First Look: Inside Danville’s gorgeous new Cielito Cocina Mexicana
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A flurry of new restaurants has opened in Danville this year, from the modern Persian-inspired Albatross to the gourmet Mexican cantina, Cocina Hermanas. Last night, a third joined their ranks: Cielito, another upscale Mexican restaurant, this one located inside the former Chow digs on Railroad Avenue. Riding the trend of contemporary, regionally-focused Mexican cuisine (thank you, Gabriela Camara), Cielito bills itself as a destination for the dishes of Puebla and Oaxaca. But save for a mole or two, it’s really about solid, humble street food made with some flair and fresh ingredients from local farms like Faurot Ranch and Castaneda Brothers. Have a taste:
THE VIBE: Cielito is a beautiful restaurant. Every decorative touch is intentional, from the massive Mission-style chandeliers and tile-like wallpaper to the bar’s stained glass. Seating comes in several forms, from the comfy, leather-strapped banquettes that line the dining room perimeter to round tables in the center of the dining room with cowhide-covered chairs that appeared to be held together by tree branches and planks of wood. (They’re almost as uncomfortable as those hipster-chic metal chairs in every cafe these days.)
THE FOOD: On opening night, the open kitchen was buzzing with at least a dozen cooks mashing masa, making tortillas or zipping past servers. The menu is divided into salads ($11-$16), starters ($4-$16), tacos ($12-$13), sides ($4-$5) and entrees ($13-$29). The Guacamole ($10), made with epazote, cilantro, serrano chiles and queso fresco, had a lot of lively lime zestiness but could have used more heat.
The Pollo Con Mole Oaxaca ($21) is a family recipe featuring a Mary’s chicken thigh and leg smothered in dark, pleasingly-bitter mole sauce made with, according to our server, 75 ingredients. We mixed it into black beans and white rice for a satisfying, shareable dish with the warm tortillas. Our favorite dishes, as is often the case at these upscale street-food restaurants, were the tacos ($12 for 2): Wood-grilled carne asada steak with grilled onions, thick slices of avocado and tomatillo salsa, and braised pork shoulder carnitas with pickled onions and fiery chile morita salsa.
DON’T MISS: The Vampiro ($13), a strong, spicy cocktail made with El Charro tequila blanco, orange liqueur, lime juice, mango and chamoy sauce. Cielito offers six craft cocktails ($12-$13), 14 wines by the glass ($10-$15), 13 by the bottle ($38-$64) and 10 craft beers on draft ($7-$10).
PERFECT FOR: A family dinner (they have a kids menu); drinks and bites at the bar; game watching while eating tacos. Note that the restaurant can be loud until through the dinner rush, but it quiets down, at least on our Wednesday night visit, after 8 p.m.
DETAILS: Open from 11:30 a.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. weekends at 445 Railroad Ave., Danville; www.cielitodanville.com.