Cantina Laredo is a modern Mexican restaurant in the heart of Covent Garden that serves a menu of classics: tacos, ceviche, quesadillas, tostadas and guacamole all make an appearance.
A couple of starters were excellent: a pair of mushroom quesadillas, made with chewy blue-corn tortillas, stuffed with cheese and herby oregano, and the 28-day-aged ribeye steak tacos with chilli oil and a fresh-tasting ‘avocado emulsion’. Sadly though, most of the other dishes missed the mark. The menu made a big fuss about guacamole (it’s meant to be prepared at the table by a ‘guacamaestro’), but ours, a version with sweetcorn and hot Mexican peppers, arrived pre-mixed. And it was bland. After that there were some terrible pulled-pork sliders with mushy meat, a plate of yellowtail sashimi with no zing, and some greasy crispy chicken tacos that tasted like supermarket spring rolls.
The large dining room was also uninspiring, with too many hard angles and no atmosphere. It felt like a hotel restaurant trying to be trendy.
Overall, unless you’re going for those two starters, I wouldn’t make a beeline for Cantina Laredo. There are, simply put, better options in this neighbourhood.