Project Mexicana

Bold, smoky, and unapologetic. Project Mexicana is a love letter to Mexican cuisine, shot in deep shadow and warm candlelight, where every dish carries the weight of its flavours.

It opens with a Mezcal Paloma, pale pink and ice-filled in a spice-rimmed coupe, a grapefruit slice resting on the edge with a cactus in the background. Then a Mezcal Michelada, deep red and earthy in a crystal highball, its chilli-dusted rim catching the light. A Mezcalita rounds out the drinks, golden and sharp, a whole jalapeño standing proud above the glass.

At the table, huevos rancheros arrive in a cast-iron pan, eggs nestled in a thick tomato and black bean sauce with sliced jalapeño, coriander, and a tortilla wedged in for scooping. A chilli con carne fills a handmade ceramic bowl, rich and slow-cooked, topped with sour cream, corn, kidney beans, and fresh coriander, a lime being cut alongside it. Tacos al pastor come three in a pink bowl, piled with charred meat, pickled red onion, and bright green salsa, carried to the table by hands wrapped in a paisley shirt.

Dark backgrounds, copper cutlery, cast iron, and ceramic. The whole project feels like a late night in a Mexican kitchen, loud and generous and deeply satisfying.