FONDA SOLANA FLASHBACK - Cinderella’s Mexican Feast & the Fairytale Ending

Not much left for the photo
of this Tequila laced concoction

It’s been almost two years, and I still salivate over the duck tacos.  The menu at Fonda Solana in Berkeley is a fascinating blend of elevated latin flavors, all served simply in shared-plates style.   They call it Mexican food, but it is so much more than that.

The occasion of my visit to Fonda (it seems they have all but dropped the Solana) was my daughter’s reunion with both her long-time paramour (now recently acquired husband) and the West Coast.  She’d missed the flavors of California and was needing a bit of reminding.  Dining out at Fonda Solana was just the ticket.  So we made our reservations and six of us headed there for drinks and delights.

Posole? Chicken soup?
Whatever they called it, it was delicious

What she didn’t know, but the rest of us did, was that next month, during her much-anticipated return to California, the boy would ask the girl to marry him. Their story was one of timing, and it was finally right.  Patience and commitment had brought this particular fairy-tale full circle.

But back to the food.  We ordered well, and soon found ourselves sated with the magnificent libations offered at this establishment.  As the courses came, we ooh-ed and ahhh-ed at the lovely presentations and blissfully developed flavors.  At the time I went the restaurant was one of the K-12 group that includes Lalimes and T-Rex (the latter having recently undergone a change in ownership).  To date, I have found a delightfully reliable uniformity of excellence in all restaurant establishments bearing the K-12 stamp.  Each one was worth a visit, many have seen return trips by this diner on the hunt for a food adventure.

The remarkably decadent
duck taco

Among my favorites of the menu we sampled included delightful empanadas drizzled in creme fraiche, hot fried cheese sticks full of oozy goodness while being light and airy as a creampuff, and a heavenly duck taco that incorporated pomegranate into the seasoning.  The duck taco was a revelation in flavors, but everything else was likewise delicious.

It was a magnificent way to relaunch my eldest child back into her native state and its myriad cuisines.  Mexican is something she felt she could never get in New York City, at least not to her California standards.  I can’t imagine NYC doesn’t have any good Mexican food, but on a budget perhaps extremely hard to find.  We reconnected over shared secrets and delicious food.  These are precious memories, which is I suppose why the surface now, on the almost two month anniversary of her nuptials with the lovely young man in the scene.

We talk often of food being love, and yes it is.  It can conjure love, secure love, bind love and remind us of times when we were loved.  It reminds of those who prepared it, the people we shared it with.  Our senses are so moved by the aromas, and the tastes can transport us to moments long gone but that will never be forgotten.  It is a meme I repeat, because it is like breathing.  Food and fond memories. The fabric of life.

Fonda Solana is a great meal if you like Mexican flavors, but don’t expect platters of heavy beans and rice.  The food here is delicate, though the flavors pack a whallop.  Pay it a visit and check it out, make a memory of your own.

Mexican "Wedding" cookies anyone?

Fonda Solana
1501 Solano Avenue
Albany, CA
510-559-9006
www.fondasolana.com

DONA TOMAS - a new kind of Mexican

I've had several people tell me I just had to eat at Dona Tomas. I resisted. I like Mexican well enough, but it's rich and I'm trying to watch what I eat. But, finally an occasion presented itself and the stars aligned. My sister was meeting my husband and I for dinner in Oakland, and so I made reservations.

We arrived a bit early and it wasn't really what I expected. It is open and light and fairly traditional looking inside. The restaurant is situated on Telegraph in Oakland in a neighborhood that still retains much of it's mid-century character. Meaning it's kinda shabby chic, but populated and safe enough.

We sat down and as we waited for our fourth, my daughter to join us, we ordered Margaritas. I had something called the "especial" which I noticed only after I ordered it is a $22 Margarita. Wow. I almost cancelled the order, but since I began writing this blog, I try to be open to new experiences, and it's not like I haven't had pricy drinks. Well, almost never that pricy, but what the heck, or so I told myself. It arrived and once I took a sip, I pretty much got it. It tasted like a glass of light orange air bubbles, laced with some sweet tequila. I had two drinks, but I confess I did have just the simpler house Margarita for my second. Unless it's solid gold, $22 is really a lot of money for a single cocktail. But it was a treat just the once. The second drink was pretty tasty too, so I must say I was content as I munched on my guacamole and chips.

We opened with some fairly standard mexican fare, beginning with guacamole and chips. The chips were good, and the guac was outstanding. I didn't think any place could compete with Tamarindo, but this was just as good, and completely different. More chunky, more pieces of ripened tomato, whatever they put in it, it's great guacamole. We also had some watermelon sticks (which were supposed to be accompanied by pineapple, but they were out) and jicama. Loved the watermelon, not fond of jicama. Would have preferred this dish with the pineapple. I should mention that they bring a complimentary bowl of chips when one is seated, and they have a nice tangy dipping sauce unlike anything I've had in the past.

By this time I'm feeling no pain and decided to order my own favorite Mexican dish, Chile Relleno. My BH had a Chicken Enchilada, and I believe my daughter the Tostada. Mexican is incredibly filling, so I didn't taste either, but they were both happy with their dishes. The BH especially, raved about his dinner.

My Chile Relleno were out of this world. I've never had anything quite like it. All the food in this place is served in large, fairly traditional sized servings, and plated simply. But it is absolutely delicious nonetheless. Really fresh and unusually complex flavors jump out at you from whatever you are served, all of which is delicious from cocktails to dessert.

