Las Brisas Restaurant

When Las Brisas opened back in 1987, it was the first of the white-tablecloth Mexican restaurants, complete with giant swordfish on the walls, high-backed white-wicker chairs and food that's a combination of Mexican standards glamorized by fancy sauces and coastal resort food and kept down to earth by a little abuelita-style Tex-Mex. Las Brisas also did (and still does) tableside guacamole long before those other joints caught on, as well as excellent carnitas and flat enchilada pies. Don't skip the chimichangas that are so bad for you but so good that you don't care.