I wanted to get a custom Mexican Mask from Antojitos this past weekend, and so did my son, so we went over to Universal Orlando CityWalk to Antojitos Mexican Restaurant. Universal CityWalk is currently undergoing a massive transformation, adding seven new dining options within the next several months. Antojitos opened for guests Thursday evening and we were there Friday ready for the unique atmosphere and Mexican flavors the restaurant promised to bring. Luckily, neither disappointed. With the graffiti culture inspired art, wrought iron, oak barrels, Latin church-inspired tiled floors and neon throughout and the amazing roving guacamole station, Antojitos instantly grabbed our attention and our taste buds. But it wasn’t the atmosphere or the food that really put Antojitos at the top of our CityWalk restaurant list (we’ll have more on the food in another post). It was the incredible mask painting station. Shell Masks Guests who dine at the new Mexican restaurant from Wednesday through Sunday can enjoy complementary custom-made Mexican masks painted by special mask artist. Designed especially for children, these masks are free and include either a lucedore (wrestler) inspired mask, Day of the Dead inspired mask, or anything you want really. Much like getting balloon animals in other CityWalk restaurants like Margaritaville, the Mexican masks can be completely customized to fit your personality. Some of the masks are already pre-painted to save some time but you can have still get them customized. Or if you want something completely different than what you see available, the artist on had can make one from scratch just for you. The artist was very friendly and creative. You don’t have to really tell him exactly what you want (although you could.) Just give him an idea, and he’ll run with it. It takes roughly about 5 minutes per mask. Best of Orlando waited approximately 10 minutes in line and when it was our turn we decided to test the artist and see what he could really do! All my son told the artist was that he wanted a Skeleton Pirate, and the result was very impressive! Much to our surprise the artist completed the painting and dried it (a hair drier is used to speed up the process) within just 5 minutes. It’s worth mentioning that the plastic strings attached to the masks are removed before given to the children for safety reasons so when the kids want to “wear” the mask they simply hold it up to their face. Painting the Bandana Finishing touches Air dry Finished product = happy pirate son More Mask options Antojitos Mexican Restaurant is open at 5 p.m. every day. The mask artist is only available Wednesday through Sunday for now. See More Photos of Antojitos and Mexican Masks Here! Stay tuned for more CityWalk Restaurant openings. Orlando, FL – 02/04/13 Photos by: Alex Mateo