Dessert was really good. We had a sort of chocolate-y pie thing, and a pile of bread pudding with caramel drizzled all over it. OMG. I kinda love anything with caramel and these were great desserts. The bread pudding tasted like dulce de leche and the chocolate had a hint of cinnamon. Delicious.

This is definitely an amazing restaurant. Everything is prepared with a very new point of view, for lack of a better way to describe it. The dishes are familiar and the flavors are pleasing, but even the refried beans are spectacularly unique. It's sister establishment, Flora to be reported on later, was one of the reasons we tried it and we were not disappointed. I will get back there as soon as my waistline and pocket book will permit. I suggest you do the same.

So do check it out, and Bon Appetit!

Dona Tomas

5004 Telegraph Avenue

Oakland, CA 94609

510-450-0522

http://www.donatomas.com/

Price: Expensive

Dining Time: Only serves dinner, so not really an issue

Table size: Expansive

TAMARINDO ANTOJERIA - Mexican Tapas in the heart of Old Oakland

Several years ago now, this little gem opened up deep in the heart of what we now call Old Oakland. I do not know the story of its inception firsthand, and so cannot attest to the truth of it, but it goes something like this --- the son or daughter of the cook set her up in this place so she could "do what she does best" and provide her home-cooked treats for the world at large.

To whatever degree that is true, whoever talked this woman into cooking for the world-at-large, did us all an enormous favor. Whether or not she is any one's mother (and I'm guessing she is), she cooks everything "con amor" with pronounced and incredible attention to detail of flavor.


I have been enjoying the rewards of this family's decision to open their restaurant in Oakland for years. I wholeheartedly recommend you do as well. On this particular occasion, my BH and I were starving , so we ordered a lot. The plates are small, and I actually prefer it that way, as it allows for a wider range of pleasures. I would prefer to share tapas-style mini-plates over large plates any day. The more I can sample at any one sitting, the better. If you prefer large plates, they do have those too.

We began with the guacamole. This is creamy, blended, fresh and subtly spiced. Nothing overwhelms the flavor of the avocado, yet it is neither bland nor too spicy. It is the perfect guacamole. Followed shortly by the daily ceviche. This dish changes daily (although it usually is a perfection of shrimpy goodness), as it must be made with the freshest of ingredients.

The shrimp version pictured here, is my favorite ceviche. It is, like everything here, in a word fresh. Fresh flavors, fresh ingredients. Consistently a perfect blend of dressing and fish that never has that fishy taste that has kept me off ceviche in the past. How far I've come since I scarfed down my first sushi plate of raw tuna.. but that's another story.

After we downed our ceviche we shared several plates of their one-of-a-kind mini dishes. The first we had was new. It is the Tostaditas de Tinga Poblana, which the menu describes as small tostadas with black beans, chipotle chicken, cabbage, fresh avocado and crema (cream). Being new to the menu, we hadn't tried these yet, but frankly, this place has yet to make a misstep.

This dish was no exception. The flavors were new too, with the smoky sensibilities of the chipotle complementing the light creamy barbeque sauce that the chicken was seated nicely atop. My BH was worried that it might be too spicy, but the owner is fairly careful about leaving the heat of the spice to the peppers. (One can order a delicious assortment of hot roasted peppers here, from jalapeno, serreno to habanero and they are very good about warning you about those habanero). If one likes the spice, on request they will provide a delicious assortment of home made salsa that will heat up any dish nicely.

The food is nothing if not consistent, and we have found that the dishes that we

love never fail to replicate the good memories we have of them. That which bears repeating is always repeated to perfection. Our repeats today were the mulita, and the Tacos de Cameron. The mulita is a beef and cheese tostada sandwich. It is simple and really good. Slices of steak broiled and sliced, served between two home-made corn tortillas and covered in melted cheese. A meat-lover's delight. After the mulita we had the tacos de cameron, which are a shrimp taco. Perfectly prepared, these are fresh and tasty as well.

The shrimp taco is pictured below. The shells are deep fried and filled with fresh shrimp cooked and dressed with a light shredded lettuce and tomato salad, topped off with grated cheese.

We didnt' have it today, but when it's on the menu, the corn soup here may be the best creamed corn soup in the world. (Although Pican's corn soup with chunks of bacon in it is a pretty strong contender). The Tamarindo corn soup is delicate and perfectly balanced. It is like eating a soft, yellow cloud.

One last mention, they serve a drink here, agua fresca. The drink changes flavors daily, usually they offer tamarindo (tamarind), pineapple, watermelon and cucumber. I have had all but the tamarind (though it is the restaurant's namesake, I'm just not a fan). My favorite is the pineapple, but all the agua fresca are really good. Agua fresca is mostly water, with the "essence" of the fruit or other ingredient blended in. Maybe a 10% mix? Hard to tell, but the muddled fruit addition to the water makes it incredibly refreshing, without being overly sweet or overwhelming.

Definitely a place worth checking out. They are open for lunch every day but Monday.

Bon Appetit!

Tamarindo Antojeria

468 8th Street

Oakland, CA 94607

510.444-1944

http://www.tamarindoantojeria.com/

Price: Moderate to Expensive (tapas always depends on quantity ordered. Dishes range $10-12 approximate)

Dining Time: a bit lengthy for lunch, but not terribly so. Staff is responsive so if in a crunch, just let them know

Table size: cramped. Not enough space for dishes.