When people arrive in the scorching Phoenix desert where summers reach 118 degrees and a good day in October brings 90-degree afternoons, an immediate craving is likely not seafood.
Phoenix’s many marisco restaurants beg to differ.
If you set the Google Translate tool from Spanish to English and type in the word “mariscos,” you will get images of an assorted mixture of delicacies of shrimp, scallops and lobster along with the literal English translation of the word: “seafood.”
However, neither the translation nor the images encapsulate the magical mixture of herbs, vegetables and chiles that make mariscos so desired by Mexicans and non-Mexicans alike.
Marisco restaurants dot the landscape of Phoenix in the way the scorching heat plagues our calendar. While this guide helps your journey of getting to know these restaurants up and down Phoenix, it is not a comprehensive list of all the marisco spots the Valley has to offer .
Here are the must-try mariscos of west and south Phoenix.
Sr. Ozzy's Tacos Y Mariscos
Up for some drive-through seafood in south Phoenix?
Before making a trip to the Food City down the road on Southern Avenue, hungry shoppers have the option of stopping at Sr. Ozzy's Tacos Y Mariscos where they'll find 10 different types of tacos and a wide variety of marisco dishes which can be ordered for dine-in or take-out.
Sr. Ozzy offers aguachiles (shrimp cooked in lime, avocado, cucumbers, onion with either red or green sauce), mariscoco (shrimp ceviche or shrimp and crab ceviche served in a coconut shell) and torre mixta (a seafood tower of shrimp ceviche, cooked shrimp, crab ceviche, aguachile, scallop, octopus and abalone).
By the way, these are just the appetizers.
Sr. Ozzy also offers combination plates such as the mojarra frita (a whole fried tilapia) and camarones a la diabla (shrimp cooked in red spicy sauce), served with beans, rice and a salad.
With a menu that's six pages long, you're sure to find something you love at Sr. Ozzy's.
Details: Hours vary, 1717 W. Southern Ave., Ste. 100, Phoenix. https://www.srozzys.com/
El Camaron Gigante Restaurant
This west Valley restaurant's name translates to “big shrimp," and there's a reason for that.
Inside the walls of this faux fish-adorned, nautical-themed restaurant and bar, customers love the shrimp cucarachas — its literal translation shrimp roaches — a delicacy of garlic, salt and butter-coated, four-inch-long grilled shrimp.
Customers can also dig into a single order of shrimp ceviche at El Camaron Gigante Restaurant, which is usually served in a curved white dish that resembles a large gravy boat, arguably large enough to feed two people.
Details: Monday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., 8343 W Van Buren St, Tolleson, AZ 85353. https://www.facebook.com/thegiantshrimp/
Mariscos El Dorado Sin II
Here, it's all about the Mexican sushi.
Some key differences between traditional rolls often viewed as “true sushi” and the signature “El Dorado, Sin” on this south Phoenix restaurant's menu is the roll’s exterior which is baked, fried and covered in queso Chihuahua, chipotle and eel sauce.
Along with Philadelphia cheese and avocado beneath the crunchy exterior, the “El Dorado, Sin” shrimp and surimi interior is wrapped in rice and seaweed like most sushi rolls. Roasted chile gueros come included with the meal.
If visitors to this Southern Avenue Staple are not interested in one of the 24 sushi rolls, Mariscos El Dorado Sin II offers 11 different marisco tostadas and a wide variety of seafood cocktails, molcajete-centered dishes, burritos, tacos and seafood appetizers.
Details: Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., 5630 S. Central Ave., Phoenix. https://eldoradosin.com/
Rita's Mexican Food & Mariscos
Sometimes, all you want are the classics.
With its antique-looking furniture, brightly covered walls adorned with metal piñatas and touches of ceramic tile throughout, customers will feel like they stepped into someone's — maybe even their grandma’s — home at Rita's Mexican Food & Mariscos.
On this west Phoenix restaurant's menu, customers will find classic dishes such as the chile relleno, the kid’s menu classic chicken nuggets, and the marisco extravagant “Mariscos al Vapor,” a seafood mix tossed in veggies and house spices containing steamed fish, snail, shrimp and octopus — a perfect dish for fall weather.
Rita’s also offers a variety of caldos (soups) such as their shrimp, fish or siete mares (seven seas) caldo which contains fish, shrimp, scallops, clams and crab legs.
Details: Monday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. 1402 N. 35th Ave., Phoenix. https://ritasphxaz.com/
Mariscos Playa Hermosa
Ok, so this final contender isn't in south or west Phoenix, but we couldn't write up a guide on mariscos without including the restaurant that puts Phoenix mariscos on the map.
The extensive coverage by The Arizona Republic, La Voz Arizona and other local news outlets along with the over 34.5 thousand followers on Instagram is enough to show just how much people love this colorful, nautical-themed restaurant off 16th Street in central Phoenix.
If you are one of the few unlucky souls who have not tried their dishes, head over and try the Huachinango, a large fried Brazilian red snapper.
For the stomach-growling, starving individuals who walk into Mariscos Playa Hermosa, the Molcajete Caliente is calling their name. This massive dish is served in a heated molcajete and includes carne asada, fried fish, grilled shrimp and grilled chicken, along with the option to add grilled octopus tail cooked in a green salsa culichi (a salsa used to enhance the flavor of seafood) or spicy diabla (a spicy red salsa).
Details : Sunday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., 1605 E Garfield St., Phoenix. https://www.mariscosplayahermosa.com/
Reach La Voz reporter David Ulloa Jr. at david.ulloa@gannett.com .
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Seafood in the desert: A rookie's guide to Phoenix's Mexican marisco scene
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