Empellon is located in the West Village, along one of those cute little streets that makes me think I’m far from the Big Apple. (But could someone tell me how West 4th St. and West 10th St. can logically intersect?) Recently opened by Alex Stupak, the former pastry chef of WD-50 is garnering some nice reviews.

The restaurant consists of two rooms. The front room is disturbingly loud, but we were fortunate to be placed in the back room. Perhaps they seat the pretty people in front, but we lucked out without knowing it at the time. The white brick walls and eclectic art in the back room are also more serene than the wild mural that dominates that scene as you walk in the door.

It may seem too pedestrian, but be sure to accompany your margarita or beer with the chips and salsa.  Four gorgeous salsas come to the table with a beautiful explanation of their ingredients, including chipotle, tomatillos, pumpkin, guajillo chiles, peanuts and cashews.  Try as we might, the two of us couldn’t decide which was our favorite of the bunch.

Ceviches are a specialty here, including black bass with beets and guava puree and big eye tuna with Salsa Mexicana. We opted for an unusual riff, and tried the octopus with parsnip and Salsa Papanteca (with chipotle and pumpkin seeds.)   Though I admired the creativity, it was hard to distinguish the flavors and seemed surprisingly one-dimensional.

Queso Fundido is another appetizer with some intriguing variations. Instead of the typical melted cheese for scooping onto warm tortillas, chorizo, pea tendrils  or mushrooms can be added to the mix. We skipped this, and went right for the tacos, which comprise the bulk of the menu.

We wanted to sample as many varieties as we could, so got the appetizer portion of each. They can be ordered as an appetizer (2 to an order) or entree (3 to an order but still no side dishes).

The scallop tacos were incredible. I thought I’d seen it all when it comes to tacos, and though I’ve made scallop nachos, it never occurred to me to translate that concept to a soft tortilla, rolled up with orange and silky habanero sauce with avocado puree.

Skirt steak is a favorite of mine  in general and this was prepared sous vide (under vacuum) to an ideal medium rare. With garlic and lime mojo de ajo, it hit the spot.

The lamb barbacoa has online reviewers drooling, but we went for the duck confit instead and were not disappointed. (It’s not currently on the menu, so try the lamb!)

Other options for taco fillings include lobster, chicken, pork, sweetbreads and tongue.

My benchmark for this kind of upscale Mexican meal is Frontera Grill in Chicago. Did Empellon measure up? In some respects, yes, though the overall experience was not as transcending. But it’s a nice change of pace from the kind of evening you’d have at Gotham Bar, Gramercy Tavern, Babbo, or Marea.