El Fish Marisqueria

Amid the shifting rhythms of New York’s Upper West Side, El Fish Marisqueria stands out for its singular focus on coastal Mexican seafood, brought to life at 155 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10023. Included in the Michelin Guide, the restaurant offers a perspective on marisquería traditions that’s both precise and restrained, rooted in time-honored techniques and filtered through a contemporary urban lens. In the kitchen, Chef Julian Medina—a veteran of fine Mexican cuisine in New York—crafts a menu that draws from the Pacific and Gulf coasts of Mexico without overstating its hand. His culinary style leans toward clarity and structure: bright aguachiles layered with acidity, charred pulpo offset by chile oil and lime, and tacos that favor integrity of flavor over excess. Local seafood features prominently, though the through-line remains a disciplined approach to balance, heat, and freshness. El Fish Marisqueria is not a reinterpretation of Mexican food but rather an articulation of its coastal soul, designed with the urban diner in mind. There's a tactile pleasure to the dishes—the snap of fresh shrimp, the cool contrast of cucumber in ceviches—that underscores a commitment to craft over spectacle. Its presence in the Michelin Guide affirms its standing without defining it. What sets it apart is not pageantry, but purpose: a quiet confidence in delivering seafood that speaks with clarity, restraint, and deep regional knowledge, in the heart of Manhattan’s western grid.