatoes, epazote (a pungent herb also known as Mexican tea) aioli, chintextle XO (a Mexican chili paste) in place of the usual salsa brava, and prosciutto. The starchy cubes were hot and crispy, and the dual sauces had a smoky/peppery interplay that I quite enjoyed. Additionally, the inclusion of the cured ham added some nice saltiness, and some cute cactus-topped toothpicks were a delightfully fun way to eat this dish.
A trend I've observed recently that I am a huge fan of is Corn Ribs. A full cob is quartered, seasoned, and roasted until it curls up into a rib-like shape, and then topped with various accoutrements. Here it was done elote-style (cuarto-elote?), with chipotle mayo, cotija cheese, chili powder, pepitas, and cilantro. The corn was juicy, the sauce creamy, and a kick of spice really made this a fantastic appetizer. I'm not always a huge fan of eating messy things with my hands, but I definitely couldn't help licking my fingers clean after this.
Moving onto the crudo section of the menu, we opted for a Tuna Tiradito. This Peruvian import is similar to ceviche, the difference being that the fish is sliced very thinly instead of cubed, and the sauce is poured over immediately before serving, so it remains raw, sashimi-style, instead of being cooked by the marinade. Chef Adrián's interpretation consisted of an aguachile negro with squid ink, avocado, cucumber, jicama, crispy shallots, and chile oil, served on a "big dramatic plate", as our very excellent waiter put it. Gloriously acidic but balanced with some salinity, the fish really shined here, and the jicama and shallots provided a pleasing textural contrast to the soft tuna.
I didn't explore the masa y mas category too much, but I did get to sample the Duck Carnitas Huarache (somehow my second consecutive weekend eating duck carnitas). Huarache means "sandal", named for the shape of the fried masa that is the vehicle for this dish. Here, black beans were incorporated into the firm dough, and on top went the tender duck, a vibrant green "guacasalsa", chicharrones, onions, and coriander. This was an interesting idea, and while I dug the crunchy pork and dense masa, I think I preferred this concept in taco form at Nixta Taqueria a week hence.
It's been a banner year of trying new dishes that I learned about while watching Beat Bobby Flay (such as maafe at ChòpnBlọk and fesenjoon at Rumi's Kitchen), and that continued here with my entree (or fuerte), Branzino Tikin Xic. This Yucatan delicacy consists of fish marinated in achiote paste, wrapped in a banana leaf and roasted (traditionally over hot coals). Here the European seabass was deboned and served with the attached tail – tikin xic literally translates to "dry fin" in Mayan – and topped with pickled red onions, cilantro, salsa cruda, and blue corn tortillas to assemble your own tacos. The bright red achiote marinade gave the branzino a lovely earthy, spiced but not spicy flavor, and the perfectly cooked fish was easily portioned and distributed into the tortillas. Our waiter had previously talked me out of ordering the Wagyu Carne Asada ("you can get steak anywhere", he insisted), yet I couldn't help but ask for some of the sourdough tortillas that accompanied it... and as you might expect I preferred those. Flour > corn, always (sorry, I'm a gringo).
For postre, I had to order the Banana Pudding Buñuelo. This fried, flower-shaped dough fritter was filled with vanilla custard, dusted with cinnamon sugar, and topped with a house-made banana ice cream in adorable elongated shape mimicking my second favorite fruit, complete with bananus. Reminiscent of a crispy funnel cake, the buñuelo was delicious, and though the ice cream was a bit overly firm (probably to keep its shape in the mold, worth it for the lolz), I loved the abundant banana flavor.
There were plenty of other dishes that I'd like to try, especially the famous masa cornbread, which is featured on the tasting menu, so I'll probably go that route next time. If you are interested in very approachable modern Mexican flavors, with great service in a lively neighborhood spot, I'd highly recommend checking out Maximo.
RANKING UPDATE: I thought this was a really enjoyable experience, so I am awarding it the #4 spot in the Best Mexican category of my Houston Restaurant Guide (apologies to Hugo's). Tacos Doña Lena stays at #5, in addition to keeping its spot in the Essential 33, because for that list I like to diversify price points and neighborhoods for an overall snapshot of the Houston dining scene, even if Maximo is technically better.
NEXT UP: Ending the year with a bang at the 2025 James Beard Award winner for Outstanding Restaurant.
Merry Christmas everyone!