In the beginning was the tortilla. In 2019, before the pandemic, a tortilla shop was born in Polanco to contribute to the reimagination of corn as a quality product for Mexican cuisine. Later, the possibility of making, from corn, diverse dishes and presentations caused that tortillería, taqueria and mill to emerge a dining room that experiments, to this day, with the flavors and textures of local products. Siembraa project of Karina Mejía and Israel Montero, is today one of the restaurants in the Polanquense neighborhood that is worth a visit any day of the week.
cv
df
df
During the A Qué Me Sabes festival, Siembra created a menu with some of the most iconic dishes from their menu: the cured tuna tostada, with a house chiltepín sauce, was for dancing around the room; their famous trilogy, tlacoyos stuffed with ricotta cheese, pressed chicharrón and beans, with a mole for dipping, caused hearts to burst with joy; a squash blossom stuffed with cheese, wrapped in amaranth and placed on a bed of mole, made us believe in love again; finally, her dessert, a marzipan sorbet with mango was as if we were going back to recess in kindergarten and sharing that fruit with our friends.
df
df
Although Siembra's beverages are also linked to corn, such as atole, what stands out in its wine list is the priority given to local products, with labels that are as beloved as they are extravagant. What we liked most was its furniture and interior design; set as if it were a place in Puerto Escondido or in the city of Oaxaca, it rescues the colors of creole corn. As if the chefs wanted to remind us of where we come from, ornaments made of totomoxtle hang from the ceiling.
dfd
df
Even though the festival is over, A Qué Me Sabes' menu reflects the best of Siembra. In the words of chef and owner Israel, "we seek to give a twist to the neighborhood, Polanco is no longer attractive to young people and we want to change that". With Siembra, the idea of going back to the roots, to Mexican traditions, becomes more attractive than ever. This is something he shares, for example, with Pujol, Ticuchi -both proposals by chef Enrique Olvera-, with Malix -the Mayan word that, besides being the name of this neighboring restaurant, also refers to the mestizo dog-, with Saint Jacques Bistró, which in fact also belongs to Israel and Karina.
You have to see Polanco again, go for a walk through its streets (and forget about the car for a while), just because you think you've seen it all doesn't mean it's still the same. Siembra is a good example of how we can still find little corners where we can enjoy a good tortilla.