Note: I just received an email from the owners alerting its customers that Esquina’s concept will be changing…..the cuisine will be Mediterranean in focus, and will offer table rather than counter service. The restaurant will close temporarily on Feb. 10 and reopen for business on Feb. 19. I’m posting this anyway, but be aware that you only have 5 short days to sample Esquina’s delicious fare in its current form!

Esquina is the brainchild of Molly and Robert Krause of the beloved and now closed Krause dining. Having a restaurant in their home was all-consuming, so they turned to more casual endeavors. Hence Esquina and its sister restaurant and neighbor on Mass Ave., the Burger Stand at the Casbah.

If Esquina was in Kansas City, I would be a frequent visitor (hear that Robert and Molly?). As it is, I have to content myself with a fix or two during basketball season, and that’s only if I’m not sampling the competition… there are certainly a multitude of fun and fabulous restaurants in Lawrence.

Logistically the restaurant is similar to Spin, where diners order and pay at the counter, and then a server delivers food directly to the table. You have to fetch your own silverware and soft drinks, but if you order from the bar, your alcoholic beverage will be brought to the table as well. Service is quick and friendly, and no one will shoo along those who choose to linger. The Gringo margarita is hard to beat at a ridiculously low $2.50.

Each meal comes with complimentary chips and homemade fire-roasted salsa. Though my husband could easily have made a meal from them, he was also enthralled by the trio of sauces that are at the table, the way ketchup and mustard would be featured at a burger joint. Diners can add either jerk, chipotle and/or a fiery habanaro sauce to any order, allowing customization and individual heat adjustment.

On my first visit, I had a bowl of posole, which was prepared in the finest Mexican tradition. It’s broth based, with spoonfuls of hominy and shredded pork, and topped with radish and avocado slices. A bit salty for my taste, but I tend to undersalt my food so I am especially sensitive to it.

I always gravitate towards chilaquiles when I see them on a menu, as each chef puts its own spin on a dish that was originally invented as a way to use up leftover tortillas. A layered tortilla casserole, it is baked with a chipotle tomato sauce that soaks into the tortillas. In some renditions the tortillas retain a bit of crunch; this one was soft and the layers became one. It was then topped with two fried eggs and, to gild the lily, a queso sauce. Made for the novice Mexican food eater, it will appeal to those with tame tastebuds. I’m a “the spicier the better” kind of gal, but it was still rich and satisfying.

Even better was the El Jefe burrito I recently enjoyed. Aptly described on the menu as a GIANT burrito, it is stuffed with garlic potatoes, slaw, rice, beans and smothered in sauces. When I asked the woman at the register what the sauces would be, she told me there was a red sauce, a green sauce and a cheese sauce, and as you can see from the photo, they all run together into yummy goodness. I’d order it again in a heartbeat.

Everyone else at the table ordered enchiladas, though each with different protein fillings: purple potato and garlic puree filling; chicken and black bean; and shredded pork with pineapple salsa. Though the salsa verde that topped the enchiladas didn’t send anyone over the moon with rapture, there was universal praise for the beans. Smokey and cooked in a rich sauce resembling mole, they were hearty and as exciting as a side of beans can be.

Robert and Molly Krause are both very talented and savvy restaurateurs, and nice people. My only beef with them is that their first foray out of Lawrence was to Topeka, not Kansas City. But hopefully at some point they’ll expand eastward.