Flavors of Mexico…for real!

Brunch is an important part of people’s lives in Boston.  Most restaurants serve a fairly traditional brunch, so it is nice when you are presented with something a little different….enter Rosa Mexicano, one of America’s most known Mexican restaurant chains and reputed to have the best table side guacamole. Not bad for a title huh?

Already popular for having a Mexican style brunch, starting February 23rd, Rosa Mexicano, (located at 155 Seaport blvd.), will take it to the next level with the launch of their much anticipated Flavors of Mexico brunch special…in other words, Desayuno:)  

The menu, created by Chef Antonio Perez, uses authentic Mexican flavors to produce delicious results.  Before you begin chowing down on scrambled eggs and cacti however, there is a whole slew of Mexican beverages to whet your palette.  Why not begin with their agua fresca, a flavored water they serve daily that is perfect for hydrating and cleansing in between bites.  I tried an orange and pineapple combination, but expect hibiscus, melon and cucumber -tomatillo in the future:)

I would not skip out on their house made horchata, a traditional drink made with rice milk and infused with coconut.  They have even crafted a delicious brunch cocktail with their horchata, espresso and tequila…I will have a few of those please:)

I had the opportunity to chat with Chef Antonio and he said that in Mexico, desayuno is jokingly referred to as ‘breakfast in a pot’ and is usually made with leftovers from the evening before.  With this idea, dishes are made with ingredients whose flavors have that much more depth to them.   Although they do not use left over ingredients at Rosa Mexicano, they do cook all the ingredients for a given dish together in a stew-like preparation.  They also serve most of their dishes in the same skillet used as a cooking vessel.  This allows for a very well-rounded and profound flavor throughout the dish.

Their Machacado con huevo (pictured above), is a perfect example of this technique at work.  It is scrambled eggs with dried shredded beef, jalapenos, tomatoes, onions and served with flour tortillas.  The kick from the jalapenos and the juicy tomatoes with the shredded beef was a perfect compliment to the creamy, smooth eggs.  

I also thoroughly enjoyed their soft scrambled eggs with cactus (oh yea!), pasilla chile and roasted peppers.  With a bit of cream cheese added to the mixture, this vegetarian dish is enough to make make any meat eater envious:)

A dish I had never experienced before is also featured on the menu, Mexico City Chilaquiles.  Prepared atop a seared ham steak we have corn tortillas smothered in smoky chile sauce and soft scrambled eggs.

Of course, no brunch in Boston would be brunch without french toast, but here again, Chef Antonio turns on the Mexican flare with a center cut out of two pieces of thick cut, cinnamon and chile encrusted brioche toast and then filled with mascarpone cheese and fried sweet plantains.  The whole thing is then doused in their traditional cane sugar syrup….it is mesmerizing:)

Rosa Mexicano’s Desayuno is but one small part of their Flavors of Mexico series which looks to introduce Mexican flavors in their true form and authenticity to our city.  The meal I had was certainly proof of the success they will enjoy.

This special brunch menu won’t last forever, however they will also be having a whole bunch of other specials including a Mexican take on Passover and an ice cream festival in the summer. Check out their event page for upcoming specials…you will want to try them out:)