Elite Event: Calexico LES’ 1 Year Anniversary Party

While reviewing my Unilocal Elite Events list, I realized I was missing one very cool Unilocal Elite event — my first NYC Unilocal Elite event!
I was lucky enough to get to attend this awesome Unilocal Elite event to celebrate Celexico’s 1 Year Anniversary party at their brick and mortar in the LES. Ruggy, our former Unilocal SF CM, had moved away to NYC, and thankfully, he was able to squeeze me in for his event! It was so great to see Ruggy and awesome to meet the NYC Unilocal elite!
When we arrived, the party was in full swing! It was a really cool restaurant. I dug the vibe. It felt more like a swanky lounge with a very open feel!
The drinks were killer too! I loved the Jalapeño-​Mint Margaritas & Cucumber Cilantro Margaritas! They were delicious and super memorable! The food was awesome too! I loved the quesadillas with crack sauce!
Thanks so much to Unilocal,Calexico, and Ruggy for an amazing event!

This was a nice break from studying in a very nice vibe. I was able to kick back, enjoy a few, Jalapeño Mint Margaritas, and meet some rally cool fellow Unilocal Elite. The night was very special as it was Calexico’s first anniversary. The owners were nice and extremely gracious. They seemed to take it all in and couldn’t be more happy that Unilocal was there to help them celebrate. Thanks to Ruggy for throwing another awesome event. Unilocal Elite had a blast and the owners were ecstatic!

My favorite Unilocal Elite event to date! Delicious food and drink, I met some new friends, and it was also my birthday, so the balloons across the ceiling made me very happy!
I arrived belated and headed straight to the bar for a jalapeño margarita — which I loved (and had several of) and was the perfect compliment to the guacamole and salsa options on the tables with chips. The tacos and quesadillas had the perfect amount of sauces and cheese respectively and the staff was extremely helpful, fast and keep the food coming!
Thanks Ruggy and Calexico for a great start to my birthday night!

Cinco De Mayo should always be celebrated for a full week!
Calexico’s was great! Tons of amazing food with crack cheese and steak quesadillas at the top of the list. The Jabanero Margaritas were also delightful with an extra oomph.
Calexico is one place that I will be sure to make it back for another round. I can’t stop thinking about those amazing quesadillas.

Another nice event by Unilocal.Enjoyed the food and the vibe here. The carne asada quesadilla was awesome!
Unlike past Unilocal events that I attended, they had so much food here that no one was fighting to get a bite.

One thing I know about Manhattan: these people know hospitality and good times on a Tuesday night in the Lower East Side. Big ups to NYC-​Manhattan CM Ruggy for this awesome Elite event! All the way from Raleigh NC, I felt more than at home with this lovely Elite crew last week. Ruggy made sure to let me in so I could see what’s up in NYC, and I’m *so* glad he did. Sara and I made two lovely friends (Dane and Brett), who made the night so much more fun as we laughed and talked for 2 hours as if we knew each other for years :)
The Unilocal Elite crew got to celebrate Calexico’s 1 year anniversary with a bang… and lots of tasty jalapeño margaritas. What a cute little Mexican bar/​restaurant! When I walked up, they had the garage door open with a hightop bar area open to the inside/​outside, which was a great way to add extra seating & open up the place. My favorite was the «Hola» metal art on the wall with lights inside it… loved it :) It looked like they could seat ~50 people, and they had plenty of room to pull together tables for a larger party. Despite the small footprint, they still have 2 restrooms for their guests!
The fully stocked bar had about 10 stools, and the bartenders were mixing up some fine margaritas and pouring muchas cervezas. The jalapeño mint margaritas were no joke– the sweet lime juice balanced out the spicy jalapeño so well, it was amazing! Their house margaritas were great too, but the jalapeño ones were where it’s at. A few servers were walking around with plates of warm quesadillas (some portabella & cheese, some chicken & cheese), and others had plates of both pork and chicken tacos (all wrapped in fresh corn tortillas, topped with super fresh toppings and their own unique sauce). The tacos were by far my favorite! They also had plenty of salsa and guacamole to go around.
All in all, this was an amazing way to spend last Tuesday night… thanks again, Ruggy! Great job to the staff at Calexico and to their hospitable owners. Manhattan really knows how to do it right. Thank you guys!

