El Bajio

El Bajio Restaurant Review:

A branch of the venerable El Bajío in Colonia Obrero Popular, the Polanco outpost manages to retain its down-home feel in spite of the colorful, hi-tech décor, elegant table linens and well-heeled clientele. Swank or not, diners here are looking for culinary comforts like grandma used to make, so the menu is selective (forget the three salads), with earthy starters like pigs’ feet and a crab quesadilla whose putative pretensions are deep-fried away. A duo of cornmeal sopes comes alternately filled with black beans or cottage cheese, the latter being the winner. Apart from standard soups like médula (bone marrow), you’ll find beef mole de olla---a real treat since it’s almost never available outside of someone’s house. Veracruz-style cod and ceviche round out the seafood; there are steaks and a chicken mole, too. But carnitas are the house specialty and do not disappoint (though they may need some kicking up with Bajío’s no-joke salsas). We do have some negative notes (tortilla chips were downright stale, for example), but let’s keep it in perspective---even what’s just acceptable here is infinitely better than almost everything Mexican to be found in New York.