I have not done a piece on food, drinks, or a restaurant before.
With friends such as Genesis from Nopalitos who have taught me the wonders of wines, scents, tastings, and where things come from to their process. To my friend Cristina who has taught me the values in textures, tastes, ingredients, the impressions with every bites along with the importance of eye contact with "cheers" or shall you be cursed with bad luck!
This piece is on Toloa, I want to say that it's quite new? It is a they say on their bio "an elevated dining" experience with their food menu featuring dishes "inspired by Mexican roots while celebrating rich South Texas flavors." I was invited to a chef's tasting on July 6th which I happened to bring Cristina, friend, foodie, and of course baker. With her expertise we decided to see what Toloa was all about as it came to their menu as we share our thoughts on their dishes provided and cocktails for the night.
*In this write up I will be using R for Ram (myself) and C for Cristina
R: Starting off with the Chorizo de Mariscos, once I read "grilled cheese on sourdough" I was instantly hooked. I haven't had a grilled cheese in years and I should be ashamed, huh? One of my childhood classics, but at Toloa it came with Shrimp Chorizo, Chimchurri, and lemon butter. All I ever used at home was butter and kraft singles at home. I'm thinking about it as I type, but the shrimp chorizo was not overwhelming that I can still enjoy the buttered sourdough and most importantly the cheese. A very interesting grilled cheese I will say.
C: The chorizo de Mariscos con queso asado was a very nostalgic dish for me. The chorizo spiced mariscos were flavorful but not distracting and it really just felt like a grown up grilled cheese. The portion was small but packed with flavor. I don't know if I'd necessarily order it again but it was an interesting couple of bites before dinner.
C: The ensalada Del Mar felt like a really crisp beach lunch. I really enjoyed the lemon flavor throughout the dish and I thought it paired well with the delicate flavor of the crab. The rice chicharron was a tasty necessary component to an otherwise texturally simple dish.
R: I just want to say the way Cristina delicately the crab with the chicharron was not in comparison to how I handled this situation. Using the rice chicharron I used it as a tortilla to hold my lemon aioli surf-side green and gulf crab. I have never had a seafood salad before, the thought of a seafood salad has me rather bewildered. First bite in especially with the chicharron and the crab made me realize, yeah seafood salads do exist and this was delicious.
These 2 dishes were accompanied with 2 cocktail recommendations as did the following dishes. One being the Joya del Mar (right)
R: Continuing with Puero Y Melon, the colors, the absence of forks as we were given skewers. I felt as the colors shown and the plating itself was an open invitation to play with your food. I didn't know how to "properly" tackle this so I just started poking. Even the jalapeno (something i'm not rather fond of) gave the fruit, the pork belly, and the coconut syrup a nice kick that I rather enjoyed. I wanted to finish this dish in it's entirety, but I had to leave room for what came next.
C: The third dish of the night, Puerco y Melon was the star of the show from the moment it hit the table. Cubic shaped tri color melon paired with crispy pork-belly, basil, paper thin jalapeño and a coconut syrup that I licked off the plate. The dish was served with skewers so that we could build our own bites. It's rare when food makes me feel like a little kid, encouraged to get creative with the way that I choose to take bites but this dish really did that for me.
R: The Tablitas Yakiniku is a waygu short rib, champagne slaw, japanese sweet potato. That first bite into this dish I turned to Cristina and yeah. I will agree that this dish was "severly under seasoned" despite how it's cooked. While looking into this dish, it really sets itself a part from the rest. Looking at it, it resembles a papa asada, but with a Japanese influence.
C: Tablitas yakiniku, was my least favorite dish of the night despite being the highest priced plate. Unfortunately the wagyu and potato dish was severely under seasoned despite being cooked to perfection. Conceptually very different from the rest of the menu with a Japanese influence which felt a bit out of place.
Along with the drinks that accompanied these dishes
Oaxaca old Fashioned and the Aztlan
R: Time for dessert!
C: The two dessert dishes we tried really stole my heart.
C: Queso Oaxaca ice cream. Need I say more? The ice cream was salted and rich and paired so beautifully with the small tamal de chocolate. Truly what New- Mexican inspired dishes should all aim to be.
R: When I read "Quese Oaxaca ice cream" I expected a certain taste, smell, and texture, but man this was fantastic. The combination of ice cream, cold, melting in your mouth paired with a bite of the tamalito filled with chocolate. Two temperatures swirling in your mouth, two textures, flavors just coming together. I enjoyed it so much, I loved the ice cream. Let's not forget the matcha meringue that also played a part.
C: The last but certainly not least was the final dessert course. A beautiful Piloncillo mouse and a Maíz cream. Elegant, delicious and plate lickingly good.
R: The Natillas de Maiz was outstanding. That corn custard to die for! Paired in a spoonful with the crema de piloncillo and the seeded streuse. I would order this again in a heart beat after any meal. I'll remember this dessert fondly.
The drink that accompanied the desserts were the Volver. Volver and the Astro
All the drinks we were able to try with dinner were all recommendations from our server Andrea.
C: The first drink was a martini paired with a caviar bump which really made me feel like for a second I was in some big city loft dining for a special occasion. Overall the meal was beautiful because of the attention to detail. Nothing went unnoticed save for a few moments here and there. The food was cared for and for that reason it has my respect.
R: I want to say thank you to Toloa for the invitation to this Chef's Tasting! It was an experience to dine and drink at the establishment. Something unlike that I have experienced or gone to before. The attention to detail, the aesthetic, the location, the lighting especially. Of course, not forgetting the food and it's inspirations. I look forward to coming back and trying some the items that caught my attention.
Thank you.
Comments