Suenos
1/2
I swear the older I get the more susceptible I become to suggestion. For the
past couple years I've meant to check out bakeries offering Day of the Dead
treats, and every year I'm either distracted or forgetful. This is pretty
sad considering three of these years I lived in one of NYCs largest Mexican
neighborhoods, Sunset Park. It wasn't until I read a recent
Manhattan-centric New York Times round up of restaurants with special Day of
the Dead menus that I became motivated to take an interest.
For no particular reason I'm kind of so-so on upscale Mexican
restaurants, not that I've tried that many of them. But Suenos had always
sounded interesting to me, maybe because of the youngish female chef. This
was really an excuse to try a new-to-me restaurant that I'd probably never
get around to otherwise. The whole thing was last minute, James called
Friday afternoon for seating that same evening, which was why we ended up
with such an early reservation. Dining at 6pm on a Friday in Manhattan makes
you a weirdo, I know that, but sometimes you have no choice.
We chose from the prix fixe menu with drink pairings. I had seafood
tacos with ancho chile tortillas and a more standard margarita (as opposed
to Jamess “smoky” version that accompanied his duck flauta. I
didnt think there was anything wrong with the waitress emphasizing the
tequilas smokiness though James seemed to find this hilarious and
pretentious) and pork loin stuffed with apples, canela, pine nuts, and
salsa, paired with sangria. Dessert was the only course that actually
included one of the traditional items I was interested in, but it was so
heavy: toasted day of the dead bread, candied pumpkin seeds and chocolate
atole with crema de mescal. It wouldve made a nice breakfast. I was glad to
have sampled the cuisine, I enjoyed the meal, though next year there will be
no excuse for not branching out.
Suenos* 311 W. 17th St., New
York, NY
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