Restauranteur Nick Apostle opens Mexican grill in Canton

04.30.2014

Nick’s Cilantro Mexican Grill, the latest concept of Jackson chef and restaurateur Nick Apostle, is now open on the Square in Canton.

Located at 108 W. Center St. in the space that once housed Davidson’s restaurant and catering, the restaurant is full-service. Open for lunch and dinner, it now sells only beer until its liquor license comes through.

Nick’s Cilantro Mexican Grill is the third restaurant for Apostle, who is also known for Nick’s in the Fondren neighborhood of Jackson and Mermaid Café at Lake Caroline in Madison County.

The total investment in the project is $75,000 to $80,000, which included some restaurant equipment, said Matt Taylor, general manager of Nick’s Cilantro Mexico Grill. The restaurant employs 25-28 people.

Apostle is developing plans for another restaurant in Canton in a location about two blocks off the Square, Taylor said.

“Our director of operations lives in Canton, and we’ve been eying a few pieces of property,” he said. ‘It’s a place with so much potential.”

The Nissan manufacturing plant is nearby, and it’s about a 15-minute drive on I-55 from Jackson to Canton, even closer from Madison or Gluckstadt, Taylor said.

Taylor characterizes the menu as authentic Mexican food with sauces made fresh daily and recipes that utilize a variety of peppers from Arizona, New Mexico and Mexico and cheeses such as Cojita and Chihuahua.

Appetizers range in price from $5-$12; sandwiches, $9-$10; tacos, $9-$12; enchiladas, $10-$14; burritos $10-$14; salads, $12-$14; and entrees $12 to $26.

“Two people could share an appetizer and each order an entrée and eat for $30,” Taylor said. That’s without cocktails.

I’d go back just for the chips and salsa. Also delicious: the Cilantro Taco — that contained shredded chicken, black bean puree, sliced avocado, cotija cheese and pickled onions — and the shrimp quesadilla.

A cabinet in the dining room contains 80 to 85 varieties of bottled hot sauce for anyone who dares try one. Anyone who brings a hot sauce that isn’t already in the cabinet will receive a free appetizer, Taylor said.

Jo Ann Gordon, executive director of the Canton Visitors & Convention Bureau, said Nick’s Cilantro Mexican Grill brings a fresh concept from an experienced, well-known chef that she believes will be a draw. Also located on the Square are Subway, Mama Mia’s Pizza, Crazy Tastebud, Union Café and soon-to-open Skillet 506.

Sandy Stater, a lawyer in Canton, said there are plenty of people who do business on the Square to support the new restaurant, provided it delivers good food at a price point that suits diners. “If the food is good, it is reasonably priced and service is good, it will be fine,” he said.

He plans to give Nick’s Cilantro Mexican Grill a try to see if its food justifies prices higher than typical Mexican restaurants. “I’ve watched a lot of restaurants come and go, and one reason they go is because they cost too much,” he said.

The Clarion-Ledger