A Good Day for Agave

Tequila Museo Mayahuel
1200 K Street, Sacramento

Words by Adam Saake
Photos by Nicholas Wray

I’ll be the first to admit that when talk of the “revitalization” of Sacramento’s K Street Mall was a popular topic, I was skeptical as to whether or not the one or two establishments carrying all the weight could pull it off. Sure, The Social was a big deal and Ella is, well, Ella. But over the years more and more businesses popped up that were doing really interesting things. I turned from skeptic to believer and now I’m actually rooting for K Street. There are places like Marilyn’s for live music, Café Ambrosia for breakfast, District 30 for nightlife and the list keeps building. Tequila Mueso Mayahuel, the latest addition to the thriving 12th and K block, has me breaking out the pom-poms yet again.

Mayahuel will celebrate its grand opening on Cinco de Mayo (May 5, 2011), but the doors have been open for the past couple weeks; offering a small “teaser” menu and a few selections of tequilas, cocktails and beers. The dining area and bar are also just a glimpse of what Mayahuel will become as finishing touches are made to the relatively large space that will eventually include a lounge and VIP room.

When you arrive, don’t be alarmed if your server doesn’t bring you chips and salsa. It’s not that they don’t have them, it’s that owner Ernesto Delgado wants you to have a different view of what a Mexican restaurant can be.

“We’re actually charging for chips and salsa. In Mexico, they don’t have chips and salsa. They give you bolillo, which is a bread, or they give you other elements. People say, ‘You’re cheap because you don’t want to give away chips and salsa.’ That’s not it. We’re going to use this as a way to introduce new flavors,” says Delgado.

Delgado and staff are passionate people and that makes for a great dining experience. When you hear them speak about the menu, it’s with a tone reminiscent of homesickness. The food is as if you have taken traditional Mexican dishes from Mexico, dishes that have a comfort to them, and prepared them with the finest ingredients and executed thoughtfully by Chef Ramiro Alarcon. For example, a dish like the costilla de puerco con nopales, slow cooked pork ribs in a tomato and chili salsa and grilled nopales (cactus), is a dish that’s very geographically specific in Mexico. Not only are some of the dishes rarely found on menus, but they’re being taken in new directions that will make them even more unique to Mayahuel. The creativity is evident in appetizer plates like the bocaditos chicos, an assortment of six differently constructed bruschetta-esque concoctions. Crunchy slices of bread, tiny corn tortillas or fried chips are topped with ingredients like poblano and queso fresca, nopales and guacamole or shrimp, chipotle sauce and red onions. Alarcon and Delgado want Mayahuel to be about the experience; a focus on flavor and quality and all that makes Mexico shine.

“We want to showcase the tequila, but in the end it’s about Mexico,” says Delgado.

But they are excited about the tequila, and for good reason. The words “smooth” and “tequila” are rarely used in the same sentence. We’re either reaching for the salt and lime or plugging our nose because it’s probably a close cousin of gasoline we’re drinking. What a shame, because like any great spirit that has been carefully crafted, tequila is rich with complex flavor profiles. When you drink the good stuff, you realize you‘ve been thinking about it all wrong. Delgado hopes to turn more people on to these kinds of tequilas and he’ll accomplish that by carrying over a hundred different kinds. The fledging list is limited during their soft opening, but if you venture in before Cinco de Mayo, order some Clase Azul and take your time with it. The Clase Azul, which comes in a gorgeous blue and white bottle, is an example of what’s called a “reposado” which literally translates to “rested.” This tequila has seen a minimum of one year in bourbon oak barrels, which gives the tequila its influences and color. The smell is sweet and the oak barrels give it a velvety vanilla and almond mouth feel that will have you thinking twice about tequila the next time you’re out.

And it doesn’t end with tequila at the bar. Mayahuel’s beer selection offers some of the standard Mexican beers like Pacifico and Modelo on draft, but bottles will include Victoria and Corona Familiar that aren’t commonly found at most Mexican restaurants here in Sacramento. The Corona Familiar is large format bottle and is a beer that in Mexico they call “caguama,” which is slang for turtle and refers to the size and shape of the bottle. The glass is darker which “holds the beer better and lets in less light,” which can affect the taste and quality of the beer. As for the Victoria, aside from it being one of the more popular beers of Mexico City, my server explained, it’s the oldest bottled beer of Mexico and quite delicious.

Mayahuel definitely has their best foot forward as they tie up the loose ends and look forward to their grand opening in May. Sacramento’s taste buds are clearly getting smarter, and with that comes the opportunity for restaurants like Delgado’s to succeed. When those doors open next month, step inside and find one more reason to root for K Street. Salud!