Restaurant Review: Lucha Loco Will Make You Go Loco For Its Mexican Offerings

Put on your sombrero hats and shimmy the night away with rumba shakers

Right off the bat, Lucha Loco checks off all the boxes you’d expect at a Mexican dining destination: Its alfresco area is decked out in soft furnishings of blue hues and geometric designs, bordered by Lucha Libre poster-covered walls that are bathed in festoon lighting, stringed like party streamers all over the outdoor space. Spelling the word ‘Tequila’, a single neon signboard serves as a reminder for hungry diners to take an aperitif shot of the Mexican spirit before the night of convivial begins.

While indoor seating is available, the alfresco area is kind of where all the fun is at. Located at the peak of the gentle Duxton Hill, the vibrant enclave is surrounded by lush shrubbery that not only exudes a Mexican tropical vibe, but also gives you and your gang some privacy to talk about that one friend who cancelled last minute.

Elotes ($8)

Before you make a beeline for the obligatory tacos, Lucha Loco serves up brand new starters…pardon us, we mean entradas, that truly warrant savouring. The Tostada de Atun ($15) and Tostaditas de Cangrejo ($16) have the respective seafood fillings of torched tuna and blue swimmer crab shreds served on corn tortillas, packing flavours due to the accompaniment of the tuna’s lime mayonnaise and the crab’s spicy habenero mayonnaise. But if you had to choose, you’d best be chowing down on the nibs of the mouthwatering Elotes ($8). Glazed with chipotle mayonnaise and melty cotija cheese. the Mexican street style grilled corn easily makes the most well-mannered diner get down and dirty to clean the corn off its cob.

Now that’s done, it’s taco time. You can’t go wrong with the Carnitas ($9) of shredded pork belly, cilantro mayo, and crunchy Jicama (Mexican turnip) bits, and the Baja Fish ($11) that has crispy fried fish paired with chilli mango salsa, reflecting a profile of the sweet and sour sauce you find in Chinese restaurants. If there’s still space in your belly, order the Pollo a la Barbacoa ($22), asdo chilli spiced chicken that has been sous vide to the point where the meat falls off the bone with a mere pull of a fork.

Enchilada de Manzana ($14)

To further enliven the entire experience, get boozed up on Mexican’s alcoholic gift of mezcal through potent cocktails such as spicy Mayan Mule ($18), red pepper mezcal with ginger-infused agave and angostura bitters, and Smoky Ron de Banana ($19), banana honey cinnamon infused mezcal blended with plantation dark rum plus chocolate and orange bitters.