Had an awesome time at Calexico’s LES 1 Year Anniversary Party. It was my first official Unilocal Elite event and it didn’t disappoint in the slightest! I had a blast and met some new friends (where you at– Sheldon & Kelly) and some old friends from school.
I wasn’t able to get off work until 7pm so when I arrived, the party was in full swing. I cozied up to the bar and immediately ordered a drink from the cute bartender. Wow, I must say– those margaritas were some of the tastiest concoctions I’ve had in a while! I especially enjoyed the herbacious kick of the jalapeño mint margarita, and enjoyed a refill or two throughout the night. Readily available throughout the bar were unlimited chips, guacamole and salsa all of which were quite tasty. The kitchen staff brought out an assortment of tacos (pork was my favorite!) and quesadillas throughout the evening for us to nibble on.
All in all, I had a great time and a wonderful intro to the Unilocal Elite world! Thanks to the amazing Ruggy and Calexico for hosting such a great event!

«The YEE isn’t over when I’m full. It’s over when I hate myself.» — me via Louis CK. I stuffed myself silly on tacos (chicken, pork, and baja fish), a bit of quesadilla (carne asada) hand-​dipped in crack sauce, and more chips dunked in guacamole and salsa than I have previously ever imagined eating. I arrived right at 6pm and was luckily able to throw down all my stuff and start on the chips before getting some tasty margaritas. I tried all 3 flavors and can’t decide between the cucumber/​cilantro and the jalapeño for a favorite. I also was a total downer and discussed the avocado and lime shortages and their likely effects on guacamole prices. My tablemate/​friend Allison describes it all much better in her review and I’m glad she let me be her +1.
Service was ridiculously impeccable and the whole Calexico team was warm and welcoming. I’ve ordered delivery from this location a few times but had only visited once, so it was a real treat to celebrate their first birthday with them. I somehow stumbled out at 8pm and made it down the street for a celebratory cupcake, hating myself all the way.

This was my first Unilocal Elite event & I was really impressed by the food, décor, & the staff at Calexcio! Thanks Ruggy for throwing a really fun event!
The restaurant itself is very laid back and relaxing. I would definitely come back here after work or over the weekend and enjoy some drinks + delicious Mexican food w. my friends. I love the casual atmosphere that the restaurant has.
As far as food goes: the standouts were the steak quesadillas + the pork tacos. SO GOOD. The sauce that accompanied the quesadillas was awesome. I can probably put that sauce on anything and it’ll be delicious. Their guacamole was also very delicious, it tasted very fresh.
The drinks were very refreshing. I wasn’t a huge fan of the jalapeño mint margaritas but their house margarita was on point. Very intimate setting which made for a great event.
Thanks again to Ruggy, Unilocal,& the staff @ Calexcio for a great time.

This was my first Manhattan elite event, and it was awesome! I braved the rush hour traffic coming from Queens and arrived at Calexico a little after 6pm. I was delighted to see the place already filled with fellow elites and their +1’s. Diana C. and I sat by the table closest to the entrance. It was wonderful weather and I could feel the crisp breeze blowing in.
There’s nothing better than starting off the night with chips and delicious guacamole. We devoured it all fairly quickly. Next came a parade of steak, pork, and chicken soft tacos, followed by steak, chicken, and mushroom quesadillas. Just a note: I much prefer soft tacos, so you can only imagine how ecstatic I was. The crack sauce was so undeniably addictive, we had to ask one of the wonderful waitresses for more. By the time the baja fish tacos came out, I was already stuffed so I had to sadly refuse, but I heard they were scrumptious.
I tried their cucumber cilantro and jalapeño mint margaritas. I wash’t a huge fan, but everyone else seemed to enjoy them.
All of this yummy food was so satisfying. Actually, satisfying is an understatement. Coupled with the friendly and warm environment, we definitely enjoyed our time here. Thanks to Ruggy, the Unilocal team, and Calexico for an awesome event!

