Mercadito

Hola!
J, D, and I went to see Pat Hull perform last evening. Super amazing. While we watched at the Caffe Vivaldi I snacked on the pecan pie and a glass of red wine. Oh jeeze. When I type it out like that I feel like such a fatty. At least I ran today. 2 whole miles! What up now?

Before the show J and I sat around the area waiting for D to show up so we could eat. Slowly we slipped into the 'hangry zone'. Please note, this is not a safe place to be. Our maturity level dropped to that of a 5th grader as we whined and complained about our hungry bellies. Side affects of being hangry include said drop in maturity, snappiness, delusions of food, shortness of temper, inability to actually pick a genre of food you want and so much more. After D finally arrived we wandered like the hungry fools that we were and came across Mercadito.

AND it was our first meal outside on the sidewalk. Welcome spring time!

I recently read an article in the Wall Street Journal,"How Waiters Read Your Table", and found it so fascinating. I immediately identified myself as the patron who attempts to connect and form a relationship with my waiter. This waiter made that very difficult. So I went to the extreme to make a joke and get a smile from him. When he asked "Does anyone have any allergies?" I replied, "I'm allergic to bad food".  He smiled (YES), and said that we had nothing to worry about. Yup, I'm that patron. The one that servers pull straws for. We'll call me the 'short straw patron'.

Here's the menu!
I had red wine sangria.  Duh.
It was quite tasty, topped off with cinnamon it was a 'multiple sensory experience' as J puts it.

Mango Guacamole with Chips
(note: I am not a chip person, I gravitate toward sweet rather then salty (you're and idiot if you haven't picked that up by now), but these chips were very tasty! Light and crispy they held the guac nicely. It was just impossible to actually get the guac on the chip. We had to help each other with chips in hand to top the chip. First world problems)

Corn Masa Quesadillas: one of each with chihuahua-oaxaca cheeses, mahi mahi, shrimp, wild mushrooms, tomatillo salsa, crema fresca

Pastor: ancho-guajillo rubbed pork, grilled pineapple, chile de árbol salsa

Carne: rosemary marinated skirt steak, potato-poblano rajas, avocado-tomatillo crema, crispy manchego

We all shared but each gravitated toward the one we ordered (me, pastor). Food was delicious. Tapas sizes and easy to share.

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