View From Casita Colibrí

A couple of days ago, above the Plaza de la Danza, a mound of sand and a pile of bricks.

There were guys doing the heavy lifting — bricks on their shoulders and buckets of sand in hand — carrying load after load down the ramps and stairs to the plaza below.

The sand was spread and leveled and the bricks were carefully laid in a herringbone pattern.

What were they up to?  Preparing a barbecue platform for last night’s gastronomic festival, El Saber del Sabor Oaxaca 2013, opening night buffet.  The entire Plaza de la Danza was tented, tables and chairs were set up, lights were strung, and by yesterday afternoon, all was ready.

Last year we missed out on the barbecue — spit roasted lamb and pork — it looked and smelled divine, but the line was too long and then it was gone.  This year, we were not to be denied and so our strategy was to be first in line.

That meant standing for at least 20 minutes in front of the newly constructed barbecue at the Cuenca station, where we had plenty of time to study the menu and salivate, as smoke from the BBQ permeated our clothes and burned our eyes.

José Domingo Cruz Cobos from Tuxtepec did not disappoint.  I can’t even begin to describe how succulent the meat and how crispy the skin.  It was well worth the wait!

However, this was only the beginning.  Cooks from the other 7 regions of Oaxaca were also there, preparing their signature dishes.

Aurora Toledo of Zandunga restaurant with chef, teacher, author, and the evening’s special honoree, Patricia Quintana.

Gluttony makes for a hazy memory, but in addition to the above, I had mole negro and tamalitos from the famed Mendoza sisters of Tlamanalli in Teotitlán del Valle, garnachas from Aurora Toledo of Zandunga in the city, and ???  Oh, and then there was wine, mezcal, and a cajeta flavored paleta for dessert.

All this, and much, much, much more for only 350 pesos (about $27 US).  It was a lovely and delicious night.

And for those with deeper pockets, multi-course lunches and dinners with wine and mezcal pairings are being prepared by the top chefs from all over Mexico, at select restaurants throughout the city, including Alejandro Ruíz of Casa Oaxaca and Jose Manuel Baños Rodriguez of Pitiona, each recently named to Latin America’s 50 Top Restaurants.

¡Buen provecho!