Dining out with my Sous Chef is an all too rare but greatly enjoyable experience, being able to kick back and relax and have others cook for us. We’re also quite picky and always looking for new things to try. With this in mind Sons of Baja was chosen to celebrate her birthday as we were both keen to check out the new kids on the block.

First thought walking in was that it’s quite a large and foreboding place but they’ve done well to split it up into a number of areas depending on what you’re looking for, with comfortable lounge areas, large bars for groups of friends and individual tables for dining. It’s all very casual with windows looking out onto the street and an open kitchen taking centre stage. There’s a number of bottles of different chilli sauces scattered around the place to add more seasoning if you so wish and a large easel holds a sign proudly proclaiming what craft beers are on tap at the moment.

The Baja Cider didn’t come with any description on the menu but I’m always interested in trying new ciders. At first a bit too sweet and then a bit too gingery (I detest ginger as an additive in drinks) it came together quickly to redeem itself and become quite a tasty and unique drop. The Virgin Mojito was really good as well and was great to see a lot of thought put into the non-alcoholic drinks menu as well as some extremely reasonable prices, $3.50 for the mocktail.

The lunch menu is a more concise offering than the dinner and lacks the larger share plates I was initially looking forward to trying but it’s also got a lot to get excited about. Fans of Hobart favourites Chulo and Taco Taco will recognise the heritage behind it but it has certainly matured here.

We shared the ceviche and it got things along to a great start. I’m a big fan of the dish and it was fantastic to see on offer here. It was all very fresh and light and tangy, well seasoned too.

As expected, the tacos were delicious.

Battered Fish, Pickled Cabbage, Chipotle Crema, Guacamole originally had us unsure. Appearing as a chunk of flake in a shell it quickly revealed itself to be a tender piece of crispy fish matched well with some acidity  and creaminess.

Spicy Fried Cauliflower, Peanut Slaw was the vegetarian option and stood up to the others in flavour. The cauliflower delicious, perhaps a touch too salty, but the peanut ‘slaw incredible and brought it all together.

Bulgogi Beef, Salted Cucumber, Sesame a playful nod to Korea and a delicious one.

All were extremely well priced and made for a great lunch.

Being a celebration dessert was needed, but alas nothing was offered on the menu! Our friendly waitstaff were kind enough to go check and the kitchen team thankfully were able to do us something from the dinner menu.

And it was amazing.

Paletas are an Mexican type of icy pole and they had a choice of 3 on offer but we went for the most interesting sounding one. It really was quite delicious with the chipotle sauce being a highlight in its complexity of depth and heat matched beautifully with the flavoursome banana ice and the crunch on top. We talked about it in to dinner service that night and was definitely the highlight of an enjoyable lunch.

All up it was certainly an excellent experience and one I’d recommend. As mentioned they do a different dinner menu which has been favourably reviewed by Living and Loving Hobart. I’m very much keen to go check out some more.

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