Dos Caminos at Harrah's: Where Mexico meets the Marina

The tortilla chips were large, fresh and crispy. They came with a selection of three sauces. The green one is tomatillo verde, the dark red in the middle is roasted tomato and the golden one on the end was habañero sauce, which definitely lived up to its name!My husband's drink choice was a traditional Dos Equis Mexican beer. Although both of us prefer the heartier dark ales, Dos Equis has a very pleasant flavor for an amber beer. The touch of lime made it just perfect.My drink choice was the Prickly Pear Margarita, which is the traditional Margarita blended with cactus fruit and strawberry. This one was served frozen with salt on the rim. Very tasty! View the list »
Dos Caminos is located on the 2nd floor of Harrah's, right above the Concert Venue showroom

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When you’re in Atlantic City and you want Mexican food. . . really good Mexican food, you need to head for the Marina and follow the signs to Harrah’s. There you will find Dos Caminos, a Mexican restaurant second to none in décor, service and exquisitely fine food. Recently, I had the pleasure of dining at Dos Caminos as a guest of Harrah’s and Caesars Entertainment.

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It was a Saturday night, so it was crowded. We had a reservation and were seated quickly in a comfortable booth. The décor of Dos Caminos is warm and inviting, with terra cotta and beige walls mixed with warm woods. Latin contemporary music plays in the background to enhance the atmosphere.

Our waitress, Joanna, was there in a flash and that set the pace for the evening. She was attentive and prompt, constantly making recommendations and explaining the dishes to us. The service she provided was above and beyond excellent.

We started out with drinks. I’m not much of a margarita drinker, but when in Rome, et cetera. I chose the Prickly Pear margarita which came frozen with salt. It was very tasty and just the right size. My husband chose a classic Dos Equis Mexican beer.

We were immediately served a huge bowl of tortilla chips with three dipping sauces. One was a fairly mild tomatillo verde, one was a roasted tomato that had a bit of a bite to it and one was a habañero sauce that had a lot of bite to it. They were all good, but we had to take it easy on the habañero.

We had been told over and over that we had to try the handmade, fresh guacamole, so that was our appetizer. The guacamole lived up to its reputation. We chose mild, but you can also choose medium or hot. The dipping sauces mixed nicely with it. I love guacamole and I can honestly say this was the smoothest guacamole I have ever eaten.

While we were consuming the appetizers, we were paid a visit by two of the chefs. We met Chef Anthony Amoroso who is involved with several rooms at Harrah’s. He was actually working in Bill’s Bar & Burger that night, but stopped up to say hello. Chef Anthony is quite famous, actually. He won Iron Chef America in the famous Battle Branzino in 2009, beating one of the world's great Iron Chefs, Masaharu Morimoto.

We also had a visit from Chef Paul Hoelter, the actual room chef for Dos Caminos. He explained to us that the guacamole is so good because Dos Caminos only uses a certain type of Mexican avocado and nothing else. It’s what produces the smooth, creamy texture and excellent flavor.

By this time, our entrees were arriving. If you’d like to see what we had to eat, click the “View the List” button for photographs and detailed descriptions of the dishes.

The evening went by all too soon. The atmosphere was cozy, the service was phenomenal and the food was amazing at Dos Caminos. We will definitely visit again.

I can’t let this review close without mentioning Ben Linn, Assistant Manager for Dos Caminos. When our waitress was busy, Ben came by to explain things, see if we needed anything or to try to tempt us with one more dish. I watched him. It wasn’t just for us. Ben was all over that room providing excellent service to all his customers.

Dos Caminos is located on the 2nd floor of Harrah’s Atlantic City, right above the Concert Venue showroom. It’s casual Mexican dining with an average entrée price of $25. There is a full drink menu featuring specialty tequilas and reservations are recommended.

Dos Caminos is open Wednesday through Thursday, 5:30 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 5 to 11 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. on Sunday. To make your reservation or get more information, please call 877-346-4642. Parties and special events can be arranged.

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  • My drink choice was the Prickly Pear Margarita, which is the traditional Margarita blended with cactus fruit and strawberry. This one was served frozen with salt on the rim. Very tasty! 
  • My husband's drink choice was a traditional Dos Equis Mexican beer. Although both of us prefer the heartier dark ales, Dos Equis has a very pleasant flavor for an amber beer. The touch of lime made it just perfect.
  • The tortilla chips were large, fresh and crispy. They came with a selection of three sauces. The green one is tomatillo verde, the dark red in the middle is roasted tomato and the golden one on the end was habañero sauce, which definitely lived up to its name!
  • The guacamole at Dos Caminos is made fresh. They only use one type of Mexican avocado which gives it a wonderful flavor and the most creamy texture of any guacamole you'll ever eat. You can select mild, medium or hot.
  • I had the Grilled Shrimp Quesadilla, which is a crispy flour tortilla, chile-marinated shrimp, smoked mushrooms and oven-dried tomatoes, drizzled with Mexican cheeses. As you can see, it was as big as the dinner plate. It was cut into four sections. With the price of seafood lately, I've had some dinners where you had to play "find the shrimp." Not here. There were several medium-size juicy shrimp on each quarter, all tender and delicious. 
  • My husband chose the Carne Parrillada from the Fajita-Style Cazuela menu. It's made up of grilled sirloin, smoked bacon, poblano chiles, guacamole and cotija cheese, served with warm soft tortillas and Mexico City street corn, which is a spiced portion of corn on the cob mounted on a stick. 
  • The Carne Parrillada was also served with generous portions of black refried beans and red Mexican rice. The spicing was just right, not too bland and not too hot.
  • This cake was so moist and flavorful. . . well, that's why you only see a little piece of it here. We took a little taste and dove in, forgetting to get a photo. It's a nice size piece of cake garnished with fresh tropical fruit cerviche and mint. We also has the Chocolate Covered Pretzel Flan to sample. That's a delicious flan with salted cajeta caramel underneath and the whole thing is topped with pieces of chocolate covered pretzels. It was also excellent. No picture of that either. However, if we had to choose, it would be the Tres Leches cake. 
  • Chef Anthony is famous at Harrah's and around the world. Why? He beat famed Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto at the Battle Branzino in 2009. He's also a marathoner. Chef Anthony presides over several rooms at Harrah's, including Dos Caminos.
  • The room chef at Dos Caminos is Chef Paul Hoelter. Chef Paul paid us a visit and told us about making the wonderful guacamole that Dos Caminos is famous for. He also explained some of the preparation techniques for the various dishes and gave us more information about Dos Caminos.
  • The décor at Dos Caminos is Mexican, as you would expect. This is the front wall by the door with cut-out crosses. It's a plain, but striking presentation with a Spanish mission effect. 
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, Atlantic City Pop Media Examiner

Carla Ives is a Jill of All Trades, master of a few. She's a ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, part-time history teacher and a self-confessed movie lover. When not doing any of that, you can probably find her reading something historical on her Kindle or strolling on the beaches near...

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