MEXICO CITY — Newly minted Michelin-starred chef Arturo Rivera Martínez stood over an remarkably hot grill Wednesday at the veryfirst Mexican taco stand ever to get a wishedfor star from the French dining guide, and did precisely the exactsame thing he’s been doing for 20 years: searing meat.
Though Michelin agents came by Wednesday to present him with one of the business’s heavy, full-sleeved, beautiful white chef’s coats, he didn’t put it on: In this small, 10-foot by 10-foot (3-meter by 3-meter) organization, the heat makes the meat. And the heat is extreme.
At Mexico City’s Tacos El Califa de León, in the scruffy-bohemian San Rafael community, there are just 4 things on the menu, all tacos, and all of which came from some location around a cow’s rib, loin or fore shank.
“The trick is the simpleness of our taco. It has just a tortilla, red or green sauce, and that’s it. That, and the quality of the meat,” stated Rivera Martínez. He’s likewise mostlikely the just Michelin-starred chef who, when asked what drink needsto accompany his food, responses “I like a Coke.”
It’s really more complex than that. El Califa de León is the just taco stand amongst the 16 Mexican diningestablishments provided one star, as well as 2 restaurants that got 2 stars. Almost all the rest are quite darn chic restaurants (hint: a lot of pricey seafood served in quite shells on bespoke plates).
In truth, other than maybe one street food stand in Bangkok, El Califa de León is mostlikely the tiniest diningestablishment ever to get a Michelin star: Half of the 100 square-foot (9.29 square-meter) area is taken up by a strong steel plate grill that’s hotter than the salsa.
The other half is jam-packed with standing clients clutching plastic plates and ladling salsa, and the woman assistant who rolls out the rounds of tortilla dough continuously.
In a method, El Califa de León is a homage to resistance to modification. It got there by doing precisely the verysame 4 things it hasactually been doing consideringthat 1968.
Thousands of time a day, Rivera Martínez grabs a fresh, veryfinely sliced fillet of beef from a stack and slaps