Foothill Flavors

Mi Pueblo
By Antoinette May

Mi Pueblo is a Leafy Haven for Margarita Lovers

Perched on the side of a creek yet in the center of a thriving town, Mi Pueblo enjoys the best location in three counties. Charles and I have passed the beguiling stairway leading off Sonora’s Washington Street many times but were always rushing to get some place else.

There’s a sense of adventure about the approach to Mi Pueblo. Even from the bridge on Washington, you can hear mariachi music wafting up from the leafy nook below: “Cielito Lindo,” “La Paloma,” and the loveliest of all, “La Peregrina.” Clearly, Mi Pueblo is a place to savour and we saved it for just such an evening.

A recent Friday night was “the” night. We were excited as we descended the stairs leading down the side of a wooded hill to a deck overlooking the creek. There we were on a holiday exploration without ever having to endure a security line.

Owner Pedro Ramos was friendly and smiling as he showed us to a creek side table and asked, “Would you care for a margarita?”

Would I ever!

I’m a Mexophine from way back and know the special feeling that a margarita evokes upon arrival. The first salty sip announces that your vacation has officially begun. As a travel writer, Mexico was my beat. I’ve discussed margarita making techniques with master bartenders in the Chiapas rainforest and on Acapulco Bay. I even learned to mix a mean one myself.

This is to assure you that I know a great margarita when I taste one and the Ramos family definitely has it right. Added to this, Mi Pueblo’s deck is tailormade for margarita sipping.

Fresh homemade chips were brought to us immediately. The sauce was authentically Mexican, not that wimpy gringo stuff

that many restaurants serve to the faint of heart.

Mi Pueblo’s menu has many intriguing choices. Charles had a hard time deciding on the Fajitas Mixtas ($15.99). They’re made with steak, chicken and shrimp sauteed with onions, green and red bell peppers, then marinated in Mi Pueblo’s special sauce. Charles was well pleased.

I was not so happy with my Pollo en Mole Verde ($13.25). The verde sauce was delicous, but the chicken had obviously lead a long and active life. I was glad for him, but grew weary chomping on what tasted like rubber tubing.

Nevertheless, I loved the ambience, enjoyed the margaritas and also the side of guacamole (.99) I’d ordered. When I spied pozole tucked away on the menu, I got really excited.

Pozole is an of all time favourite dish rarely available in the States. I was seriously thrilled to read that Mi Pueblo serves this Mexican stew on Saturday and Sunday.

Then and there we decided to return to Mi Pueblo the following Sunday. Wouldn’t it be fun, we mused, to invite Noreen Huberty to go with us.

Noreen, a Mok Hillian, arguably the pizzazziest lady in three counties, may also be the best cook. An inveterate traveler, she enjoys sampling exotic food wherever she goes. “I’m an adventurer who loves to eat as opposed to eating to live,” Noreen says.

I was eager to introduce Noreen to pozole and get her take on it. Besides being delicious, this pre- Columbian dish has lots of history. The combination of corn (usually hominy kernels) and meat had special meaning to early Mexicans who believed that the gods had originally made humans from cornmeal dough.

To celebrate their humanity, they chopped and sautéed their prisoners before popping them into the stew. The meal was shared by the whole community as an act of religious

communion.

After the conquest, when cannibalism was banned, pork was substituted; because, according to Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, “it tasted very similar.”

I guess we’ll just have to take the Spanish priest’s word on that one.

Today corn is still the main staple. Sometimes turkey or chicken is substituted for pork. Chili peppers and rich seasonings live the stew. Believe me, pozole is really good.

Maybe you’re expecting me to tell you how great pozole is at Mi Pueblo. Unfortunately, I can’t do that. Having made that second trip to Sonora is 48 hours, we were told that the restaurant had run out.

In this a shaggy Antoinette story or what? Charles, Noreen and I ended up ordering fish tacos ($13.25) which were quite tasty. Think: chipotle spiced fish with pico de gallo and fresh guacamole wrapped in corn tortilla and served with rice and beans.

You want pozole? Call Mi Pueblo and find out for certain they’re serving it. Let me hear what you think.

VITALS: Mi Pueblo is located at 126 Washington, Sonora. (Look for the stairs by the bridge.) Phone: 532-3640. Credit cards accepted. A caveat: The leafy deck is perfect for margarita savoring; but when the food comes, so do the flies. They’re contentious and most competitive. Enjoy the truly delightful view with a margarita ($6), Negra Modelo ($4) or ice tea ($2.25) and then enjoy your dinner inside. There are a number of cozy, well-cushioned booths.

Pictures

Mi Pueblo is a leafy oasis in Sonora. Rosalba Garcia serves a mean margarita at Mi Pueblo in Sonora.

Noreen Huberty was a recent dinner guest at Mi Pueblo in Sonora.

Pedro Ramos has created a little touch of Mexico with his Sonora restaurant, Mi Pueblo.