Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: I think Mexican restaurants stopped giving out sombreros on your birthday.
My earliest memory of Mexican food was a local chain restaurant called Chi Chis. It served horrible bastardized Mexican food but the main reason for going there was that on your birthday, you would get a sombrero. I mean, what kid did not want a sombrero? It was a ridiculously flamboyant and floppy hat and now in retrospect, giving out sombreros at a Mexican restaurant is like giving out conical rice paddy hats at a PF Changs. Also, they had fried ice cream. I like ice cream and fried stuff so what better way for a fat kid to celebrate a birthday? Regardless of receiving a sombrero for a birthday, Mexican food has often been misunderstood and the cuisine has too often been represented by all you can eat stale tortilla chips, refried beans that can be used interchangeably with spackle and the idea that everything is shoved into a bland tortilla. Yet thanks to many restaurants emerging in the city, such as Hecho en Dumbo, Mexican cuisine can get the respect it deserves. Hecho en Dumbo is located on the Bowery and has recently started doing a chef’s table pre fixe menu that focused on game meat and seafood and it sounded interesting, and chef tables I think are fun to eat at so I went.
The chef's table at Hecho is located in back away from the always busy and crowded dining room and it is in full view the kitchen that was already busy and turning out orders. I sat right in front of the pass, which just made me hungry the whole entire time as finished dishes were completed and runners collecting orders and bringing them out to the table. I had to hold back the urge to grab a piece of chicharon every time an order came on the pass. The pre fixe menu was a total of 5 courses with a wine pairing. Although the host was a bit pushy on urging me to get a cocktail and wine pairing, I do not generally do any because:
1. I went to Terroir for wine already earlier
2. Every time I do a pairing, I end up half sloshed and I can not taste the food half the time.
3. And I do not like it when scrawny hipsters of questionable sexual orientation is trying to up my bill by ordering booze
However, on to the food:
Food After the Jump!
Food After the Jump!
