November 14, 2023 – For those tracking the long-awaited debut of Nicolás Cocina de Herencia in Carmel, it can seem like it’s been a good while coming.
After all, it was roughly 30 months ago when Edible reported Villa Azteca, the cult hit on Main Street in Salinas, was adding an ambitious sibling on Carmel Plaza’s ground floor next to Alvarado Street Brewery & Bistro.
But that also misses the point, in two important ways.
Number one, the tastier tale stretches a lot further back than two and a half years.
Number two, a shiny second restaurant, let alone a first, was never the plan anyway.
Way back in the day, Susana and Leopoldo Alvarez worked for years as farmworkers in the Salinas Valley. From there they went on to clean homes. At their various gigs, they’d bring homemade lunch. Early on they shared with their clients.
Cue the wows, the OMGs, the how’d-you-do-thats.
As the comments became a refrain, the couple started catering meals and events for those homeowners, which over years of word of mouth, led to a new chorus (“This is amazing—where’s your restaurant?”) and a refreshed mission (find a commercial facility to really get cooking).
Enter the Azteca opportunity. The owner wanted out. The Alvarezes just wanted the kitchen. (With the kids in school, they lacked the team for a restaurant.)
A meeting ensued.
“We sat down as a family, talked and asked each other if we were ‘All in,’” Adilenny Alvarez says. “Since we all have so much faith in my mom’s cooking we kinda knew it was a good move.”
Spoiler alert: It was, even if it meant the younger generation would drop out of college and leave other careers. Villa Azteca quickly developed into a foodie tractor beam thanks to clever expressions of Mexican creations that bridge classic and contemporary.
Recent revelations at the Salinas restaurant include a ribeye al carajillo with an espresso-balsamic reduction, chile de árbol-glazed salmon and deconstructed prickly pear tiramisu. Previous hits range from guajillo fried rice to apricot mole with crispy pork belly.
Andres Alvarez served as sous chef at his mother’s side—and was surprised at eaters’ reactions, though he acknowledges why: “I guess I have been eating it my whole life, so I was used to it.”
“It was one of those things: I’m going to support my family and see where it goes,” he recalls. “Then it blew up a little more than we thought. We’re grateful for that.”
An interesting twist will characterize the Carmel project, even beyond the dramatic floorplan and audience demographics.
The creativity and team that launched Villa Azteca will remain in place. That’s according to Adi, who’ll tend front of the house with brother Marco, while mama Susana and brother Andres direct the kitchen, and papa Leopoldo sticks to running support and stocking the pantry. The seasoned team from Villa Azteca “Is so good they don’t need much from us,” Adi adds.
But the menu from Villa will stay over on Main Street, though specials will sometimes appear at both places.
Andres elaborates.
“I’m excited for this place because it’s going to be totally different—more seafood options, ingredients you don’t normally see in Mexican food,” he says. “As chefs, the new audience allows us to present our cuisine on another level.”
The working menu for Nicolás holds the potential to do that.
A dozen starters ($16-$28) dip and bend through passionfruit-hibiscus oysters, huitlacoche gorditas, birria dumplings, lobster tacos gobernador and corn bone marrow.
A dozen more entrees ($23-$80) seize the stage by way of short rib Mixteca, Mary’s chicken in mole negro with green apple pico de gallo, maitake barbacoa and a $300 32-ounce Wagyu tomahawk steak with roasted corn and poblano cream and handmade house tortillas.
The eye-catchers make it easy to miss the attention to detail that will ultimately make or shake the magic, and has Andres waking at 5am to sort things for this week’s debut.
“Prep is so important,” he says. “Everybody is expecting a lot, so our mis en place game has to be 11 out of 10.”
The curtain goes up Wednesday, Nov. 15, when Nicolás opens softly at 3pm. (Cue my standard PSA there: If you go please remember 1) you’re lucky to get in on a rare opportunity that will have hiccups; 2) your thoughtful feedback is welcome and vital, any online diss tracks are counterproductive.)
The 5,000-square-foot space itself is clearly ready, set off by tasteful mirrors, art, leafy plants and an elegant bar that will stir craft cocktails.
Some of the creative takes include: Sweet Chipotle, with silver tequila, peach, chipotle and lime; guava and maracuya palomas; and the Fresh Mezcalita, with mezcal, cucumber, pineapple, basil and lemon. A selection of eight premium tequilas and eight mezcal round out the menu.
The big painting behind the bar honors Nicolás, the patriarch for whom the restaurant is named. (Refer back to Raúl Nava’s Edible piece on the restaurant-to-be for more on that.)
“I feel like he’d be very proud of us,” says Andres, who never got to meet his grandpa. “I’ve heard all the stories. He was a farmer, he always had a big understanding of the importance of the food he grew, and he liked a lot of unity in the family, always having that support, offered and received.
“With any small part of our success, the most beautiful thing about this is that I get to do it with my family.”
More soon at Nicolás Cocina de Herencia’s Instagram.
About the author
Mark C. Anderson, Edible Monterey Bay's managing editor, appears on "Friday Found Treasures" via KRML 94.7 every week, a little after 12pm noon. Reach him via mark@ediblemontereybay.com.
