First Pics: New Mexican place Blue Corn aims high in Italian Market
Less than two months after the short-lived Torero tapas place closed at 940 S. 9th St., a new Mexican spot called Blue Corn has taken its place.
Blue Corn co-owner Amado Sandoval says he is aiming for a higher standard of Mexican fare than the numerous other establishments along the Italian Market strip. He says his menu features dishes that would be likely to be found in a sophisticated Mexico City restaurant rather than a streetside taco stand. Everything is handmade, and the staff — actually, it’s an all-family affair — shops daily for fresh ingredients.
As for the name, blue corn is a key ingredient in San Mateo, Puebla, where Sandoval was raised. It has more nutrients and flavor than standard yellow corn and pops up as an ingredient in several items on the menu (check it out below), including a tasty blue margarita with a rim of sweetened blue corn flour called pinole.
The cocktail list is actually pretty extensive, and Sondoval is hoping to catch the late-night crowd that Torero never quite capitalized on.
Hours will be seven days a week until 2 a.m., opening Monday to Thursday at 10 a.m. for early lunch, and in about two weeks at 7 a.m. from Friday to Sunday for breakfast. No website yet, but here’s the nascent Yelp page.
Stop by and say hi. By the way, the tamarind margarita was really good, too.
This is the kind of thing that needs to be going in on Snyder Ave. Help bring people out and keep them lingering, liven up the street so it doesn’t seem so desolate. Perhaps re-open the bar at 8th & Snyder.
Anthony, you’re right except I would start it down near Terryin and work my way west. There is the plumbing store on 4th and Moyamensing/Snyder that is ripe for something like this.
I’m excited about this– hopefully some of the traffic at the ever-busy Cantina on Passyunk will venture North.
My family and I had dinner at Blue Corn last night and were really impressed! The octopus appetizer, chicken mole, and a mascarpone cheesecake with guava sauce… All delicious! Very happy to see this new addition!
Looks like we’ll have a tasty, classy alternative to the Cantina! I agree with Nicole: the more variety we have, better for everyone.
I can’t believe you guys are comparing this with Cantina.
Here for another Mexican restaurant in South Philly. It’s a shame about Torero because the food was delicious but the servers were born yesterday.