Having already created hit concepts Taqueria Ramirez and Carnitas Ramirez, restaurateurs Giovanni Cervantes and Tania Apolinar are part of the team looking to open a seafood bar in the West Village called El Camaron Peludo. Set to open in mid-summer, it will be located at 20 Cornelia St., a long, narrow space that used to be the Silver Apricot
Cervantes recently told What Now New York that El Camaron Peludo is partly inspired by the chance to collaborate with Mexico City-born chef Carlos Barrera, with whom he had done pop-ups and grown to know over the past year.
“We both share the same interest in food, particularly food from Mexico City,” Cervantes said. “There’s a huge scene of Mexican seafood that we were really, really interested in and wanting to explore.”
El Camaron Peludo will be a small space, with primarily bar seating, that can accommodate 25 guests. Cervantes said the size of the space pushed the restaurant concept into that of a seafood bar serving elevated small plates.
“This will allow us to concentrate more on the drinks, but also on the presentation of the food,” he said. “It will still be casual, but with an emphasis on wine, and food that we also love.”
When the restaurant opens this summer, the menu will include dishes like shrimp aguachile, tuna tostada, and sardine tacos. While Mexican cuisine will be the primary influence, Cervantes said the kitchen will also pull influences from Spain, France, and other regions. He emphasized that the menu would aim to be ingredient-driven.
“We want to let the product speak for itself and put that forward as the center of the experience, rather than trying to invest too much in, like, dressing it up,” he said.
The owners are currently seeking a beer and wine license, and Cervantes said wine will be a major focus. He said the wine menu would focus on light and refreshing wines, with a special spotlight on bubbles and natural wines.
“The food is light, and we want our wines to be cold and easy to drink,” he said. “We joke sometimes about having wines that you can give to a kid, and they think it tastes delicious. Because they’re just like, crushable.”
