Espiritu

Totally regret not eating here. I had originally wanted to go to Bacanora but reservations were hard to come by when they book out in less than a few minutes after releasing their dates. So we went elsewhere for dinner. Then read that Espiritu is the sister restaurant and linked to Chef Rene Andrade and Chef Roberto Centeno. So we came for drinks.There's a parking lot in the back that's free for 3 hours and entrance is through a narrow walkway that resembles an alley but very safe.We sat at the bar. The menu book was split into different chapters with different play on words and cleaver names. Be sure to check your book if you have all the chapters because we were missing two chapters and had no idea until we saw someone else ordered an old fashion that doesn't look like ours.We ordered Tio Victors Old Fashioned which came out clear looking like water with a nice etched ice cube. Tio Victors Old Fashioned came in a skull cup. They rotate their menu often and this was rolled over from the previous rotation.Both drinks were strong and beautifully crafted. Everyone we spoke to said having drinks was a waste and that we needed to eat. Well, we will be back.

Came here with a friend last night and enjoyed the experience!We had reservations for 6:30pm and the place was already pretty full. Would suggest making a reservation when coming here.There is quite the cocktail selection here and there's a whole booklet on cocktails to order.I started off with a mezcal drink with yuzu, it was good and I enjoyed it. I think I prefer Mexican/Southwestern flavors with mezcal vs citrus but that's just me. My friend had a drink with sotol in it, and it had an earthy, grassy flavor.Probably the best item we tried were the birria dumplings and this was just fantastic! The queso fundido we ordered next was just so-so, a bit too sour for me.We then opted to share the Korean pork rib dish and the ribs were very flavorful and tasty. The rice was good but a tad bit salty and the chapati like bread was good. All the dishes were very generous in portions and we had leftovers to take home.Our next drinks we had were the quetzal, which my friend had and this was tasty and a bit sweeter. I just opted for a mezcal margarita and that was great!Overall, a really fun place to have dinner. Great spot for a date too. I'd definitely return!

So happy I finally got around to trying Espiritu! Enjoyed everything about our dining experience here. I liked that this is a smaller restaurant and more intimate; The wait staff was very nice and attentive but not over-bearing. The drinks were great. I did two "choose your own" type drinks and both hit the spot. For my second one, I asked for tequila, boozey, sour and with egg white; my boyfriend and I both agreed that that drink was made for me! Very fun drink experience. The food was delicious. We loved the sauce on the baked oysters (ordered 2x), and although the wagyu birrira dumplings weren't my favorite flavor profile personally, it was a good appetizer serving size, the wrappers were good and they were cooked well. I liked the chimichurri on the tuna crudo but probably could've done without this dish (the tuna wasn't anything special but they were decent sized slices and still glad we tried it).The fried fish was the way to go for the entree! It seemed almost every table around us got this throughout the night too. We shared between the two of us; with all our apps, it was too much, but otherwise it's definitely a good shareable meal. The crispy skin was perfect and the fish meat was flaky but not dried out. I really liked the veggies/marinade and homemade tortillas on the side too... overall made for some really tasty fish tacos!Would definitely come again for drinks and to try some other items on the menu.

Okay, this place.. THIS PLACE IS AMAZING. My husband always craves Mexican food and this place is upscale yet so authentic. We went here for our anniversary dinner and it was out of this world. The flavors were on point. I ordered the seasonal ceviche and the aguachile verde shrimp and this was enough to fill me up as a dinner entree - I even took some home as leftovers. The tostadas that paired with these dishes were homemade and you can tell were freshly fried. My husband ordered their mesquite coal skirt steak dish and he was satisfied through and through! It was a large dish and very filling. I would highly recommend this place and look forward to my next time eating their food! One thing to note - it is a smaller dining establishment in general so I wouldn't go here for a large family gathering, just a date night or meal at the bar with friends.

Best food ever!!! Everything was so amazing. The service was spectacular. 10/10. I will def go back. The drinks are sooo good!!!

A resounding yes! There is so much to love about Espiritu. The ambiance is everything here. The bright turquoise walls and colorful flowers and candles, there is definitely a Dia de los Muertos feel. Super cool. There is also a patio outside.There's a great cocktail menu, and I've tried to get something different every time I've been here. Every cocktail I've had has been absolutely delicious with a Great presentation. The focus here is seafood, although you can get a burger. I have had shrimp tacos, which was a daily special, ceviche mixtos, and a giant fish (red snapper, I think) that is breaded and fried surfed with salsa and tortillas that serves two people (at least!!). Everything has been delicious!I will continue to come here over and over again. Tip--Make sure to have reservations on the weekend because this place is pretty small.

I can't talk enough about their birria dumplings enough! First time at Espiritu, and honestly the dumplings were my favorite dish of the night! It was packed full with flavor, the beef was so tender and juicy. We also ordered queso fundido, the Korean pork meal dish. The queso fundido wasn't my favorite, I felt it was a little tart. The Korean pork meal dish was fantastic. Well seasoned, tender although the rice was on the salty side. For the drinks options, they have an entire booklet about their drinks. It can be overwhelming to decide, but i thought it added to the experience. I got the quetzal and the death note. Both were great, the death note was very refreshing. And the quetzal was more up my speed. This restaurant is small, so I recommend people make reservations ahead of time. There is a parking lot behind the restaurant which was convenient because Espiritu is in downtown Mesa. I really liked my dinning experience at Espiritu, I will definitely be back.

Tucked away between two shops in downtown Mesa, Espiritu is a great little gem with scrumptious food and cocktails that will knock your socks off. I took my future hubby to be to celebrate his birthday. Reservations suggested since seating is limited and it does get pretty full. (We went on a Thursday night) The ambiance is intimate and service was swift and kind. Our server suggested types of cocktails and wine to pair with our meal. So speaking of our meal. We had the market special of 20 oz bone-in rib eye and 20 oz bone-in pork chop. Both had a nice sear and char on the outside and cooked to perfection on the inside. At first I didn't think I would finish since it is a lot of food, but it was too good not to stop! It also came with a side of bean soup and grilled flour tortillas and salsa. I highly recommend checking this place out if you haven't already. The chef is a James Beard award nominee and won on Chopped! You can tell his creativity and his love for cooking in his food.

I have been here on 3 different occasions and the food and cocktails are top notch. I highly recommend coming with others so that you can try a few different things as this place is best done family style. If they have the fried fish you can get the 2lb one and it's great to share between 4 people. The ceviche is excellent and the wagyu dumplings are amazing. On our last visit the ceviche lacked some acid and we asked for some limes. Instead they replaced the ceviche and it was outstanding. Top notch service!

Great food and cocktails! The birria dumplings were our favorite, but the seasonal ceviche (King Salmon) was a close second. The restaurant was cute, but definitely a bit crowded. Worth the tight corridors to be able to make a reservation same week, or even same day though. Portions were generous, and everything was delicious. We saw a lot of tables order the fried snapper, and we'll have to try that next time!