Mural by Senkoe

Downtown Commons has a brand new restaurant that serves awesome Mexican food. Polanco Cantina is the new kid on the block with its recent grand opening night over the weekend. This restaurant was named after a thriving district in Mexico City. Polanco features authentic Mexican food that utilizes as many high-quality ingredients as they can. Also, it features a full-service bar with unique cocktails and top-shelf liquors

First Impressions

Coming here on a Friday night, the place was packed, though, some of the tables were not available due to the restaurant being only opened for a few days. The wait was 30 minutes for a couple, so we checked in and lounged at the bar. The host requests your number so they can text you when the table is available, which is nice. While waiting, the bar host was super friendly and attentive. This place is a beautiful place to visit before an event at the Golden 1 Center. After, I receive a text message notifying me that my table was ready. The host seats us next to the balcony with a beautiful view of the DOCO plaza. We order food, and the plates come as we feast on chips and salsa. The food was excellent, and the service was great. Definitely, it was a good experience.

Atmosphere

With Polanco being in the DOCO area, expect it to be busy on weekends and nights with events. Polanco sits on the second level of DOCO with a balcony view of the Golden 1 Center as well as the DOCO plaza. It’s directly located next to the escalator and Macy’s. It is a beautiful location any time of the day. Along the walls are murals by Mexico-based urban artist Senkoe. Also, the design of the restaurant is a modern design by August Studio, which brings touches of rustic Mexican culture.

The menu selection offers a good amount of choices. First, they offer botanas (starters), which consists of small bites like chips & salsa, nachos, or fritters. They also offer soups & salads such as Tortilla soup and Poloze. As a Mexican restaurant, they also serve tacos as expected. They offer a wide variety of meats to choose from, such as pork, beef, duck, mushroom, shrimp, and fish. Polanco also offers sides of chiles, rice, cauliflower, or street corn. For their main dishes, they offer plates of enchiladas, carnitas, steak, roasted chicken, and a lot more.

Food

If you enjoy Mexican food and you want an upscale restaurant, Polanco is the spot. With offerings that are hard to find, such as duck tacos and molcajetes, this place has a tasty variety. From the starters to the entrees, the menu delivers delicious, quality food, especially for Mexican food lovers.

Chips & Salsa

Though they are not complimentary, the house-made chips, salsa are made with tomatoes & tomatillos. The salsa is savory with a hint of sweet.

Ceviche

The catch of the day (Crudo) with lime, cucumber, and ginger jus. Also, the tacos is laced with avocado, radish, and plantain chips. The ceviche was excellent.

Cochinita Pibil Croquettes

Adobo braised pork croquettes on top of black bean salsa with pickled red onion and habanero sauce on the side. These croquettes were awesome, and the black dean salsa balanced out the flavors.

Pork Belly Tacos

Crispy braised pork belly with chipotle mint salsa and guacamole. If you like pork belly, definitely get these tacos.

Baja Fish Tacos

These battered fish tacos is drizzled with mayo-crème dressing, cabbage, and pico de gallo. Definitely, these are great fish tacos.

Drinks

Desert Rose

Tequila Blanco and agave nectar with freshly muddled prickly pear, lime, and soda. A calm yet refreshing drink to go along with the food.

Overall

Polanco Cantina is a nice newcomer to the Sacramento area. The location is ideal for all the traction that DOCO receives throughout the year. This place has a lot to offer; however, it has a lot of room to grow. Being only a few days old, Polanco will definitely get better as time goes by. If you are in DOCO for an event, swing by for a great evening.