My wife and I just had dinner and a terrific new restaurant in McMinnville, OR. If you're out wine tasting in Yamhill County, this would be a great place to wind up the day.
The restaurant is:
Cafe Azul
313 East Third Street
McMinnville, OR 97128
(503) 435-1234
Lunch Monday to Saturday: 11:00 to 2:00
Dinner Thursday, Friday, Saturday 5:30 to 9:00
With all the "Americanized" food places around, it's a real pleasure to find a restaurant that's truly new and different. Cafe Azul specializes in food from the Oaxaca region in Mexico. To my ear Oaxaca is pronounced "Wa-ha-ka." The food is not generally hot but very spicy. The combination of spices is unlike anything I've tried before.
Everything is prepared fresh -- including the tortillas which are wonderful. Even the flan was fresh (a lot of restaurants use a box mix I understand).
I asked them for a copy of the dinner menu. It changes every few days but this should give you a idea of what to expect:
Starters Sikil Pak: Ycatan pumpkin seed dip $2.25
Sopes: (crispy masa boats with black bean,
ancho relish & cotija) $3.25
Tamalitos: 4 small tamales in banana leaves
with mole $4.00
Goditas: "little fat ones" hand patted
tortilla filled with cheese and
salsa $2.00
Soup Soupa de Habas: Vegetarian minted fava bean
soup $7.00
Salads: Spicy garden greens with vinaigrette $4.25
Jicama, citrus & mango salad $4.25
Dinners:
Mole Verde de Oaxaca: Green Oaxacan mole with hota
santa, chicken, & chochoyotes
(little masa dumplings). Served
with jicama salad & fresh
tortillas $17.00
Asado de Bodas: A Durango wedding dish. Pork stewed in
a Northern mole with oranges. Served
with rice & fresh tortillas. $16.00
Tacos: served with black beans, pickled vegetables
& salad of spicy greens. Your choice of:
3 Rajas con crema (roasted poblano chiles,
onion & cream) $14.00
3 Cochinita pibil (marinated pork baked in
banana leaves) $14.00
3 Morel mushroom & squash blossom tacos $17.00
Tamales: served with black beans, pickled vegetables
& salad of spicy greens. Your choice of:
3 Nortenos (savory pork & red chile) $15.00
3 Butternut & Pasilla $15.00
Desserts:
Mexican chocolate angel food cake with
tangelo chantilly $3.00
Flan de canela: Mexican cinnamon custard $3.00
Apple tart with cajeta (goat milk caramel) $3.00
Cookie Plate: Mexican wedding cookies &
Chocolate stars $3.00
We had the Sikil Pak (very unusal, tastes a bit like peanut butter), Goditas, Mole Verde de Oaxaca (looks a bit like green pea soup. A really different combination of spices.), Asado de Bodas (very tasty. I thought the mole with extremely nice). We also tried the flan which was as good as any I've had in Mexico.
There you go. I thought this place was a real find. It hasn't become real popular yet since it's so new but I suspect it won't take long. Just to be safe, I'd definitely call for reservations.
Mark
[email removed]Oregon