El Naranjo

Just opening. Chef Iliana de la Vega, who formerly had an acclaimed restaurant of the same name in Oaxaca, Mexico. Look for Oaxacan street staples like molotes, tostadas, tacos fritos, and more, plus daily specials like mole and tamales.

The original El Naranjo was famous in Mexican culinary circles until the Oaxacan riots of 2006 drove its acclaimed chef outâ?¦and eventually to the shores of Lady Bird Lake. Even though she sits on the board of the Culinary Institute of America, most nights of the week, you will find her expediting orders from this well-appointed trailer in the burgeoning Rainey Street area.

Oaxacan cuisine is distinct even within Mexico. The region's seven trademark moles (which El Naranjo rotates each Wednesday) are built around the smoky, earthy flavors of dry-roasted chilies, as well as herbs like hoja santa'a leaf whose licorice-y, almost tobacco-like aromatics wrap fish or tamales with a faraway fragrance. It is grown, along with an array of other rare Oaxacan flora, in the chef's garden.

Mole verde sings of that garden, tomatillo's soprano harmonizing with green chile. Mole colorado's ancho and guajillo peppers receive evocative depth from bitter chocolate and the sweetness of dry-roasted tomato. Cochinita pibil is so heady with clove and cinnamon that it practically breaks out into Christmas carols. Soups are subtle and beautifully balanced. And if the food is this good'if somewhat inconsistently executed'coming from the limits of a trailer kitchen, we cannot wait to experience it at its fullest potential, when the cute cottage behind it is finished.

		From	To	From	To	From	To
Monday	Open	11:30	23:00
Tuesday	Open	11:30	23:00
Wednesday	Open	11:30	23:00
Thursday	Open	18:00	00:00
Friday	Open	18:00	00:00
Saturday	Open	18:00	00:00
Sunday	Closed