Mole, muy sabroso

After my blueberry adventure, I took my soaking self into New Hope, proper, for some lunch. Friends and co-workers have told me that New Hope is awesome. I had no reason to doubt them. Not sure what I wanted and without a recommendation in hand for a lunch place, I checked a few menus of the establishments nearby and was quickly drawn to one. The Blue Tortilla Restaurant. Sitting outside, watching the weekenders walking by, I began to form an opinion of the kind of town New Hope was, which would be drastically changed during my after lunch stroll down Main Street. But the business of lunch at hand, I was charmed by the owner standing on the sidewalk, talking about the recipes, where they came from what kind of ingredients were used... and so I sat, delighted in finding the menu also told a story of the food and with that I was assured that sign that read "authentic" meant it. I ordered the chicken mole enchilada and a diet Coke. It arrived a work of art... and I was immediately engaged in conversation by the table sitting next to me.

Admittedly, I admired the presentation only long enough to take the photo above and fully savor the smell before pulling out a fork and digging into the rice and mole. And, it is with some confidence that I can say, I have never had mole this good before. I ate the entire plate of food (of course, I ate nothing else the rest of the day for being SO full)! But the mole was delicious. The favors hinting at the three kinds of peppers, the cumin, the cloves, the chocolate.... it was so good, the cream sauce on top didn't even phase me. And while I know I may never achieve this thoughtful preparation, I am struck by the need to work on a mole sauce of my own. I've truly been inspired.

And New Hope, on the surface it struck me as a place for weekenders from the Cities to come and live their uptight city lifestyle in a more colloquial of settings and a retreat for gay men, but then I saw the bikers, the hippies, the not-so-city folkies... and I understood why my friends would like it and why others I spoke to recommended it. It's vanilla enough for the vanilla and just spicy enough for the rest of us.