Mexico City-Inspired Restaurant To Open In South Bay

SANTA CLARA, CA – Puesto Mexican Artisan Kitchen & Bar, a Southern California-based family business, is opening its first Bay Area location next week in Santa Clara.

With locations in La Jolla, Irvine and San Diego, Puesto has gained fame for its tacos made from handmade, maíz azul stone-ground tortillas with sustainable meats, local produce and scratch salsas.

The eatery is a three-time winner of the People’s Choice Award at LA Weekly’s Tacolandia in 2015, 2016 and 2017 and deemed “Best Tacos” by San Diego Magazine year after year, according to the company.

“We were drawn to Silicon Valley for its energy and innovation," said Eric Adler, tacoteur and restaurant founder. "Our hope is to become as much a part of this community as we have in Southern California.”

Opening on May 17, the Santa Clara location, with seating for 300-plus at 2752 Augustine Dr., was designed by San Diego-based BASILE Studio and will feature an industrial "street chic" interior with custom artwork by Bay Area graffiti artist Chor Boogie, handmade concrete tiles, Balsa-wood tabletops, wrap-around patio seating with hydraulic windows and a chef’s table for events.

A specialty on the Santa Clara menu will be an Oyster Taco -- cornmeal-crusted Drake’s Bay oysters with masa flour, tomatillo “Mignonette” salsa, oyster and habanero crema, radish, cilantro and serrano.

Other Puesto favorites are the Chicken Al Pastor, with melted cheese, hibiscus and chipotle tinga, avocado and piña habanero pico and, a vegetarian option, the Verduras, with papas, roasted poblano rajas, grilled corn, tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, garlic and cooked nopales wrapped in crispy melted cheese and topped with tomatillo salsa and a zucchini flower.

Chefs also are working on a Summer Corn Ice Cream with Strawberry Jam Swirl and White Chocolate Cookie Crunch, as well as a Tamarind Toffee Cake to pair with a Cinnamon Tres Leches ice cream.

Puesto’s bar will feature a curated list of agave spirits from various regions of Mexico and signature cocktails. Additionally, a dollar from each frozen horchata purchase is donated to a selected charity of the month.

Puesto is owned and operated by brothers Eric, Alan and Alex Adler, alongside their cousins Isidoro and Moy Lombrozo and partner/Executive Chef Luisteen Gonzalez, a Mexico City native who credits his passion for food to his grandmother and his fisherman father, the company said. The owners, first-generation Mexican- Americans, have been immersed in authentic, Mexican cooking since birth.

"The family was inspired to bring their Mexican roots to the SoCal area, thus Puesto is a combination of authentic Mexican flavors and California’s fresh, local ingredients," managers said.

Another Bay Area location is planned for Concord. See more on Puesto here.

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--Image via Puesto