Delicia

Last Friday, Tim and I were out running errands and knew we wanted to try someplace new for dinner, but couldn't decide where.  Finally, Tim came up with Delicia since it's across from Luna (the music store) and that was one of our stops.  Mexican sounded perfect, so I gave it the thumbs-up.

We entered to find the host and hostess both very dressed up--the host was wearing a tie.  Because we hadn't planned very well, Tim and I were both dressed very casually, so we felt a little out of place.  Then, they seated us in the front window, up on a little platform, directly behind the host stand (separated from them by a glass wall, no less), so we felt a bit on display.  But it turned out to be just fine--our waitress was open and friendly, not at all pretentious (I could see this place tending towards the snooty), and she was there when we needed her.

We ordered the house margaritas ($8) and were pretty impressed by them.  Lots of lime, which I love, but fairly well-balanced.  The tequila flavor was very mellow, but wow, was it a strong drink.  They did not skimp.  Our waitress also brought us a sort of amuse bouche as we were looking over the menu.  It was a tiny cup of soup that was incredible.  It tasted of blended root veggies, but with great Latin flavors--no idea what all was in it, since it was completely smooth.  I could have eaten a whole bowl of just that and been happy.

We started with the Queso Fundido con Chorizo ($10).  This came in a cast iron skillet and was baked chihuahua and panela cheeses, chorizo, and tomatillo-poblano sauce.  They served it with a bowl full of tortilla chips.  This was so, so good, and I could easily have had it as my entree because it was pretty filling.  We wondered if there were pureed black beans in it because the sauce was so dark and a bit thick, but upon looking at the ingredient list we realized we were very wrong.  The tomatillo provided some tang, and the poblano some smokiness.  The chorizo was a bit spicy and the cheeses ooey-gooey--in short, it was pretty perfect. 

I liked my entree slightly less, although it was still pretty good.  I chose the Short Ribs with Ancho Salsa ($18) which was boneless braised short ribs in an ancho salsa (i.e. sauce), over smashed sweet potatoes and surrounded by roasted onions, sweet potatoes, and purple potatoes.  The ribs were super tender, but I just wasn't a massive fan of the ancho salsa.  It was lacking something--acidity and/or salt.  Not sure.  The flavor of the ribs just wasn't as rounded out as I would have wished.  But the veggies were great, roasted in various spices and well seasoned.  I quite enjoyed them, and a bit of everything together was *nearly* perfect (dang sauce).

Tim's entree, on the other hand, was outstanding.  We were both smitten, and I made him give me several bites.  He opted for the Enchiladas de Pato ($16), i.e. duck enchiladas.  They were served in a tomato-habanero sauce with cilantro-lime crema and chihuahua queso, and on the side was herb green rice and stewed black beans.  The duck itself was nice, but it was the sauce--that tomato-habanero sauce mixed with the creme and the cheese--that really took this to another level.  So addictive and rich and crazy good.  The beans were also wonderful, clearly cooked with smokey pork of some type.  Since I hate cilantro, I did think the rice was gross, but Tim enjoyed it.

I think we were prepared to dislike Delicia, based on some of the reviews we'd read after it opened and the general fancy-britches vibe it gives off, but oh, were we wrong.  We will absolutely be going back--although, yes, we'll likely wear something slightly nicer than T-shirts next time.

 Website:  Delicia