Frontera/Not Frontera (Again)

I last wrote about Frontera Grill over two years ago, which I believe was the last time I ate there (I think). In my last post, I asked how does Frontera stack up against Not Frontera. Or which is the superior Mexican restaurant. I concluded then, that while I liked things about Frontera, I liked Not Frontera, the neighborhood restaurants better. Some people misintinterpreted this conclusion. I am accused of simply preferring the cheap over the refined (perhaps verging on reverse snobbery). I have also been told that the kind of Mexican food I wanted could not be achieved at more expensive places, that my favored foods would loose something in their translation to Frontera. I reject both ascertations, the former on experience (just look at me digging a pricier Mexican meal here), but the latter more on faith. For I believed then, as I do now, that Frontera fails on the plate, not in the concept. I still have faith even as I walked away from Frontera again, let down.

It was the trout, trout done in the manner of chicharron de pescado, or fish heavily breaded and fried up so crispy it tastes like a chunk of pork fat. It is a common way of frying fish, not just in Mexico but in South America as well. It instictually appeals to me, and I enjoyed a lot, the version I had at Islas Marias. How would Frontera compare? Frontera uses trout from the Rushing Waters farm in Wisconsin. This should appeal to my eating local-ness (and my advocacy of fresh water fish). Regardless of the source, I think trout (rainbow), a poor choice for this dish, as the nuance of the fish gets lost in the hard fry. Yet what hard fry. This dish really failed, failed to deliver that whack of Wiv-crispness. There was no chicharron in my pescado. Everything else on my plate tasted great. I do not dismiss (at all), the pureed red beans that surely tasted like Rick’s being hanging out with the French guys, smooth and with a nice touch of butter (!). I bet there are versions of Mexican beans that contain butter, that Frontera is not being inauthentic here, but I really do not care. It worked. Well. I also liked the salad of juliened napa, with equally thin slices of pickled jalepeno hiding under the pale greens. The avocado salsa met my expecations in smoothness, complexity and heat. Of course, Frontera’s tortillas are not as good as La Quebrada, but I would have ignored that if they could have turned out a superior piece of fish (which they should).

The other dishes I sampled hit the same specrum. A trio of ceviches contained one outstanding version, Frontera’s longtime lime doused classic, with a good dose of chiles. Another of the trio, had the exact catsup mixed with orange juice flavor found in any neighborhood taqueria. With only tiny pieces of seafood, this cocktail again failed to exceed Not Frontera. The last of the trio, with nice rings or squid suceeded on an ingredient level but did not wow me on a flavor level, although one of my dining companions loved this one. On the other hand, our other appetizer lent the biggest support to my faith and hope in Frontera, bits of “Enchiladas” Potosinas.

I’m a bit lost why Bayless put in the quotation marks. This would suggest a Thomas Kelleran dish, something like but not like. Now, I am no expert on enchiladas Potosinas, having read about them here, and sampled them here. But what I had last night did not seem like enchiladas Potosinas, they were enchiladas Potosinas, complete with the red chili infused masa casing. If the filling was a bit lighter and more velvety than a street version, it did not, in my book make the dish either wrong or inauthentic. This plate succeeds on a higher level in all ways. From a garnish of spicy AND visually gorgeous shavings of Beauty Heart radishes to a fry with just a whisper of grease, oily enough to transfer taste, not so much to bog you down, here it was, a classic recipe, executed right, of the best ingredients, plated to its full advantage. This is what Frontera should be able to achieve with all of their dishes.

Nice assessment.

I lack the knowledge to be picky about authenticity when it comes to Mexican food (although the butter in the beans in pretty obvious) but the one thing I walked away with is that I felt I could have picked a better dish. My duck -


"Pato en Salsa de Chile Ancho y Nuez - grilled Gunthorp duck breast in silky ancho chile sauce thickened with toasted pecans; chipotle-spiked butternut and smoky green beans"

- was excellent, but I wanted something that would teach me something. If nothing else, the menu intrigued me to go back and try again - or even better - do some searches here and go to Not Frontera more often.

I can't help agreeing with what you mentioned - that it's a Sears Tower kind of restaurant - locals don't go there unless bringing someone from out-of-town there.

While I wasn't wowed, and it only met, not exceeded my expectations, the ingredients were excellent, (but the ceviches did seem skimpy on the actual fish), the flavors were more than worth the prices (which luckily did not exceed my expectations) I'm going back sometime before I have to bring out-of-towners there.


Ceviche Trio


"Enchiladas" Potosinas


Chicharron de Pescado

Hmmm, maybe it is time to present Rick Bayless with a lifetime achievement award for "Popularizing Regional Mexican Cuisine in the US," with the understanding that, like people who receive this type of award at the Oscars, his importance and relevance are mostly behind him. His places and a couple of places in NYC showed me the richness, variety and deliciousness of Mexican cuisine, and I thank him and have always appreciated the quality of his food. But the trail has been blazed and there are a lot of others working the territory he opened up, so many to choose from. Even though I am sad that Geno Bahena has thrown in the towel, I do not think the culinary loss is so absolute.

There is now a lot to choose from no matter how you categorize his food - be it Regional Mexican, Haute Mexican, or Nouveau/fusion Mexican. And the competition is strong.

The young, inspired chef works hard and handcrafts amazing dishes; the business grows and becomes successful and he increasingly becomes a manager, the executive chef; it grows further, becoming a very profitable franchise and the chef becomes the primary marketing tool, a figurehead whose time is so in demand that his/her involvement in the restaurant becomes less and less.

I suppose the future importance of Frontera depends mostly on Bayless finding the right young chef and turning it over to him to take it in a new direction.

Meanwhile, it really still is pretty good food, just not wonderful or unique, right?

dicksond wrote:Meanwhile, it really still is pretty good food, just not wonderful or unique, right?

That's not really my contention with Frontera. My problem is, based on my last two dinners (abet 2 years apart) is that Frontera just does not suceed with their dishes as well as they should. I really think it is a problem of execution, not of concept. I also have some issues with the restaurant itself, service, comfort, value, but I'm trying to stay only on the food right now. At the end of the day, I expect Frontera to deliver more great plates then they do.

Look at my meal. There were a number of really excellent items, especially the beans and the enchilada. Some thinks worked well, but were flawed like Paul's duck or the ceviches, one item, the fish, missed its mark by a lot. I expect a much higher batting average. I wonder if the menu is too big or there is just too much effort to turn the tables/deal with the crowds. I would not call Frontera "downhill", but it was more uniformly better in the past.

Rob

I have to admit that any time I walk into Frontera I end up having a good time. I think I can get a better mole elsewhere for 1/3 the price, I think his rellenos are really good but not the best I've ever had.

I think what I do like is the restaurant. I do get that the guy likes Mexico. I do enjoy his margaritas... I love his sopes. I do think he has perfected the way he uses his masa... yeah baby. I like the way Rick uses his masa.

I like his ceviche, I like the service. I like the silliness of his restaurant. I really enjoy seeing people walk out of there thinking that Oaxacan food is a Bayless invention... it's not but I think their experience is what makes them so happy. That's a big key- that they leave happy... even if their experience doesn't hinge on the food.

When I think of "Not-Frontera" I think of a Chilpancingo or a Platiyo etc. not La Oaxaquena.

We had lunch at Topolobampo (sp?) yesterday and it was fantastic. The food and service was spot on, and we enjoyed ourselves a bunch. It was quieter than Frontera, we could get seated at a table right away, and it wasn't stuffy.