The friends who opened this Mexican restaurant got it right when they assigned the stoves to Enrrique Flores and the front of the restaurant to Mauricio Cabrera.

Flores' good food and Cabrera's hospitality combine to make this nine month old place a success. It deserves recognition beyond its grateful neighborhood.

Flores a native of Mexico, and Cabrera , from Ecuador, met when they were waiters at Tapas on Carlton St. Before opening Dos Amigos, they spent time in central Mexico learning more about the food they planned to serve.

Given such good intentions, some of the dishes seem lacklustre. Still there is already good reason to run, not walk to this unassuming place.

Best of the menu are appetizers and side dishes. (Their specialness explain the loyal regulars who turn up late to stuff themselves with starters, sending them down with Margaritas or Mexican beer.)

I'm with them.

Even at first visit, full of curiosity about the much-touted food, I'm reluctant to put aside the salsa and guacamole to leave room for other dishes. Flores' guacamole is a soft mash of ripe avocados, habanero peppers, chopped onion, tomato and coriander, with a squirt of citrus and drop of fresh cheese ---- a standard mix perhaps, but we have eaten enough sour green goop in other Toronto restaurants to be grateful for one this fresh and tasty.

Same goes for the slightly spicy salsa. Both dips are served with fresh and crisp, homemade taco chips. These, too, are a cliché of Mexican cookery, but there is a world of difference between them and the schlock we get at the movies.

Readers have called just to burble on about Dos Amigos margaritas ---- an enthusiasm that might be suspect given the strength of this famous cocktail ---- at least until you get a mouthful of the tequila/lime juice mixture properly served in a salt-rimmed glass.

There are several flavours, but scorn them for the traditional one made with lime juice. The secret is the fresh squeezed lime juice: its flavour lets the tequila slide down without this harsh Mexican booze leaving tracks on the palate.

It's just as well, since you'll want to pay attention to the remarkable, relatively tiny tacos.

Tacos al pastor is filled with pork which has been marinated in red chile and pineapple, cooked and sliced very thin. More familiarly, other tacos are filled with stews of beef, chicken, chorizo, vegetables or pork.

Pozole is a full bodied chicken soup with pebbles of a grainy corn called hominy. A small bowl will do you if you plan to follow with a full course. Burritos is a large, flour tortilla filled with stewed beef, pork, chicken or vegetables and served with the terrific house rice and a salad.

The meat is beautifully grilled, and the enchilada very satisfying.

It will come as good news to the spice-phobic that the food is flavour-ful, but not spicy. There is not much that won't be familiar on this polite, small menu. Each day, three appetizers and three main courses are added to flesh out the menu and give the kitchen a chance to try us out.

Generally, the main courses don't measure up to the promise of the appetizers, though there's little to complain about.

The carne asada is a plateful of hearty food, including steak marinated in chipotle chiles, and enchilada stuffed with chicken mole, some beans, garlic and avocado sauce. The meat is beautifully grilled, and the enchilada very satisfying, but of the platter, I was happiest with the frijoles --- black beans softly cooked, full of taste and available as a side dish.

The conservative eater at our table is happy with mariscada, a seafood stew including a large chunck of kingfish, shrimp, mussels and a little circle of squid all poached in a restrained garlicky fish broth.

The restraint may be temporary. The plan seems to be to introduce us gently to central Mexican cookery. They are too polite: Even describing the chicken mole, Cabrera is almost apologetic in warning us about the slight flavour of chocolate in this traditional chocolate/chile dish.

The best dessert is a rich version of crème caramel, made with condensed milk, so rich and dense, it cuts like pâté. Sponge cake is made with three kinds of milk, but tastes dull for its craft. Fried plantains are better, the banana-like vegetable is sliced into coins, which are sautéed in butter and drizzled with caramel.

Service throughout is kind, if scattered. The location and modest entrance of the restaurant are deceiving. Once inside, the room is warm and colourful with soft, cozy lighting. The comfortable interior is a plus.

Toronto has a few Mexican restaurants (and much of the faux Mexican places are scary) so, even while we wait for the main courses to catch up to the starters, Dos Amigos is very welcome.