Hola amigos! I was planning on dining at Manoli's Restaurant but they were closed for today out of the blue. Darn it! Instead I detoured all the way down to the Darwin Waterfront to check out the new and sexy Mexican restaurant Hot Tamale. Just like everything else down there (except for the not so great Wild Burger), this place is fully decked out with trendy furniture and modern decor along with a few slightly disturbing paintings and decals. The interior is spacious and there is plenty of seating.

The bar is rather impressive with a massive collection of tequila varieties along the back wall (I counted at least 150 types in their drinks menu!). This would be the perfect place to get plastered very quickly - perhaps another time though as my stomach needed some TLC. We didn't book but the waitstaff were more than happy to accommodate us. The menu is modern Mexican with the usuals of burritos, tacos and quesedillas. There are prawn and barra ceviche dishes too which could be interesting to try. Now I must admit I'm not a Mexican food expert, but the 'modern' component wasn't hitting me in the face (besides the presentation). Feel free to enlighten me.

The food came out ridiculously quick, I was only a few sips into my water when the Queso Fundido (blended melted cheese and corn chips, $13) came out. It was an ok starter, but the ratio of cheese to chips was off and we ran out of cheese long before the chips were done. The next three dishes came out about 5 minutes later. I guess it pays to be one of the first diners there, although something tells me they'd be relatively quick no matter how busy the kitchen is.

The mushroom quesadilla was again also just ok, the sour cream tasted like the lite variety with not much punch to it. Beef taco was next up ($8). You only get one taco per serving so you are encouraged to buy a couple to share around. The beef was pull-a-part tender with a really nice flavour. It comes with some lime wedges and chilli sauce if you want to spice things up further.

Last but not least was the Burrito Bowl ($18) - one of the most impressive salads I've ever seen. Very modern indeed with a big dose of "I'm a freaking sex bomb!" With marinated chicken, greens, beans and a whole lot of other stuff, this one will fill you up in no time. Definitely one to share I thought. The edible bowl had retained a bit too much oil for my liking but the actual salad component was alright without being amazing, it is a "salad" after all.

Service was good. The young staff are still learning the ropes but did well and were polite and checked up on us throughout the meal without being too intrusive. Now to the inevitable comparison with Darwin favourite Prickles Restaurant in Parap. Food wise I think Prickles poops all over Hot Tamale. Perhaps I have an emotional attachment to the place, or perhaps it's because they've been perfecting their product for as long as I've been alive. Either way, Hot Tamale has some catching up to do - as much as I was wanting to love the food, I just didn't get that wow factor I was looking for. It's still early days so there is plenty of room for refinement. Atmosphere wise, Prickles is more country side Mexico where all the poor farmers go to get comfort food and make a lot of  noise, Hot Tamale is where cashed up high class cartel drug lords go to look good and get wasted on expensive top shelf tequila while listening to Gringo music. Whatever floats your boat I say.

In summary - a fancy new place for decent, well priced Mexican food and a great place to get drunk on quality tequila (Christmas is just around the corner if you needed an excuse). Oh by the way, as everything is served mild the food isn't really "hot" unless you ask for the haberano chilli sauce. Adios amigos.