Abuela’s Midtown serves up childhood nostalgia with Mexican comfort food
The bright blue Victorian house on K Street in midtown is something of a time machine. Stepping into the first-floor unit is like being catapulted back to some of the most comforting moments in childhood.
That’s what the team behind Abuela’s Midtown strives for at the new Mexican restaurant. Soft launched in October by the owners of Midtown’s Cantina Alley, Abuela’s is a “Mexican restaurant that happens to have coffee,” general manager Oscar Escobar said.
The eatery held its grand opening at 2321 K St., on Wednesday. Staff introduced the community to their abuelas through photos of them on the walls, dishes made with their original recipes and decor inspired by their lives.
“We came up with the idea of honoring our abuelas (grandmothers),” Escobar said. “What better way to honor their recipes that they shared and they passed on to us? Being able to share them with Sacramento, it’s a blessing.”
The eatery’s menu is short but dense, with Mexican comfort dishes such as chile con huevo ($12.50), red or green chilaquiles ($14.50) and spiced cafe de olla ($4.95 for 12-ounce, $5.50 for 16-ounce).
Manager Coatzin Aguilar said the Abuela’s concept is aimed at feeling cozy and nostalgic.
“It’s always nice when you go to your grandma’s house and she’s like, ‘Oh, (let’s make) chilaquiles,’ or ‘I have tamales ready,’ ... and then you have your cafecito with it,” Aguilar said. “You almost just want to stay there forever, you know?”
An homage to abuelas
Escobar and his team pulled out all the stops to fully immerse diners in the experience of visiting a Mexican grandmother’s house.
Every nook and cranny of the small restaurant space is a nod to the domestic staples of a Mexican upbringing. Artwork depicting the Virgin Mary adorn the walls, cans of salsa and Abuelita brand hot chocolate rest in a decorative pantry shelf, and a vintage Singer sewing machine sits alongside a basket of flowers and gardening hat.
Even the table numbers honor the team’s grandmothers. Each table marker features an image of the Abuela’s staff’s actual grandmothers, such as Escobar’s Doña Mary and Aguilar’s grandmother Doña Gloria.
“(Abuela’s) is all around being with the community, family, bringing stuff from the culture,” Aguilar said.
Aguilar said the restaurant’s early success has encouraged the team to consider a second location, but he believes the homey atmosphere of the K Street house is crucial.
“(But) it would be fun to say, ‘Hey, I’m going to Abuela’s,’ and hear ‘Oh, which one?’”
Expanding from Cantina Alley
While Abuela’s takes off on the first floor, the restaurant team — which also runs the adjacent Cantina Alley — is developing a new concept for the second floor.
Though it is still in its early stages, a luxurious 1940s Mexico-themed speakeasy is in the works upstairs, Escobar said. Thrifted furniture, a brilliant chandelier and moody colors fill the former apartment unit with a sophisticated cocktail lounge vibe.
“The whole management team got together, and then we came up with the idea of how to activate the building but also connecting it with K Street,” Escobar said.
The still-unnamed bar is in its first days of soft opening on a word-of-mouth basis, according to Escobar.
Abuela’s Midtown is open 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays, and is closed Mondays.
.jpg)