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A Dia de los Muertos Dinner
at Maria Chuchena
Photography By Joe Burgess - ˇSabroso! Winter 2008 Out on the Town
On November 2, 2007 ˇSabroso! magazine’s South of the Border Dining Club attended a special Dia de los Muertos dinner at Maria Chuchena, a popular Juarez restaurant. After an opening reception of cocktails and antipasti at Café Central in El Paso, the club boarded the El Paso-Juarez Trolley and crossed the bridge into Juarez, where Maria Chuchena waited with open arms, a chic interior and a stunning four course menu of traditional Mexican cuisine.
The culinary highlights of the evening included a tableside salsa service, where tomatoes, jalapeńos, onions and spices were smashed together in a molcajete at tableside to make a spicy and intensely addictive salsa, followed by a host of soups, like the Azteca, a tomato broth served over tortillas strips, avocado and cubes of cheese and Sol Naciente, a corn soup served in a traditional bread bowl. Entrees were equally well received, with examples such as the Pechuga Adelita, a juicy chicken breast filled with mushrooms, squash blossom and epazote in a chipotle cream sauce, and Cancún, a Tilapia fillet filled with shrimp and octopus in a flaming white wine and béchamel sauce with a touch of chile chipotle. Yes, at Maria Chuchena the finer side of Mexican fare was on hand for a wonderful and entertaining dinner.
ˇSabroso! magazine chief moderator, Felipa Solis, was on hand to greet diners and walk them through this culinary excursion. In addition to fine food, diners enjoyed live Mariachi music and the other amenities of Maria Chuchena. Of the trip, group members Karen Sikora and Phil Harrington said, “The food at Maria Chuchena was excellent and very representative of Mexican cuisine…the strolling musicians complemented a memorable Mexican meal.”
The newly-formed South of the Border Dining Club takes members to a variety of restaurants in Juarez and the surrounding areas in an effort to spread awareness of the great upscale dining options in Mexico. For more information on the Club and its schedule of events, email jeff@mountaindreams.info.
To visit Maria Chuchena, go to www.mariachuchena.com for directions, menu options and reservations.
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