Sofia Rodriguez
January 22, 2026
If Your Abuela Could Cook Like This, You'd Never Leave Home
Walking into Abuela's Kitchen is like stepping into someone's home — because it basically is. Maria Gonzales converted her house's front rooms into a 20-seat restaurant, and everything from the plastic-covered tables to the telenovelas playing on the wall-mounted TV feels completely authentic.
The mole negro is the star. Three days of preparation involving over 30 ingredients, and you can taste the complexity in every spoonful. It's smoky, chocolatey, subtly spicy, and clings to the chicken like a velvet blanket.
The handmade tortillas arrive hot from the comal, and I'm convinced they're made with magic, not just masa. The tamales change with the seasons — pork in red sauce, chicken in green, and during the holidays, a sweet pineapple version that I dream about.
The mole negro is the star. Three days of preparation involving over 30 ingredients, and you can taste the complexity in every spoonful. It's smoky, chocolatey, subtly spicy, and clings to the chicken like a velvet blanket.
The handmade tortillas arrive hot from the comal, and I'm convinced they're made with magic, not just masa. The tamales change with the seasons — pork in red sauce, chicken in green, and during the holidays, a sweet pineapple version that I dream about.