Barrio Café
Barrio Café’s brand of Mexican food is the central-southern, give-your-mouth-a-red-chile-burn, hearty stuff that’s spiced up by local culinary legend Silvana Salcido Esparza with some French influences for good measure. Esparza’s chips and dip are too precious to merely dole out as a precursor to the meal; instead, diners enjoy crust French bread with an olive tapenade accompaniment. The menu features salads, tacos, tortas, enchiladas, pan-seared fish, and bone-in meats, and highlights include the acclaimed Cochinita Pibil, pork marinated in achiote and sour orange, wrapped in a banana leaf and slow roasted overnight, and topped with pickled red onion and Yucatan-style pico de gallo, and Filete Mignon de mi Tita, topped with a crab and queso de cabra mélange. You’ll have a hard time choosing a favorite dish, let alone finding a flaw in any of plates that grace your table. So don’t even bother; simply relish the spread in front of you.