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Roberto Santibañez doesn’t remember a time when he wasn’t in the kitchen. He grew up with a family that loved to cook, including a grandmother who regularly taught classes to fellow neighbors. By the time he was eight, he was regularly in charge of breakfast for his sisters.
“When I grew up, I never wanted to do anything else,” he shared.
The culinary world is all the better for it. Santibañez has authored several cookbooks—including the James Beard Award-nominated “Rosa's New Mexican Table" and “Truly Mexican”—and cooked in kitchens across France, Mexico City and at Austin’s famed restaurant, Fonda San Miguel. During his tenure at Rosa Mexicano, he introduced New Yorkers to regional Mexican cuisine.
“We did a lot of things that the city had really never seen,” he said, recalling standout dishes like the 24-ingredient mole negro, guacamole with Oaxacan pasilla peppers and Zarape de Pato—the duck dish that made him famous. “Once a Mexican friend came and said, ‘This really tastes like you are in an indigenous person’s house up in the mountains.’ And I said, ‘That's the point.’”
In 2009, he continued telling the story of contemporary Mexican food on his own terms with the opening of Fonda—first in New York (Park Slope, Chelsea and Tribeca), and now in Nashville and even Tokyo. Today, more of his cooking returns to NYC with the opening of Tacos Fonda.
On January 23, Tacos Fonda will open its doors at Time Out Market New York, Union Square, with a selection of classics. Tacos are central here—think ancho-and-chipotle-rubbed chicken seared on the plancha, and slow-braised carnitas with a crown of chicharrones. The guajillo-braised brisket with arbol chilies and the Quesa-birria—oozing with melty cheese—are also standouts. Guacamole, a trio of salsas, and crazy fries layered with cotija cheese and shakes of chipotle powder round out the savory items. Churros, a citrus tres leches, pastelito de caramelo, and brownie bites offer a sweet finish.
Santibañez hopes to introduce innovative twists to his traditional menu down the line, something he’s sure to be memorable—whatever it is.
"The one rule is, it's gonna be delicious," he says.