I would totally have a birthday group here.
Calexico serves up the food of my homeland! My peoples! My heritage!
The margaritas were every bit as delicious (and individually made! not from a pre-​made mixer) as they would have been in the land from which I sprung forth– better, in fact, since I didn’t need to find a friend to be my designated driver after! Here I call that designated friend «taxi». It’s beautiful.
The quesadillas that the happy servers were dishing out were worth every calorie and the additional calories that come with the crack sauce. I’m honestly not exaggerating about this– I have thought about the quesadillas fondly the last two days, despite the fact that my clothes don’t seem to be fitting quite as loosely. Probably because I was operating along a nonstop one-​bite-​of-​quesadilla then one-​gulp-​of-​margarita strategy.
I heartily endorsed Ruggy on this event the minute I walked thru Calexico’s glass hinged door because I knew upon admittance that it was going to be above and beyond even the usual awesomeness that he pulls off with our Unilocal Elite events. Fun energy from everybody (cheesy sounding but true) and lots of new faces– but not so much everybody /​new faces that my friend and I weren’t able to almost immediately park ourselves at the bar next to the yummy guac and salsa and chips. Great location, too. It all lent itself well to an ideal night out.
As always– Thank you Ruggy and Unilocal

Attended my first Unilocal elite event @ Calexico on Monday night — check! Thanks Ruggy for allowing us to stuff our faces with ridiculously tasty Mexican food!
Calexico is the reason terms such as «food coma» exist. You will be in one after you eat here and I mean that in the best way possible.
The staff here is exceptional. From the waiters to the bartenders, we were really well taken care of the entire evening. Each server walking out of the kitchen with a food platter in hand did so with a big cheerful smile on their face :)
Couldn’t get enough of their jalapeño-​mint margaritas & cucumber cilantro margaritas! So tasty. My fave dish of all: the steak & cheese quesadillas. #nomnom. I could have eaten an entire tray of them. And lucky for me, I just about did. I also really enjoyed the seared tilapia tacos with fresh mango salsa.
I admit, I had never been to nor heard of Calexico prior to this event. But I can promise I will be back soon. Very soon!

OMG! I have officially found my favorite burrito place in the East Village! This event was really awesome! The two bro owners of Calexico are cool and laid back dudes who started their company in a food drunk and little did they know they would have places in Manhattan and Brooklyn preparing for us yummy tacos and quesadillas!
The weather was gorgeous that evening and the façade of Calexico is actually a clear garage door and it was open so the entire place could enjoy the sweet outdoor breeze and a few lucky ones were able to sit right on the outside/​inside tables!
We were very spoiled, it felt like an anniversary!!! Thank you :)
Aside from the yummy bowls of guacamole, cilantro salsa and smoked salsa, the staff walked around all night with steak, chicken, or mushroom quesadillas, the portions were huge, and the flavors were right on! I love that they were so thick with meat and cheese and the dipping sauce was out of this world!!! I caught my own bowl at some point… lol
We also were offered mini soft tacos, beef and fish were great! I am usually not a fan of soft tacos because I don’t like the corn soft shell, and it’s a mess to eat, but these were great and the meat on it was awesome!
Besides the amazing copious amount of food, the bartenders were also hard at work and the drinks were pouring! My favorite one was the spicy margarita, oh boy, this was a trip in itself!
Awesome event, I love the place, the food was great, and the company too, as always!
Thanks Ruggy and Calexico staff for putting all of this together, I was a great night!

Happy Birthday! Calexico’s 1 year birthday with a brick a mortar. I’m a fan of their carts all over the city but never been to their brick an mortar in in the LES. It’s actually quite a great establishment. Thanks Dave (the owner) and crew for putting together some great grub and hosting us. Thanks Ruggy for another great early week event.
If you’ve never had Calexico it’s definitely a must try for their south of the border cuisine. I was quite a big fan of their chicken quesadilla’s. Nice grilled chicken, cheese, and flat topped grilled tortilla’s with some great flavor. Crisp and soft at the same time. Though it’s not complete without the famous crack sauce. So divine. Accompanies any of their dishes well. It’s a must try side dipping sauce. Another hit for me were the fish tacos with mango. Yum.
Nice celebratory atmosphere and well mixed drinks of mojitos and margaritas. As always a great event.
I’m sure to be back here for more of their south of the border food.

