New Fort Worth Mexican Restaurant El Chingon Wants You to Know It’s Very ‘Badass’

A nightclub and hotspot that promises to bring “bad-ass Mexican” food to Fort Worth is set to open at 2800 Bledsoe Street on December 18.

El Chingon comes to Texas from San Diego, where it was founded in 2017. The Fort Worth location, in the Cultural District, is the second for El Chingon, but the group behind the nightclub also owns a number of San Diego eateries, including a speakeasy-themed bar called Prohibition and a Cuban restaurant called Havana 1920.

The restaurant leans heavily into the “bad ass” theme. The menu includes dishes like fire-roasted elote, “Bad Ass” fajitas flambéed tableside with tequila, and cheesy birria tacos. There are margaritas, of course, as well as other cocktails, like the Pancho Villa, made with banco tequila, lime juice, salt and choice of Jarritos; and the TJ 1920, a combination of Olmeca Altos Reposado, Mexican Coca-Cola reduction, cherry apple bitters and sarsaparilla bitters. All of El Chingon’s cocktails can be made “bad ass” style: served in a goblet with a Tajín rim, Dulces Tipicos Jabalina Xtreme candy straw and a paleta. The Super Bad Ass Madero, an oversized shareable cocktail, is made with a bottle of Azuñia Blanco Tequila, house-made watermelon cordial and lime, and served in a halved-watermelon.

The massive 6,000-square-foot space promises to be a “prime party destination,” with Instagrammable interior design meant to “capture the spirit of Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa and his pistoleros.” Those details include art inspired by Mexican culture, a pair of 10-foot-high hand-carved Calavera sugar skull doors, and an Airstream trailer hand-painted by local artist. Nothing evokes the spirit of a Mexican revolutionary like the restaurant’s Instagram page, which shows Mexican flag bikini-clad bartenders and revelers in serapes and sombreros, nary a mask in sight.

That party-like atmosphere will extend from happy hour to the early dawn with DJs, “bad ass” drink packages, taco and tequila flights with bottle service and Sundias, a series of day parties complete with brunch offerings and cocktail specials.

The Fort Worth location will open with a weekend of such parties. Find tickets on El Chingon’s website.