Casa Enrique, led by Chef Cosme Aguilar, is one of New York's Michelin-starred restaurants with the best value for money. Its ace in the hole? Expertly executed cuisine without unnecessary extravagance.
The restaurant
Opened in 2012 by Cosme Aguilar, Casa Enrique is a Mexican restaurant that pays homage to the chef's childhood in Chiapas, the southernmost state in Mexico. Located in Long Island City, Queens, it appears more like an unassuming cottage than a renowned establishment. However, almost every year since 2015, Casa Enrique has been awarded by the prestigious Michelin Guide, currently making it one of the best restaurants in New York City.
What sets it apart, aside from its menu, is its pricing: a search through the Michelin Guide records reveals it to be the most budget-friendly Michelin-starred restaurant in the city, boasting the double dollar symbol, associated with "moderate pricing." This makes it perfect for those new to fine dining, even though there are 55 other restaurants with this recognition. Casa Enrique's à la carte menu is much more affordable than one might think. An appetizer of lime-marinated fish ceviche, served with onions, tomatoes, and serrano chili, costs only $24, while a chicken enchilada is $25. The house specialty is Mole de Paixtla, chicken in almond, raisin, sesame, chocolate, and seven different chili pepper sauces, with a taste that's simultaneously sweet, bitter, and spicy, priced at $27. In a city where everyone keeps an eye on profits, why doesn't Cosme Aguilar, the chef of Casa Enrique, raise prices?
"When we received the Michelin star, I asked friends who had been in the industry much longer than me, 'What should we do now?' They all said, 'Don't start changing things.'" And he didn't. Keeping prices accessible has allowed him to build a loyal local clientele over the years, even though they regularly receive reservations from foreigners. ("We get reservations from Japan, even from Australia!") The décor remains simple, and the drink list consists of Mexican beers, Spanish wines, and cocktails like mezcal martinis and mezcal negronis, along with the pisco sour.
The menu, based on the Aguilar family's recipes, offers dishes to satisfy every palate: those suitable for children, such as homemade crumbled chorizo and beer-battered market fish, along with more adventurous options like beef tongue; then, there are the more complex main courses. If you have a favorite dish, you can be sure it will still be on the menu the next time you visit. "It's the same menu as when we opened," Aguilar says. "The ingredients we use are in season year-round, so we never take them off, even though we always have one or two daily specials." Aguilar became a chef by chance. He started as a mechanic but, unable to find work, he got a job as a cook in 1998 when he immigrated to the United States, thanks to a brother who worked at a French restaurant.
"I was already a great serial eater, but that's where I fell in love with food," he says. "I was lucky to be among great chefs; all I wanted was to be one of them." Aguilar and his two partners, including his brother Luis, opened Casa Enrique in 2012 in Long Island, just one subway stop away from Grand Central Station on the 7 train line. They believed there was a demand for authentic Mexican food in New York. Aguilar claims that his recipes – passed down from his older sister, who cooked for the family after their mother's death – reflect the many culinary influences of the country. "I come from Chiapas, but I've lived in various places, Puebla and Mexico City, and my mom traveled a lot, so her recipes come from all over," he says. Jordan Parker Erb of Insider visited Queens to experience his cuisine firsthand and was pleasantly surprised, especially when the bill arrived: she spent $57 for an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert, excluding tax and tip. Not bad, considering similar three-star restaurants where a meal can cost $335.
In an unpretentious environment, the journalist speaks positively about the dinner, starting with a taste of chicharrones de harina and three types of salsa, a combination of flavors and textures she had never experienced before. The meal continues with the ensalada de betabel con jícama, a beet-based salad. "I don't want to be dramatic, but when I die, I want to be buried in this salad," she says. Made from long, thin strips of jicama (a tuber with an aromatic profile somewhere between a potato and an apple), this dish is a concentrated delight. The experience concludes with Casa Enrique's rajas con crema, roasted poblano peppers rolled in corn tortillas and topped with tomatillo sauce, creme fraiche, queso, and avocado. A spicy, but not overly so, treat. The tres leches dessert is nothing short of exceptional.
Cover photos: @Yvonne Albinowski
