Mexico City-Inspired Xiquita Lands on Bon Appétit's Most Anticipated List

"I try to count my blessings every day," says Erasmo Casiano, who has a lot to be grateful for right now. Lucina, the Park Hill restaurant that he co-owns with Diego Coconati, just turned two years old. In January, the two were named James Beard semifinalists in the Best Chef: Mountain Region category, for their work there — a big honor despite the fact that they weren't among the three Colorado finalists.

Then on March 28, the team's upcoming project, Xiquita, was named one of the Seven Must-Visit New Restaurants of Spring 2024 by Bon Appétit magazine, following in the footsteps of another buzzy local restaurant, Sắp Sửa, which landed on a similar Bon Appétit list last year.

"I have good nerves, good jitters," says Casiano, who is excited to introduce the Mexico City-inspired Xiquita at 500 East 19th Avenue, in the space that was most recently Manzo Lobster & Oyster Bar.

The project wasn't something the team was planning to take on. "We weren't even looking for a new spot, we weren't thinking about growing," Casiano explains. But then his commercial real estate agent, Lisa Snead of Kin Commercial, called him last June about an available turnkey space in Uptown. After seeing it in person, "I looked at her and I was like, 'Damn you,'" he jokes. The space, which is in a prime corner location, had a lot of appeal, so Casiano presented the idea to his team.

"Then my mind started racing," he recalls. He'd recently gotten back from a trip to Mexico City, which inspired the idea to "really present Mexico in a very traditional scale — a non-Americanized scale." Originally from Texas, Casiano loves Tex-Mex cuisine, "but there's a difference in cuisines when we go to Mexico," he says, "and you almost taste the history of it all in each bite through the ingredients."

The name Xiquita is a play on "chiquita" that, like the name Lucina, is an homage to Casiano's mother; the use of the "x" is a nod to Mexico's native languages.
With a name and a concept beginning to form, Casiano says he realized that "I cannot do this by myself. I can't be a great chef at Lucina and at Xiquita. I can be a good chef at both, but we don't want to be good. We want to be great." So he began thinking about who could lead the kitchen at the new restaurant.

Casiano had met Rene Gonzalez Mendez by chance when he stopped at the chef's now-closed East Colfax eatery Pato's Tacos for lunch. "He and his wife, Hazel, were just so warm and hospitable. ... The vibe was right, the place was clean, the tacos were fantastic, and he asked me if I like frijoles charros," Casiano recalls. That's one of his favorite dishes, and Gonzalez Mendez nailed it.

The two struck up a friendship, and Gonzalez Mendez and his wife became regulars at Lucina. After Pato's Tacos shuttered last year, the couple told Casiano about their plans to launch a salsa macha business, Pinche Salsa. At the time, they were looking for a commissary kitchen, and Casiano offered the use of Lucina's space.

As he watched Gonzalez Mendez make a batch of salsa macha, "I'm looking at just the amount of time that he's taking with all the ingredients," Casiano recalls. "The way we're used to seeing it made is you throw a bunch of ingredients into a bowl and you hit it with some hot oil and blend it. But he is taking his sweet ass time with the sesame seeds, with the peanuts, with the chaupuline, with the chiles. Every single one given respect, and I'm like, this is what chef should be doing."
Eventually, Gonzalez Mendez began helping in Lucina's kitchen during service, too, which sparked his love for cooking on the line once again. When Casiano offered Gonzalez Mendez the opportunity to become the executive chef at Xiquita, "he answered fairly quickly. He said, 'absolutely,'" Casiano recalls. "From there, the rest is history."

As they prepare for Xiquita's June opening, they've been hosting a series of pop-up events during which "we've really hit a stride in the storytelling aspect of it," Casiano says. "We go back to where food comes from and the history behind it and presenting it in a modern way."

The menu will largely be based on the Three Sisters agricultural system. "Beans, squash and corn grow really well together. They have a really symbiotic relationship," Casiano explains. "Because of that, the ancient people of Mesoamerica were able to survive for so, so long. Not to mention chiles, chocolate, vanilla, the tomato — they are all very native to Mexico. I want to be able to instill in the general populace a good understanding of where this food comes from and the rich history behind it." That includes nixtimilzation of corn using ash to make masa, a process that will be visible to guests through a window.

Kevin Nguyen of Regular Architecture is designing the space. He was referred by the owners of Sắp Sửa, and is giving the location a total overhaul. "We want to make sure we give the space our feel," Casiano notes. Xiquita will seat about eighty people, with plans to add a patio in the future. Interior decorator Lori Pratt created a "striking" color palate with lively greens alongside darker, ash-like hues and gold accents to "instill a feel of nature and the cycle of life." There will also be a mural by local artist Jahna Rae, who created the floral painting inside Lucina.
Many of the team members from Lucina are on board for Xiquita, too. The beverage program will be led by Henry Ottrix and will highlight agave spirits. Director of operations Alexander Moon is creating a Mexican wine lineup, while Coconati and Michelle Nguyen are both managing partners.

"We're arm-in-arm ready to move forward," Casiano says. "Everyone seems very motivated to either continue to push the pendulum forward with Lucina, or ready to jump into this new adventure at Xiquita as well as holding it down with classes at Create," the group's Stanley Marketplace cooking school. "It is really nice to have a staff that understands what we're all going for."

Casiano is also excited to be a part of "the rising tide of not only Latin American food and chefs, but specifically Mexican food and chefs," listing local talent such as Johnny Curiel of Alma Fonda Fina, current Top Chef contender Manny Barella and Michelin-starred chef Michael Diaz de Leon as inspiration.

"Seeing all these chefs that are putting their best foot forward and representing us in such a beautiful way is definitely a motivating factor," Casiano concludes. "And looking next to me and seeing Rene and being able to showcase the talent and storytelling ability that he has, that's something I want the world to experience."