Mexicano

Filled with hordes of tanned blondes on a chilly Sunday evening, this little cantina is just a few sandy footsteps from the beach at Narrabeen. The crew play the music unapologetically loud – Nirvana's Nevermind gets play, as does Roxy Music, with a bit of Tribe thrown in. The room houses bar at the back stocked with tequila ranging from Dos Equis to some serious offerings such as 1492 and Don Julio. Even the water bottles are old tequila bottles. There are three kinds of El Yucateo sauce on each table (jalapeno, chipotle, habanero) and the food boasts snap, sharpness and precision. The corn chips are house made from really great tortillas. The tortillas, when served as soft shell tacos, are char-tinged and soft - they make them in-house with an old-school tortilla press made from two bits of wood and a hinge. And it's the small things at Mexicano that assure you you're in the right place: the half-salt rim on the Margaritas (frozen shaken and spicy jalapeno!) served in a stemless drinking bowl (some people call these glasses). The guacamole served with house-made corn chips is sharpened with shreds of green onion. Chimchangas, which are like Mexican chiko rolls, are tied with pieces of string, filled with long shreds of tender beef and served with a chilli vinaigrette. And the glass-front windows open right up which means in summer, you can step out of the surf and into the hottest Mexican restaurant on the northern beaches.