The Initial Word on La Fisheria Mexican Seafood Cocina

When La Fisheria opened in February, every story about the new restaurant focused on chef Aquiles Chávez, who came to Houston firmly established as a celebrity chef throughout Latin America. In fact, last week came word that Chávez will soon be featured on a new reality show documenting his experiences leaving Mexico and opening the restaurant. Despite the chef's credentials, Houstonians are not yet certain what to think about the new arrival. Certain dishes, such as the Dos Leches, receive almost universal praise, but service issues and a perception of high prices have prevented diners from displaying more enthusiasm.

The Bad News: Steve, writing on Houston Restaurant Guide b4-u-eat, did not think La Fisheria delivered very good value. He writes: "One visit for lunch [was] enough for me when you have to spend $55.00 for main course and appetizer. Food is good but very expensive for the price you have to pay and small portions. My wife had the waiter bring some corn tortillas since this place is Mexican and this is like getting bread at Italian restaurant for free. I was shocked when we got the bill and there was charge for $4.50 stating "misc. food". We asked the waiter what was this for and he said for the tortillas (5 of them) in total. I can go to Fiesta, HEB and buy 50 tortillas for $4.50. I would go back if somebody is paying. Also, the environment and surroundings is surely not worth the price you have to pay." [b4-u-eat]

The It's Really Authentic News: On TripAdvisor, user mdugh praised La Fisheria for its authenticity: "This is what food in Mexico is (for those of you who haven't been). The food is very nicely presented and tasted great! Fresh ingredients and great flavors. I LOVED their tuna tostadas and their ceviche! Our amuse-bouche was like a "consome de camaron" really good." [TripAdvisor]

The Recent Mixed News: From an UrbanSpoon post written last week, user Kate is highly enthused about La Fisheria: "Great atmosphere. We got the ceviche verde, Vuelve a la Vida soup and Dos Leches. The stand out dish was the Dos Leches. It was served with a wonderful berry sorbet that really made the flavor experience unique. Like another review said, the ceviche was only huachinago fish, so it lacked that textural variety that I like in ceviche, but the green sauce was good. The soup had wonderful, quality selection of fish and seafood, but the broth was a bit too thin and lacked inspiration for my tastes. All in all, a fun place to go for lunch. I would go back, but I hope next time I find the entree to match the Dos Leches!" [UrbanSpoon]

The Exceptional News: On Yelp, user Shawn P thinks he's found a new favorite restaurant in a lengthy write up: "You really have to have eaten these dishes elsewhere and have a distinctive palate to truly appreciate this place. Seriously, the food is amazing. For example, I was blown away by their jamaica. This was the most flavorful jamaica I've ever had, and it had the perfect amount of sweetness, flavor, and was refreshing. I can't explain it, but it was perfect." [Yelp]

The Yelper Disappointed by the Service News: Michael M liked the food but found La Fisheria's service lackluster: "I went again for lunch yesterday and had a grilled octopus taco, which was delicious, and the salmon carpaccio, which was excellent but cut so thin there was maybe one ounce of fish total. I should have ordered more but was being treated to lunch so I left hungry. Unfortunately, the service was very bad this time, it took 15 minutes for a waiter to visit our table. He brought drinks then ran off and another 10 minutes passed before he took our food order." [Yelp]

· All La Fisheria Coverage on Eater Houston [-EHOU-]