To walk down Shoreditch High Street and Commercial Street in the East End of London is a bit like taking a poor man’s version of a round the world trip. The area is so packed with restaurants and cafes that it is easy to imagine every world cuisine being represented here.
Located in the London Borough of Hackney, Shoreditch has become a more popular and fashionable part of London, since about 1996. Yes, this is the place you visit if you are hungry. But no matter how tempting the Lebanese and Pakistani options looked, I was after some Mexican.
Boho Mexica is located at 151-153 Commercial Street. The name is quite fitting as the interior suggests a deceptively planned “thrown together” look with mismatching light fixtures, 60s style Mexican advertisements on the wall and dark wooden tables that have bumped heads with plenty of plates.
The venue is small, seating maybe 30-40 people in the restaurant area and welcoming more in the adjacent bar area. Without a dinner reservation we were only allotted a 60-minute window before the table’s true owners arrived to claim it.
While the menu isn’t huge, it is easy to find something that gets the taste buds active in anticipation, especially if you are a fan of lentils, corn and chillies. When my dish arrived, however, what was supposed to be Enchiladas Suizas rather resembled a portion of cannelloni. Had it not been for the jazzy music with traditional Mexican tones spilling into the restaurant, I might have forgotten where I was. Luckily the Flautas de Barbacoa of my guest were a little more form fitting.
As we worked our way through our dishes – some elements full of flavour, others rather bland – the restaurant began to fill, hinting at its popularity. And with friendly staff and a buzzing atmosphere, it is easy to see why – if only the chef had utilised the spice cabinet.
The dessert list, although inviting, was unfortunately not for us – our 60 minutes were up.
Address: 151 – 153 Commercial Street, London, E1 6BJ, England
Telephone: +44 (0)207 377 8418
Website: www.bohomexica.co.uk
Opening Times:
Lunch: Tuesday to Friday (12pm – 2:30pm) and Sunday Brunch (12:30pm – 4pm)
Dinner:
- Mondays and Tuesdays (5:30pm – 10pm)
- Wednesday and Thursday (5:30pm – 11pm)
- Friday (5:30pm – 11:30pm)
- Saturday (5pm – 11:30pm)
- Sunday (5pm – 11pm)
Heather is a writer, photographer and explorer of the world with bylines in Archaeology Magazine, Porthole Cruise Magazine, Taste & Travel, amongst others. She is addicted to pen, paper, hotels, organisation and hippos. In addition to Travel Gluttons, you can find her over at Cloggie Central. 
