Los Camaradas: Mexican in Southwest Center City
Easy-to-navigate Mexican menu and extensive tequila and mezcal selection.
If early crowds are an indication, Joseph and Theresa Rimmer Scull have hit on the right combination at 22nd and Carpenter Streets with a Mexican bar called Los Camaradas.
After a spell as Divan Turkish Kitchen, the bar had been two short-lived clunkers, SoWe and The Strip Joint, under different management.
The Sculls - he was chef at the late Solaris Grille in Chestnut Hill, while she is a former beverage manager at La Calaca Feliz in Fairmount - added sconces and other decorative pieces from Mexico during their two-month spruce-up.
They also added a wide selection of tequilas and mezcals, in addition to craft beer and a few cocktails.
They've kept the menu easy to navigate, opting for only some appetizers (including ceviche), salads, soups, six tacos, three enchiladas, and four entrees (mole poblano con pollo; pescado a la Veracruzana; carne asada; and chuleta de puerco, $16.95 to $24.95).
Menu is here.
Bar list is here.
For now, they're open at 4 p.m. daily, and the kitchen stays open till 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and till 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Bar closes at 2 a.m. Weekend brunch is on the way.