Eat Up Havana: Dig Into the Massive Menu at This Mexican Spot

Over a decade ago, former Westword food editor Mark Antonation began his food-writing career by eating his way up Federal Boulevard. Now, we’re turning our attention to another vibrant culinary corridor.

The four-plus-mile stretch of Havana Street between Dartmouth and Sixth Avenue in Aurora is home to the most diverse array of international cuisine available in the metro area. From restaurants and markets to take-and-go shops and stands, food lovers of nearly any ethnicity or interest can find a place that will remind them of home or open new culinary doors. In Eat Up Havana, Antony Bruno will visit them all, one by one, week by week. Check out his previous stops.

This week, Bruno visits Piramides Mexican Restaurant

Entering Piramides Mexican Restaurant along Aurora’s Havana Street, you immediately get the sense that you’ve entered into someone’s very specific vision of what a Mexican restaurant should be. 

The strikingly bright turquoise blue walls lined with embossed metal repujado artwork serve as an effective wake-up call to the senses, preparing the eyes and the mind for the long, multi-paged menu full of large color pictures of the dishes that lie within. 

That someone is Victor Urresti, who, with his wife, Zoila, opened Piramides in 2021. It is the result of his 25-plus years of restaurant experience, previously having run the now-shuttered Las Hadas restaurant on Chambers and Hampden. 

Piramides means pyramids in English, and is a reference to a pair of historical sites in his native Mexico: the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon, which sit side by side in Teotihuacan, Mexico, about forty miles north of Mexico City. Urresti grew up behind the Pyramid of the Moon, and his wife in front.

As a result, throughout the Piramides menu, you’ll find specials named after these very personal landmarks, such as the fajitas sol y luna, torta sol y luna, and so on. 

Now about that menu: It’s big and it’s long. 

“When people come for the first time, they say, ‘Oh it’s too much to read,’ so we have to give them some time,” says Urresti.

What to order

The menu may be large, but the best way to navigate it is to focus on sections. The “Mexican Plates” are what most American diners have come to expect from a Mexican restaurant. Think enchiladas, tacos, burritos, chile rellenos, all available in a dizzying mix of combinations that can take a while to fully absorb. And then there’s more traditional fare that overlaps with Aztec cuisine, which is far more focused on grilled meats, fish and chicken. 

“Spanish people are more for meats or seafood,” Urresti says. “We have good quality meats. It’s a little expensive. I buy a little expensive. But, for example, you sometimes go to other restaurants or more taquerias or food trucks, you can find maybe better price. But I have very good prices, very good quality.”

The quesabirria in particular is worth a mention, as it’s filled with more stewed beef than you might normally expect from this now-ubiquitous item (most others tend to give a stronger nod to the cheese component). 

Then there’s the house specials, which are very meat-focused, such as the aforementioned carnitas plate, here dubbed “carnitas de puerco” — Mexico’s version of pulled pork, but served in larger chunks to ensure they remain tender and moist. (Many pulled pork preparations that pre-shred the pork can dry out, which is why they’re often served in a sauce of some kind. While that combats the dryness, it takes away from the pure pork flavor.)

Other pork dishes include adobada with grilled onions, or pork chops (chuletas), while beef dishes include whole ribeyes served ala carne asada (with beans, rice and chiles) or ranchero style (with potatoes and ranchero sauce), and chicken. 

The star of this meat show is the molcajete sol y luna, a massive combination of steak, chorizo, chicken and pork mixed with cheese, chile toreado, pico de gallo, guacamole, rice and beans. It comes served in a large stone bowl (the molcajeta) that just barely holds all the components. It’s designed for two, but Urresti says he often sees diners attempt to polish one off on their own. 

What also stands out is Piramides’ sizeable seafood section. The usual suspects are present, including various preparations of shrimp (cocktail, soup, in aquachile, ceviche, fried, grilled, etc.), as well as octopus, oysters and more. But the two standouts are the fish filet and the mojarra frita, the latter being a whole fried tilapia served with vegetables, rice and beans. 

“I’m trying to put more seafood here,” says Urresti. “So we have several plates. I’m trying to do a small menu, but the people ask for other options.”

By all means, ask your server their opinion on the dishes. If you’re stuck between two choices, this is the rare place where the server will give you a straight answer. Torn between the enchilada plate or the carnitas? The answer is an enthusiastic recommendation of the carnitas. And while you have the choice between flour or corn tortillas, the servers are quick to tell you that corn is the traditional option. 

It all comes out piping hot, to the point where servers are carrying thick oven mitts to the table to protect their hands. So when they say, “Careful, the plate is hot,” you should take that warning to heart.

Piramides is located at 1911 South Havana Street in Aurora and is open from 9 a.m to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, closing at 8 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, visit piramidesmexicanrestaurantco.com.

All the previous Eat Up Havana stops:

• Old Town Hot Pot
• Leezakaya
• Chutney Indian Cuisine
• El Tequileno
• Milkroll
• Shin Myung Gwan Korean BBQ
• Watan Restaurant & Bakery
• Las Fajitas
• Mr. Tang
• Nana’s Dim Sum & Dumplings
• Yemen Grill
• Tofu House
• Sushi Katsu
• Coco Loco
• Ali Restaurant & Bakery
• Thank Sool Pocha
• Taqueria Corona
• Hanyang Wang Jokbal
• Coffee Story
• Tofu Story
• Havana Street Night Markets
• Seoul BBQ & Hot Pot (the Hot Pot)
• Seoul BBQ & Hot Pot (the BBQ)
• Pho 75
• Yong Gung
• Chopsticks A GoGo
• Angry Chicken
• L Cafe & Food Court
• Gangnam GT Lounge & Karaoke
• Katsu Ramen
• Dae Gee
• Snowl
• Chef Liu’s Kitchen