In Tipsy and Full News: El Gordo Seafood on West Davis Is a Charmer

El Gordo Seafood, on West Davis Street near the Bishop Arts District, has a big patio, a great setting for seafood and a cold cocktail. This is the second location of the restaurant, which specializes in ceviches and seafood boils. The space is owned by West Dallas native Jose Ornelas, who has always aspired to own a restaurant. Eddy Giron oversees the kitchen.
We went on a recent Saturday, with perfect weather for al fresco dining. We started with a house cocktail, a Palomaza made with tequila, grapefruit and Squirt and served in a decorative clay jar; the rim was coated in Chamoy and Tajin. It's showy — the type of drink that when one rolls out, several more will follow. Although that can be said for most of the drinks here.
There's an interior dining room and a bar on one side, but the heart of the restaurant is the patio in front that runs the length of the building. It's perfect for seafood boils, which are one of the most popular menu items here; bags range from $30 to $65 and include items like shrimp and crab legs with all of the trimmings, depending on what you order. Giron says the house sauce is the most popular spice flavor. Big platters of ceviche and aquachile are also popular.

We went with the ceviche ($16), served on a long rectangular tray with more than enough seafood and avocado for two of us. We had a hard time polishing it off despite a good effort. Fresh, light and sprinkled in citrus, this was a beautiful accompaniment to a nice May day.
When we asked our server, "What's good here?" he suggested the Cajun pasta ($19), which threw us off at first. But we soon learned why he did. This dish comes stuffed within an inch of its life with cheese and protein. The thick cream sauce is laden with shredded Parmesan. Big shrimp and sausage coins are tossed in the penne pasta and a large slicked chicken breast sits atop it all. Again, two of us couldn't finish it. We brought a full serving home.

We can imagine long afternoons on the patio with several more drinks, which several parties were knee-deep in. The service was particularly fantastic, too: They actually apologized for bringing our drinks out so fast. "It's not pre-made, I promise. Our bartender is just super fast." Nice.

El Gordo Seafood, 451 W. Davis St. Sunday – Thursday, 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.; Friday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.