THE GOSSIPING GOURMET: Southwest fusion cuisine in Laguna

You probably don’t think of Coyote Grill as a place for fusion cuisine but, in fact, it serves not only the advertised Baja Style, but also Tex-Mex, Caribbean and good old American favorites.

As best we can discover, Baja Style is defined by the fish taco. Mexicans living in coastal areas have probably been eating fish tacos since the year 1, but the port city of Ensenada claims to be the birthplace of this legendary fast food with the opening of the first taco stand in the Mercado Negro in 1958. In 1983, a San Diegan gentleman by the name of Rubio was so enamored with this seafood snack that he convinced the owner of his favorite stand to give him the recipe and thus Rubio’s fish tacos were born. The earliest and maybe tastiest incarnation of this savory street food involves battered fried fish served with shredded cabbage, sour cream and salsa, wrapped in a corn or flour tortilla with garnishes of lime and cilantro.

Health-conscious California restaurateurs now offer the fish grilled as well. This is the way they serve it at Coyote Grill with tomatoes, onions and squash on the side. Other Baja influences show up in Lobster Puerto Nuevo, fresh fish and seafood dishes.

Most of what we eat in Mexican restaurants everywhere, with the exception of Mexico, is really Tex-Mex, characterized by lots of melted yellow cheese, red or green sauce and an abundance of carbs. Nachos, chips and salsa, combo plates and fajitas are all north-of-the-border fusion dishes.

Here, there are a goodly number of American comfort food offerings as well, starting with the popular holdover from the Cove, (the previous incarnation at this location) the eponymous Southern fried chicken served with garlic mashed potatoes. They also come with the baby back ribs or the blackened New York steak. Coyote’s one nod to “island” cuisine is coconut shrimp in beer batter, served with fresh fruit salsa.

Whatever you’re in the mood for, you will be ingesting it along with an ocean view, either on their large patio or from the two smaller indoor dining rooms. You might even catch a glimpse of it from the lively thatched roof, palapa style bar, which takes up most of the front room, where the margaritas and beer flow endlessly.