A few weeks ago when chef Rick Bayless from Chicago came to San Francisco for the International Association of Cooking Professionals conference, he was quoted as saying there wasn’t much in the way of Mexican food in the Bay Area outside the taquerias.
Bayless is one of the country’s top experts on Mexican cuisine,
writing several books, appearing on chef-oriented television shows and
owning such places as Frontera Grill and Topolobampo in Chicago.
A few years ago I would have agreed with him. When people asked what
was missing in Bay Area dining, I’d say that if I were going to open a
restaurant here it would be Mexican, because no one was doing the
cuisine justice.
However in the last couple of years, the situation has gotten
decidedly better, with the opening of Mamacita, Nopalito, Comal in
Berkley, Mateo’s in Healdsburg and Nido (which I will review in a couple
of weeks). All these have one element in common: They practice the
local and sustainable model used in most of Northern California top
restaurants. You can taste the difference, and they have given proper
props to a cuisine that for years languished here.
San Francisco’s Cole Valley neighborhood just got an infusion, too, with the opening of Padrecito, which I reviewed yesterday in The Chronicle.
It’s a sister restaurant to Mamacita, which currently resides on the
Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants list; you can expect Padrecito to be added
next year. The restaurant follows the same pattern as at Mamacita, where
much of the fresh produce comes from from the family garden of
chef/owner Sam Josi.
What is impressive about Padrecito is that Josi and chef Luis
Contreras didn’t replicate the same model as at the flagship. At
Padrecito, the offerings are more casual and focused; the biggest part
of the menu is devoted to tacos, but not the expected ones. For example,
there’s pulled duck with arbol strawberry marmalade, black beans,
chicories and Dry Jack cheese.There’s also the popular chilaquiles, but
the tortillas are doused in such things as chipotle mole with duck
carnitas, kale, spring onions and fava beans.
In addition, there’s an interesting cocktail list. The bartenders are
adept at the classics, but what I found particularly innovative is the
illustrated cocktail list with a dozen cocktails. The illustration shows
the type of glass the drink will be served in and the proportion of
each ingredient, so you know how sweet or boozy the cocktail will be.
Padrecito and the other new-wave Mexican restaurants are giving
Mexican cuisine the respect it deserves, rather than being content to
replicate the stereotypes that for decades have pigeonholed a great,
diverse culture.
www.padrecitosf.com
www.padrecitosf.com
Article & Photos taken from: http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog/2013/05/13/padrecito-signals-the-rise-of-mexican-restaurants-in-the-bay-area/#12106-12
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