Mexican restaurant Maiz reopens on Enmore Road with late-night mezcal bar

Mexican restaurant Maiz is the latest addition to Enmore Road’s growing late-night hospitality scene, following its relocation from King Street to the former Hartsyard space.

The 65-seat restaurant launched on January 18, celebrating with live music and its new corn cerveza beer “Maisie”, a collaboration with Alexandria craft brewer Yulli’s Brews.

Puebla-born executive chef and co-owner Juan Carlos Negrete says this will be the most ambitious Maiz venture yet, offering an expanded food menu, dedicated mezcal bar (with house-made “mezcalcello”, a take on limoncello), and extended opening hours.

The restaurant began as a COVID-era market stall selling sopes (thicker, fried corn tortillas topped with a variety of savoury toppings) at Summer Hill, before expanding into an Oaxacan-style brunch spot in a converted Newtown backpackers hostel. A year later Maiz launched its popular dinner service, which featured in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide.

“The lease at King Street was finishing and, even though it was a charming building, we needed a change,” says Negrete.

“We were booking out almost every weekend, and it was becoming pretty challenging to [accommodate] that growth.”

The new space is inspired by the earthy minimalism of contemporary Mexican restaurants Negrete saw on recent travels to Mexico City, Oaxaca and Puebla.

“It was so refreshing to become immersed again in my own culture and see the food and drink scene blossoming over there,” he says. “I wanted to bring that energy back with me to Enmore Road.”

The updated menu retains its focus on corn as the foundation of Mexican cuisine, featuring fan favourites esquites, tamales and sopes, but with greater seasonal and regional variation.

“I want to showcase all the ways corn is used across the country, from Baja California to Oaxaca,” Negrete says. But Maiz’s longstanding “no taco” rule still applies, encouraging diners to step outside their comfort zone.

Maiz’s drink selection has also broadened to include a selection of house-made mezcal infusions using seasonal produce such as cherries and blood oranges. While the kitchen will close at 9pm, the bar will remain open with snacks until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

Enmore Road was chosen, in part, for its recent Inner West Council designation as a Special Entertainment Precinct, which offers extended trading hours to businesses hosting live entertainment. The designation has led to a bustling nighttime hospitality scene, with recent arrivals including The Trocadero Room, Steki’s Taverna, and Bondi Tony’s Burger Joint.

“The new space allows us to operate later on nights we offer DJs or cultural events, so [we] will have a big push on bringing music and arts into the space,” Negrete says.

Open Tue-Thu 5-9pm, Fri 5pm-midnight, Sat noon-3pm and 5pm-midnight.

33 Enmore Road, Newtown, maizmexicanfood.com