Gabriela Cámara Brings a Fresh Take on Surf and Turf to Cantina Contramar in Las Vegas
A lot of people go to Las Vegas and wager on red or black. But for chef Gabriela Cámara, it’s always about betting on red and green.
Cámara will open her highly anticipated Cantina Contramar at Fontainebleau Las Vegas on Saturday, March 28, serving standout dishes like her iconic Pescado a la Talla Contramar. This, of course, is her whole grilled fish with red adobo and parsley rub. This green-and-red fish is the signature item at Mexico City’s Contramar, and it has inspired—and been copied by—many other chefs.
Cantina Contramar will also offer other Contramar greatest hits, like a dessert cart with crowd-pleasers including strawberry meringue. But Cámara wants to cast a wider net in Las Vegas with dishes that take the Contramar brand beyond the seafood and fresh produce it’s known for in Mexico City.
So Cantina Contramar will serve new dishes like wagyu aguachile, rib-eye tiradito, chicken mole enchiladas and braised pork shank in adobo. The expansive menu will also feature Cámara’s version of the cantina-style Caesar salad, a tostada flight that includes Contramar’s popular tuna tostada, caviar-topped sopes and main courses (like slow-cooked short rib) that will be build-your-own-taco experiences with house-made tortillas. This restaurant is very much designed for choose-your-own surf-and-turf adventures.
“I think it’s going to be more inclusive for the public that will visit here in Vegas,” Cámara tells Observer. She hopes that adding lots of meat to Contramar’s repertoire will help grow its audience in Las Vegas.
“I think it’s just going to be more accessible in terms of how one approaches a menu and how one understands the cuisine,” Cámara says. “For many Americans, Mexican food is not necessarily ceviche or seafood in general. It’s tacos. It’s carne asada. And we’re going to make amazing versions of those dishes.”
Cámara has been experimenting with different salsas, moles and adobos as she develops Cantina Contramar’s menu. Charred sweet potato, for example, is served with bone marrow salsa negra.
“We’re going to add a complexity in terms of the flavor and use extraordinary ingredients,” says Cámara, who’s sourcing California-grown meat like Cross Creek Ranch wagyu. “We’re very much looking forward to working with our California purveyors. We’re bringing in cheese from Point Reyes. We’re bringing vegetables from the farmers market in Los Angeles. It’s a real pleasure to be able to cook with these ingredients.”
Cantina Contramar adds to the international flair of the Fontainebleau Las Vegas dining collection, which also includes Alan Yau’s Chyna Club and Washing Potato; Masa Ito and Kevin Kim’s Ito Omakase; David Grutman’s Papi Steak and Komodo; and Evan Funke’s Mother Wolf. This diversity of destination restaurants was no doubt a key factor in Fontainebleau Las Vegas becoming the only Las Vegas casino with a Michelin Key in 2025.
Cantina Contramar will also add celebratory energy to the mix. Alcohol is a key component of any good cantina, so Casa Dragones co-founder Bertha González Nieves is collaborating with Cámara on agave-powered cocktails and showcasing a Casa Dragones tequila flight. Cámara is looking forward to highlighting Mexican agave spirits and showing Vegas guests how well tequila and mezcal pair with food.
Cantina Contramar will have a cart for tableside margaritas and carajillos. “I think that’s going to lead to more festiveness in terms of tables interacting and looking at each other’s experiences,” says Cámara, who has been thinking about future tableside dishes she will unveil at Cantina Contramar.
Cantina Contramar is about celebrating Mexican culture and giving guests reasons to visit again and again. They can come for snacks and drinks and dessert. They can come for meaty main courses. They can come for fish they’ve seen on Instagram a thousand times. They can go big and come for all of it all at once.
“This is why I wanted it to be a cantina,” Cámara says. “A cantina is a place where you can go and eat every day.”
Cantina Contramar, located at 2777 S. Las Vegas Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89109, will open seven days a week from 5:30 p.m to 10:30 p.m.