Restaurant review: Mazunte

I think people have different philosophies when they go out for dinner.  A lot of people I think want to be indulged.  They looks for something deliciously unhealthy, a massive plate loaded with  salt, fat, sugar, and carbs, all the things that our bodies crave.  Most restaurants cater this this philosophy.  It makes for happy customers and it doesn't required great cooking.  You can deep fry, salt up, and drown in cheese just about anything and it will taste good.  This isn't what I look for, however.  I am always looking for a restaurant where they cook better than me, where the food is "real", that is prepared from scratch with raw materials, beans, chopped vegetables, vinegar, spices, and a little bit of oil.  It is hard to find places like this, but Mazunte is definitely one.

Mazunte Taqueria
5207 Madison Road Suite 100
Cincinnati, OH 45227
Phone: 513-785-0000
http://mazuntetacos.com/

Here is the menu.  It is primarily tacos of different permutations, but has some choices beyond these. 

Here is the restaurant.  It is very small, so I recommend getting there early.  They are expanding soon, which should hopefully alleviate some of the peak hours crowding.  The kitchen is to the right here where you can watch them make your food.  There are some tables to the left, but not that many.  They also do carryout, so you can call a head and pick up your order.

In front you can see serve yourself margarita, punch, and fruit juices.  The margarita is spectacular, which heavy emphasis on the lime juice and citrus (Triple Sec probably).  I recommend splitting one, as it is very strong.

Here is the salsa bar to the left (sorry about the focus).  All you can eat chips and salsa for $1.50.  The chips are made at the restaurant and they seem to alternate between blue and yellow corn.  The chips are the size of a small frisbee and delicious.  They have four salsas, a roasted tomato, a tomatillo, pico de gallo, and a hot chipotle.  The salsas are fairly basic and fresh.  I could probably go for a little more cilantro flavor in them, but that is just my preference.

Here are the chips, salsa, and margarita.  The salsas are clockwise from the top left roasted tomato, pico de gallo, tomatillo, and chipotle.  On the left side is a bottle of their homemade chipotle hot sauce.  Previously they had bottles of San Marcos hot sauce, which contains artificial colors, and I was delighted to see they ditched these in favor of homemade sauce.  The San Marcos hot sauce was radiation green, which was not very appetizing.  I am hoping that they will eventually also make a "regular" hot sauce without chipotle chilis.  I don't always want that intense smokiness, as it can mask the flavors of the food.

I got the pork enchilada.  They use corn tortillas here, which is characteristic of southern Mexican cuisine.  I find them more flavorful, but also more brittle and prone to breaking.  Here the enchiladas are on the bottom and covered in lime marinated pork, pickled onions, and shredded lettuce with a tomatillo-lime sauce and crema.  They do an excellent job with presentation.  The pork was fresh, juicy, and lean.  Because everything was freshly prepared, the tortillas still had a good texture and weren't soggy.  The rice was relatively simple, lightly salt and a little buttery.

Here is my wife's potato empanada.  She like the crispiness and the mild heat in the sauce.

One thing I haven't ordered, but saw them prepare was the roasted corn.  Basically, they throw a whole corn cob directly on the burn and char it carefully, caramelizing the sugars.  I've done this before and it makes for delicious corn.

The staff is super friendly and seems to be partially Mexican, though the owner is American.

Overall, top notch real food like you would make at home, healthy and flavorful.