The cover of Esteban Castillo’s second cookbook Chicano Bakes is like a panaderia dessert case set up in Studio 54. A flan that shines like Donna Summer’s lip gloss, a square of pink-frosted cortadillo cake is cut sharp as Bianca Jagger’s suit. It’s a departure from the signature style of sunny lighting, bright backgrounds, and […]
Mexican cuisine
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Patino’s Quesabirria Slam Dunk
The quesabirria taco has Mexican food enthusiasts happily in its grip, all of us grinning orange oil-slicked smiles now that the Tijuana specialty has made it this far north. But while dunking your way through an order of the crispy, gooey, beef tacos with a side of deep red consommé goes by all too quickly, […]
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El Fogón Costeño’s Bright Ideas, Big Flavors
Slow down on Myrtle Avenue, both in the name of safety and so you don’t miss the little red El Fogón Costeño truck — decorated with a pastoral image of burrito-eating bears — tucked in the Chevron station (1679 Myrtle Ave.). Enrique Buenrostro, who originally hails from Acapulco, Mexico, has run his truck out of […]
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Get Festive with a Punch Like No Other
Holiday drinks are as much a part of the celebratory season as Christmas trees, blinking lights and presents. At my house, Mexican Christmas punch, ponche navideño, is part of my festive repertoire. Ponche (pronounced “pon-chay”) is a hot sweet and sour punch served with or without alcohol during the holiday season in many Mexican and […]
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Las Michoacanas’ Regional Redo
Muscle memory still brings the odd patron to Las Michoacanas (1111 Fifth St., Eureka) thinking it’s still Rita’s. Don’t feel bad for them. New co-owners Socorro Sanchez and Perla Sanchez (no relation) have made themselves at home with a full bar (no margarita mix, just the real thing made to order) and a menu with […]
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Esteban’s Reopens in Arcata
After closing briefly upon of the death of its locally beloved proprietor Esteban Gonzales, Esteban’s is open once again. His wife, Francisca Gonzales, reopened the tiny Mexican institution on March 4 with help from her nephew Luis Cilveron. Esteban was hospitalized in December of 2020 with COVID-19 and, despite the virus having left his system […]
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Truck Stops
A person could get the idea the only new food in town is the KFC luring cars into its Broadway drive-thru like sailors onto the rocks. Not so. A trio of trucks have made their debuts this month, navigating pandemic restrictions and appetites with grab-and-go and outdoor seating options. Laissez le Shanty Truck rouler No […]
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Taqueria Martinez Pulls Up
While the pandemic has robbed us of so many simple pleasures, getting a burrito from a truck parked at a gas station and eating it in your car in blissful solitude is not one of them. A week ago, Taqueria Martinez parked at the Texaco station on the Eureka side of the Samoa Bridge and […]
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A Little Sugar at Mi Little Oaxaca Bakery & Cafe
Where once Tasty Tacos sold its generous namesake in Cutten, Mi Little Oaxaca Bakery & Cafe has opened its doors. Owner Jose Chavez Posos started turning out custom cakes, cupcakes, sandwiches and tortas in early December of last year after selling cakes out of his home. Chavez Posos’ says this is his first business in […]
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A New Raliberto’s Opens on Broadway
Many a dirndl was rent in mourning over the closure of Stuft Potato, the sole local source of spaetzele, jaeger schnitzel and scores of other Austro-German delights. Now at least we may feed our emotions at the Raliberto’s Taco Shop that has sprung up in its place. According to Roberto Hernandez, whose family owns this branch […]
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Playing with Tradition
As a homesick Humboldt State University student away from his Southern California family for the first time, Esteban Castillo called his mother for recipes to replicate the comfort foods he missed. But, he says, “trying to get recipes out of my mom was … it just didn’t work.” Like so many home cooks, she didn’t […]
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Cocina on the Green
The incongruity of a Mexican restaurant on the grounds of a golf course lessens as you sit in a snug window booth at Cocina Mariposa (4750 Fairway Drive, Eureka), which you enter via the pro shop, and watch the sunset. On a recent rainy evening, when a lone golfer was whacking balls into the lake […]