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De Mole, an unassuming Mexican restaurant, offers vibrant dishes whose sophistication easily surpasses your average cantina. Chef Ramiro Mendez is the reason. This Puebla native spent nearly a decade cooking at El Teddy’s—Tribeca’s glittery Mexican spot of the nineties—before opening his own place in Woodside. Yet while he’s recreated many favorites from the old digs, the setting at the new space couldn’t be more different. Ther tables are variously topped with marble, tile, and wood, while the miniscule bar democratizes the drinks by dispensing licuados, a kind of fruity milkshake. You might think the menu too typical at first glance with its burritos, enchiladas, and tacos, but check out the appetizers. The tamal de rajas con queso is exemplary, its moist, white-corn cake oozing cheese with savory Poblano peppers. Ceviche de Veracruz is a lime juice–soaked, cilantro-perfumed, hodgepodge of tomatoes, avocado, cucumbers, onions, and flounder. If the mains can’t always match the pace, they at least aren’t simply pedestrian. — Michael Anstendig

Fresh corn tamales with rajas con queso, $1.75; guacamole, $6.75; ceviche de Veracruz, $6.50; enchiladas verdes con espinaca, $11