Naughty Braised Shortribs at Fuego Bistro

By Michele Laudig Tue., Oct. 12 2010 at 1:36 PM

Categories: Laudig

It's been quite awhile since I've had dinner at Fuego Bistro, a tiny eatery tucked away in a courtyard off of 7th Street, so I stopped by for a recent dinner to see if the food was as good as I'd remembered.

What a tasty little meal! I really enjoyed my Coca-Cola/pineapple/soy-braised shortribs, a huge hunk of luscious meat coated in sticky-sweet-salty glaze. Did I even bother to pick up my fork? Yeah, I did, but it was absolutely unnecessary thanks to the seductive tenderness of the beef. Glazed carrots were fine, but I was all over that cornbread served on the side. The inside was moist, almost like a pudding, while the outside had crisp, sweet edges.

Sauteed prawns, spooned with tomatillo avocado sauce, spicy chipotle guajillo sauce, and mango chutney, made a nice starter to go with our ice-cold mojitos, served in pint glasses (I like!). I wished I had a roll to sop up the sauce, except that I knew the entrees were on their way.

My dining companion went for the pernil asado, and that was a great call -- it was a heap of juicy, Puerto Rican-style roast pork, topped with pink pickled onions and accompanied by a small cup of habanero mojo for extra heat. I reached across the table for a bite too many times to count! Cheddar mashed potatoes on the side needed some salt. But I'd get the corn again in a heartbeat. What's the big deal about corn? Here, it was creamy, a little sweet, and flecked with bits of hot green chile.

We didn't save room for dessert, and in fact, we took home leftovers because it was so much food (hello, next-day lunch!). Maybe I'll try some next time -- if I don't fill up on too much shortrib again.