PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAWhat do you do when you move to a new country and are filled with insatiable cravings for the Mexican food you’d get at home? If you’re Steven Marks, you simply open your own restaurant, import authentic ingredients from Mexico, hire Latin Americans to man the stoves and hey presto! Judging by the crowds when Guzman y Gomez opened in Newtown late 2006, Marks wasn’t the only one craving an authentic taqueria in the neighbourhood. With industrial-chic decor (bright yellow stools, a long communal table, corrugated iron and a brick feature wall) and windows overlooking King Street, the space is a modern interpretation of Mexican street side vendors.
It may resemble a fast food chain with its plastic trays and counter service, and although the food is fast, the flavours are world’s away. Cooked fresh to order, local produce is combined with spices imported direct from Mexico and nothing (bar the totopos and fish “Baja”) is cooked in oil. The result is food so simple and tasty, not to mention healthy, you could turn a visit into a daily event. Burritos are a specialty, so tuck into the steak and onion incarnation wrapped in a soft tortilla with beans, rice and cheese, and grilled until crispy. Now that’s something to write home about.
Shelley Hepworth, March 2007
