Peel and eat shrimp, typically the provenance of awkward cocktail parties, get a kickstart at Bar Ama, Josef Centeno’s Tex-Mex restaurant in downtown L.A.’s old Bank District.

Bar Ama was the third stop on a crawl with Josef Centeno Group Director of Operations Genevieve Hardison, who paired the company’s signature BäcoBeer (and other beers) with dishes at each restaurant. Food needed pop to hold up to the locally brewed Solarc Brewing Imperial IPA made with sumac and Mosaic hops. Still, nothing could prepare me for the power of Bar Ama’s peel ‘n’ eat shrimp. Centeno sautés butterflied, shell-on shrimp in olive oil, toasted and cracked coriander and peppercorns, guajillo flakes, garlic, shallots, and peanut-chile de arbol sauce. Soft house-made flour tortillas helped to dull the pain, but didn’t stop the flavor from building with each bite. Eventually, I just embraced the fire, like a Nestinari dancing on hot coals in Bulgaria. I promptly devoured the whole peel and eat shrimp plate. I alternated between sips of three beers: BäcoBeer, Evil Twin The Cowboy smoked pilsner, and Cerveceria Insurgente La Lupulosa West Coast IPA. Sometimes, it’s best to just roll with spice and suffer the consequences later, whatever those may be.