Reviewing The Regional Mexican Cuisine At This Barrio Logan Restaurant; Affordable Fine Fining In An Upscale Atmosphere
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Editor & Publisher
I was BLOWN AWAY by my evening at Fonda del Barrio, a Mexican restaurant like you’ve likely not experienced in San Diego. Located in Barrio Logan, this is not your typical tacos and burritos place. It is fine dining in a soothing culturally-appropriate setting with casual prices.
Its website describes the food as being “ancestral Mexican cuisine” which is restaurant talk for “this is something completely different.” For one thing, the two chefs – Eduardo Baezarom is Executive Chef – are from Mexico City and that means he cooks with flavors and a style that is unknown to many casual fans of Mexican food. Heck, I could barely understand the menu myself, but waiter/bartender/manager Rudy Corona interpreted it for us. We listened but didn’t really understand all of it so we just shook our heads and said “that sounds awesome.” And that proved to be the case.
Tasting The Food & Drinks
I’ll start with the appetizers. My PubClub.com associate Doug and I had the Salpicon de Jaib ulf (see what I mean about needing an interpreter!) which is are crab meat and flounder ceviche tostadas with capers, garlic, onion & bell peppers ($14). This was fantastic. I could have eaten this all night and been happy. It’s what I call a I’ll-go-back-there-for-this dish.
Doug had what can best be described as pork mounds on top of thick tortilla chips. The pork tasted like really good Southern barbeque and since I’m a Southerner, I was tempted to sing “Dixieland Delight” and yell out “Roll Tide!”
Even the chips and salsa (Salsa con Totopo) were over the top. The chips were thick and, as Doug noted, shaped to fit inside the cups of salsa. There were three of the latter and I was nearly addicted to the hot one, which is unusual because I’m a total wimp when it comes to spicy food but this was just right and it tasted fantastic. Pro’s Tip: Try and avoid getting too filled up on this because there’s more great food to eat. That’s easier said than done, tho.
We shared the Ensalada Tricolor Grilled (panela cheese, tomato & cactus over a macha salsa cilantro pesto, $12). “Cactus!,” Doug exclaimed. “They put catus in a salad!” Hey, as I stated earlier, this is Mexican food you can’t get at many other places.
Even the Sopa de Tortilla Huasteca (traditional tortilla soup with dehydrated chiles, fresh herbs crowned
with tortilla crisps & panela cheese, $9) was presented differently than any other Mexican restaurant I’ve ever visited. Rudy brought out a cup of the dry ingredients and returned with a house-made broth to pour over it, turning it into the soup. It was quite good and certainly unique. .
For the main course, Rudy recommended the Chile en Nogada for me. This is a very traditional dish in certain parts of Mexico that consists of a fire grilled poblano pepper filled with ground beef, raisins, walnuts and “a whole array of herbs and spices” according its menu, topped wiht a warm walnut cream sauce and accented with pomegranate seeds. It was so good, I slowed down to literally savor every bite. This incredible dish sells for just $18.
Being a steak lover, Doug had the Filete de Res Porfirio (filet mignon stuffed with Panela & Cotija cheeses in a creamy squash blossom reduction served with garlic and seasonal vegetables, crowned with leeks, $28). “Normally, you don’t want a sauce on your steak,” he said, “because it covers up the taste of the steak. But this makes the steak taste even better. It’s interesting how they work together.”
For dessert, Doug had a very sweet offering but since I don’t eat sweets I cannot offer my thoughts on it. Suffice to say with the quality of this place and Doug’s satisfied smiles, it was pretty good.
To accent all this great food, I had the house margarita (only $10, I noted) which is made with the restaurant’s own lime mix created by Rudy himself. I then – somewhat cautiously because I know how potent it can be – had a margarita mezcal. Perfect.
I also had the sangria (solid and not too strong because otherwise it would overpower the food, plus it’s made with seasonal flavors such as blackberry orange) and an incredible Old Fashioned that contained mezcal instead of bourbon. The smoky flavor of the mezcal really took this legendary cocktail to another level.
Doug had Licor 43 in an espresso martini, which showcased the expertise behind the bar. Mostly he sipped on a very nice red wine from Mexico – all the wines served at Fonda del Barrio are from Mexico – and reported that it paired perfectly with his steak. He found that somewhat surprising because this fine wine-educated and former Calistoga resident is generally not that big of a fan of wines from Mexico.
The Atmosphere
Fonda del Barrio serves up all this great food in a setting that makes you feel as if you are actually in old, tradicional Mexico. It has archways but it’s really the use of the colors that does the trick. The walls are that kind of stained yellow and the tables and chairs are dark wood. That, along with the food, the drinks, the spot-on-but-not-persistent service makes you want to stay around for a while. And we did, too. On Wednesdays thru Sundays, there’s live music from local musicians who play loud enough to be heard but soft enough for you to have conversations.
While there, we noticed a steady stream of Barrio Logan locals coming in to sit at the tables in the dining room and around the bar. When neighborhood locals go there, that tells you all you need to know about a place.
The owner is Gerry Torres, who many locals probably know from City Tacos.
About Barrio Logan
Now if you are hesitant to go Barrio Logan (not sure if it’s safe, it’s too far away or it’s not even on your radar as being a part of San Diego) let me tell you a bit about the area.
Fonda del Barrio is located on a dynamic little strip of places on Logan Street. Right across from it, locals line up to get into the somewhat elegant Cissia Osteria and a coule doors down is the gutsy-named Fish Guts (any restaurant bold enough to call itself by that name has a lot of confidence in its food). The block also has a more basic Mexican restaurant, Toda Pa La Cruda and El Carrito, a Mexican restaurant in an old San Diego street car.
There’s parking but you can also take the Blue Line trolley and walk 15 minutes or better yet, the #12 bus rolls right by Fonda del Barrio and goes to 12th & Imperial in 10 minutes.
Doug and I were admittedly a bit skeptical about Barrio Logan at first but after our Fonda experience and examining the neighborhood, not only will we go back but the both of us have been telling friends about it, as well.
What You Need To Know About Fonda del Barrio:
Food: Old-school Mexican with receipes from different parts of the country.
Drinks: Full bar, wines from Mexico, beers
Prices: Starters range in price from $7.50-$15. Main dishes from $17-29 with most in the $20 range. Cocktails from $10-16 with most at $11. Sangria is $9. Wines $9-$12. Beers $6-8.
Address & Map: 2234 Logan Ave., Barrio Logan
Hours: Tuesday-Thursday and Sundays, 4-10. Fridays & Saturdays 4-10 (kitchen) bar until 11.
Saturday and Sunday brunch: 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (bottles of champagne are just $15)
Phone: (619) 230-5240
See Fonda del Barrio’s Full Menus On Its Website: fondadelbarrio.com
Instagram: instagram.com/fondadelbarrio/
Facebook: facebook.com/fondadelbarrio
Kevin Wilkerson is an AP award-winning journalist who reviews restaurants and bars in San Diego and around the world. He has been publishing PubClub.com since 2001.
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