I wish my first birthday was this cool.
At my first birthday there was just some party hats, one lousy cake and some clown, but hey at least I can at least say he showed up. Not all fathers attend their kid’s first birthday.
I mean my first birthday didn’t even have any good food, music or alcohol. Lame!
Now this was a way to celebrate a birthday. Calexico really knew how to do it up.
I arrived at six on the dot, expecting tons of people to already by outside. To my surprise I was the first or second person there. Tables, bars and ledges all stocked with chips, guacamole and two kinds of salsa. Awesome. All of it tasted great.
Went up the the bar and ordered up my first margarita. I’m not the biggest margarita fan, but these were excellent. I tipped pretty nice off the bat which helped me get a drink the second I finished another, for the rest of the evening. I kept switching between the regular margarita which I already mentioned was great and a jalapeño infused one. I asked for it without the mint (I hate mint) and they were happy to please me. I love a drink with some kick, and this was roundhouse to the face.
I didn’t want to grab a whole table, so I just ponied up at the corner of the bar which ended up being prime real estate for eating and drinking. My roommate arrived a little late, but still with enough time to partake in the deliciousness. The tacos were unreal. The steak, pork and chicken ones were phenomenal, but of course my favorite is going to be the fish tacos. I freaking love fish tacos and no one does it better than California based restaurants.
The quesadillas were amazing. Super delicious, especially with the «CRACK SAUCE». It’s legit addictive. The mushroom was alright. Lets be honest, I’m a carnivore and vegetables are made to be complimentary dishes. The chicken one was real good, but I nothing compares to a steak quesadilla. My roommate was smart enough to just ask for the crack sauce for the both of us. We were swimming in it. Not literally, though I would consider doing that.
Eventually I switched over to pacifico beers to wash down all my food. There wasn’t much room left in my stomach. I eventually had to decline food. This was a fantastic event.
Thank you so much Calexico and it’s staff. I had an amazing time celebrating your first birthday with you. Big thanks to Ruggy for setting up a truly magnificent event.

Mad chill yet mad fun!
You know spring is in the air (at long last) when I arrived to a completely open-​fronted restaurant, a spring breeze blowing around L.E.S. Greeted by staff and a dapper Ruggy, my darling Hilary P. and I made our way to a table early to catch up over epic guacamole and rounds of margaritas. The small spot filled up fast; admittedly, this was an event in which I nary recognized any other elites! (Here’s hoping this is a new round for 2014 and welcome, y’all!) Unfortunately, Hilary and I kind of got trapped at our table due to the large crowd after a point in time, so mingling was a bit tricky, but it was no matter! Soon, a nice fellow named Rashid sat down at one of our empty chairs, and we all became BFFs instantaneously. :-)
I can honestly say I have never been so well-​fed at an Elite event. This was the first time that I think I had to legit turn food away towards the end because my stomach was filled to capacity! I was able to sample the chicken tacos, chicken quesadillas, and carne asada quesadillas. I loved them all, and must say that the steak in the carne asada quesadillas was spot on! Oh, and the crack sauce? YES. Just… yes. For drinks, I tried the regular margarita (the real lime juice made me pucker!) and the cucumber cilantro margarita (always a winning flavor combination).
Finally, towards the end of the evening, the owners and staff made a brief speech, thanking us for coming and telling us a short history of their business. I could tell they were genuinely humbled by our support, and I think I speak for all of the Unilocalers there last night that we were glad to celebrate this milestone with them.
I was excited to start my week off right, as I am on Spring Break and this might be my last opportunity to enjoy any very happy hours until I finish my grad school capstone in in June! (Oh…goodness…) Thanks as always Ruggy and Unilocal,and thanks to the staff of Calexico for a wonderful evening. Happy Anniversary! :-)

This is definitely one of the best Unilocal events I’ve been to! Margaritas and Mondays usually don’t mix, but today it’s going great.
Mmm, legit margaritas with real lime juice (any margarita fan will know lime prices have skyrocketed lately due to Mexican drug cartels), quesadillas with crack sauce, steak tacos, and perfectly salted homemade tortilla chips.
Thanks Ruggy J and Unilocal for yet another fabulo time!