Bar Amá is as enjoyable a place to drink as it is to eat: There's a large stash of tequilas, mezcals and other liquors, a great beer selection and a list of (mainly tequila-based) cocktails that are just grown-up enough to be respectable and just fruity and amusing enough to be a whole lot of fun.
There are some service issues, though, particularly with large parties, and they have more to do with the whole "small plates meant to be shared" ethos than the actual servers. It's a nice idea, that sharing philosophy, but if six people each order some tacos and a salad for themselves, they probably do not mean to share those tacos with everyone at the table — and that means one order coming out 20 minutes after the others is a problem. "You see, dishes come out as they're ready, because everything is meant to be shared ... ," the waitress explained. Yes, we get the concept, but in this case it simply doesn't work.
118 W. 4th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90013
Category: Restaurant >
Region: Downtown
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In this respect and quite a few others, Bar Amá is still working itself out. Centeno is rearranging the kitchen stations; he is constantly tweaking the menu and obsessing over details — part of an effort to improve, yes, but also a way to keep himself, and the public, engaged and entertained.
But that's the thing about Bar Amá. No matter the kinks, you will be engaged. You will be entertained. And you may leave with a new respect for Tex-Mex food. Now that's an accomplishment.
Reach the critic at brodell@laweekly.com.
See more of Anne Fishbein's photos from Bar Amá.
BAR AMÁ | 3 stars | 118 W. Fourth St., dwntwn. | (213) 687-8002 | bar-ama.com | Mon.-Thurs., 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. & 5:30-11 p.m.; Fri. & Sat., 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. & 5:30 p.m.-mid.; Sun., 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. & 5-10 p.m. | Entrees, $12-$30 | Full bar | Street and nearby paid lot parking
I think it's good that the reviewer might not have spent a lot of time in Texas eating real Tex-Mex, because most people probably haven't either, and their opinion of the food would be understandably skewed by eating in a lot of cheap, crappy, non-Texan places. She makes the point very clearly, though, that this place is awesome and a real tribute to the good stuff y'all grew up eating.
If you like Bar Ama try Hugo's if you ever get to Houston. The definition of gourmet Tex-Mex.
Maybe the reviewer has only been to Tex-Mex drive-throughs, but Texas
has a ton of upscale (and even regular small Tex-Mex joints) Tex-Mex restaurants that don't serve anything
resembling "spicy glop". Tex-Mex has the best of both worlds, the South's love of creams and dishes fried to perfection, and Mexican foods tang, spice, and dishes. Would have loved to have read a review from a critic who didn't seem to have such an obvious bias against the cuisines to begin with.
nacho cheese, beef and beans....ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. But I come from the part of Mexico that prefers everything fresh, from the fish and shrimp to the tomatoes and mangos. To each their own :)
I grew up in Texas, I know real Tex-Mex, it's some of the best food you can get. Glad to see it getting some recognition out here.
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