A new name has gone up at 431 Main Street in downtown Windsor. Karen Arechiga has taken ownership of what was Cancun Mexican Grill & Cantina and reopened it as Casa Mestiza, a Mexican restaurant serving birria quesadillas, volcanic stone bowls and mixed grilled-meat platters out of a storefront that has changed hands more than once in the past several years.
The ownership change was announced in early October, according to Retro 102.5, which reports Arechiga took over the Windsor Cancun location and converted it into Casa Mestiza. The restaurant’s menu, posted on its online ordering page, leans into shareable, hearty plates: a salad loaded with romaine, red cabbage, carrots, spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, avocado, mango, roasted corn, asparagus, orange slices, queso fresco and crispy tortilla strips sits alongside heavier options built for a full meal.
Among those heavier dishes is a volcanic stone bowl filled with grilled steak, chicken and carnitas, plus grilled peppers and onions, cactus and panela cheese, all simmered in what the menu calls its signature green avocado sauce. The birria quesadillas use flour tortillas marinated in consommé and stuffed with melted cheese and birria, per the same online menu. For bigger appetites, a mixed grill platter combines steak, chicken, carnitas, shrimp and Mexican chorizo over a bed of grilled onions and peppers.
A Storefront That Keeps Changing Hands
The 431 Main Street address has seen a string of tenants in recent years. Okole Maluna, a Hawaiian restaurant, operated there for 16 years before closing in late 2020, the station’s earlier report notes. Azu Asian briefly occupied the space from January through August 2021 before Cancun Mexican Grill & Cantina moved in…