In the western part of the Las Vegas Valley, Red Rock Resort is undergoing a culinary renaissance. Situated in the suburban area of Las Vegas known as Summerlin, the latest addition to their restaurant lineup is Chicago import Mercadito. While it may have all the trappings of a traditional Mexican restaurant, don’t be fooled, as Mercadito is anything but typical.

For instance, consider the Mexican menu fixture guacamole. Mercadito offers a trio of variants: traditional, mango and tocino. While the traditional is tasty but straightforward, things get interesting with the remaining pair. Mango is a mild rendition with the sweetness from the fruit’s inclusions balancing the chipotle’s smokiness, while tocino offers up an interplay of textures with the addition of bacon and crispy hominy. Each is certainly atypical.

There is also a trio of fresh ceviches: camarón (shrimp), dorado (mahi mahi) and mixto (fish and shellfish). Each is prepared in its own broth, with the orange-chipotle base of the dorado arguably being the most interesting with its citric, smoky flavoring. Each is served with housemade salty crisps, Mercadito’s take on the saltines that traditionally accompany ceviches in Mexico.

Begin your meal with the majestic, molten achievement of the queso fundido. A blend of Oaxacan and Chihuahuan cheeses is baked for a crispy, charred upper crust and served with a choice of mushrooms or wine-braised short ribs for gilding the lily; unless you’re a vegetarian, don’t pass up the immaculate short ribs.

Of the octet of tacos offered by Mercadito, the camarón may be the best. Shrimp swimming in a chipotle mojo heavy in roasted garlic deliver creaminess and smokiness with each bite. Elsewhere from the sea, the espada tacos offer a bit of heat from the blackened swordfish, while by land, the carne tacos deliver crispy, marinated skirt steak with a watercress-jicama slaw and roasted garlic aioli.

If you’ve saved room for an entrée, the pollo a las brasas delivers a crispy skin with more than a hint of spice from the combination morita-arbol chile crust. This is as good as rotisserie chicken gets. Accompany it with an intriguing side such as the three-corn pico de gallo. The mixture of roasted yellow and white corn with hominy may be a combination you haven’t encountered before. And while you may have thought twice about ordering mac and cheese in a Mexican restaurant, Mercadito’s outrageously delicious rendition with manchego cheese and chile poblanos will make you glad you did.

Not to be overlooked, the Tippling Bros. have assembled an innovative collection of draft cocktails for Mercadito. If you like a bit of flair, then check out Big Nose Gets Native. This jasmine-tea infused Mount Gay black barrel rum-based cocktail delivers a healthy dose of smoke while arriving tableside with a flaming Bacardi 151 float in a lime skin, which is subsequently dunked into your drink.

Although the dessert list is succinct, it’s nonetheless impressive. If you’re wondering about the torrejas de bolillo, think Mexican French toast with a caramel-y cajeta sauce. This sauce is also used on the flan de coco with coconut flakes, while the Mexican chocolate-based pastel de chocolate needs no such adornment; instead, it is accompanied by a sweet crema and caramelized bananas.

Red Rock Resort, 11:30 a.m.-2:45 p.m. daily, 4 p.m.-midnight Sun.-Thurs., 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Fri.-Sat. 702.979.3609