We discovered this place on accident. Â We were actually checking out The Owl next door, which wasn't open yet, so we decided to eat here at Las Islas Marias. Â We were not disappointed!
You first walk in and a part of you wants to walk out. Â It isn't the fanciest place for seafood but it was clean and the waitress was nice! Â We order Tostadas. Â I had the mixed which has shrimp, crab, other seafood. Â IT WAS GOOD! Â You tend to be hesitant about seafood in certain places, but it was fresh and tasty and I wasn't sick from it, which tends to be a good sign. haha.
I'd go back to try other things on the menu, and will probably drag others too.
I was in the mood for Mexican seafood, especially langoustines. Â We didn't want to drive all the way to Mariscos el veneno and decided to check out this place. Bad idea.
It's not too far from our house and my husband had heard that this place wS really good from co-workers at his old job. Â I ordered the langoustines and the hubs got the shrimp, Â After bringing the food home, I anxiously took my first bite and tasted salt. Â They were all seasoned with too much salt! So disappointing! The portion was a lot smaller and the flavor was off. Â The price was high for the portion and overall quality, Â From now on, when I get these cravings, I will just go to the best.
A few nights ago, a friend and I were in the neighborhood looking for a place to get a quick bite before heading to a bar. Having passed quite a few questionable and mostly empty places already, we were delighted when we came to Las Islas Marias because it was nearly full and bustling.
Jackpot!
Or so we thought.
We walked in and I smiled at a waitress nearby, but we weren't sure if we should wait for someone to seat us or go straight to the empty table near the back. The other waitress ended up seeing us and cleared off the table for us, so we sat down. But 10 or so minutes later, that table clearing was still the sum total of the attention given us by the staff. My friend ended up getting someone's attention and the waitress wordlessly handed us two menus. Having a bit of Spanish between the two of us, we were able to translate some, but not nearly all, of the menu on our own. Of course I can't fault the restaurant for having a menu in Spanish, but a little help might have been nice. Instead, we were ignored and made to feel unwelcome. I felt like we were seated at the invisible table. We sat there for a very long time, and were never given water or chips and salsa, and nobody came by to take our orders or see if we needed any help. Didn't even look in our direction. They didn't seem to want us there, and when we our growling tummies realized they were not going to be fed here, we eventually obliged.
I've always driven past this Mexican seafood restaurant and noticed that it had a good amount of people in it, especially on the weekends. I'm not going to lie; but it always scared me since it had a certain shadiness to it. Â It sits next to a cheap hotel that looks like it charges by the hour, and a discoteca that looks like guys in cowboy hats are doing coke off of the toilet seats. My uncle suggested getting some caldo (soup) here after a painting gig....and man did it hit the spot. The place is much nicer looking on the inside....not dirty....not super fancy. A juke box was playing some Mexican music. The menu was entirely seafood. Not one meat dish available. We had some nice cold Mexican beer, and our server gave us a basket full of tostadas and some green salsa. We broke off some pieces of tostada and dipped it in the green salsa. It was a bit too limey (no offense Brits) for my liking. There are a number of bottled hot sauces on the table to dab on the tostadas. Our waitress then brought out a complimentary appetizer of ceviche. It had finely cut onions, carrots, and cilantro which was very tasty. My uncle ordered a large bowl of siete mares (7 seas soup) (fish,crab legs, oysters, shrimp,mussels,and octopus). My uncle said that his dish was definitely better than his dish he had at El Barco. I ordered the caldo de camarones (shrimp soup). The waitress gave me the option with shell or not. I ordered it with shells, knowing it would have more flavor. I wasn't expecting it to come with the heads on..which was a plus since the best flavor comes from sucking the inside of the head. Oh, they give you a good ten medium sized shrimp, which made my uncle jealous. I would have preferred my soup to have a bit more kick, but I was able to add some hot sauce to get the desired flavor. All in all, it was a good dining experience. Not the greatest, but not bad.
Review Source:Fresh Mexican seafood in a cute, authentic, atmosphere! Â Now I love me some slightly shady, authentic Mexican food and this place delivers. It's times like this when you really appreciate living in a city and all the wonderful things that it offers. Â I went with some friends and I have to say my new "good neighborhood food" signal of two Chicago Police Officers also chowing down was true yet again.
We ordered the large fish ceviche which was delish (excuse the Rachel Rayness of that), the fish was so fresh and the lime was so good plus it was one of those dishes that made you love cilantro. Â My friend and I both got one of the shrimp dishes, I had shrimp in garlic which was fantastic. Â My other friend had the whole fish (number 13) which was also fantastic.
Oh and how could I forget! There was a very nice mariachi band that played while we were there. Â Anyways, if you are looking for good Mexican seafood and expanding your horizons go to Las Islas Marias!
If you've been dreaming of  dining on fresh shrimp at a sea-side Mexican resort but you can't travel at the moment I suggest a trip to Las Islas Marias for authentic Mexican food from the Pacific coast state of Nayarit.
Las Islas Marias features a number of shrimp (camarones) dishes including shrimp cocktail, shrimp tostadas, 'Camarones a la Diabla,' (shrimp cooked in hot sauce), and 'Caldo de Camaron,' a shrimp soup that will zap a Chicago winter chill in a flash!
The decor is sparse but between the friendly staff, lots of locals, a full bar, and a juke box jammed with classics and current Mexican hits, it won't be long before you're in the mood for a hammock and a siesta.
Hours:
Monday - Thursday 10A - 9P
Friday and Saturday 10A - 11:30P
Sunday 10A - 7:30P
All major credit cards accepted.
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,915 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
