Cucharamama
Hoboken, New Jersey
Cuban-born Maricel Presilla opened Cucharamama, a fine-dining restaurant, in 2004. Her Latin American menu introduces diners to many unfamiliar dishes, but Presilla says she has never had to compromise a preparation to appeal to North American tastes.
The concept
It's strictly South American. We don't use Mexican chilies; we use Andean peppers. I keep the ingredients and techniques very South American. The heart of the restaurant is a wood-burning oven, because that's typical of South American cooking. It has an adobe-style finish and beautiful tiles in the deep wine and yellow colors typical of Peru. We have South American paintings, graters from the Yanomami (indigenous South American tribe) and Shipibo (Peruvian Indian) pottery, but it's not a theme park. It's meant to evoke that part of the world. It seats 40, with more seating outside.
The name
It's an Ecuadorean word meaning "big mother spoon." The largest spoon in the kitchen is the mother spoon, the one they use for making soups. Obviously, by inference, it also refers to the one who uses the spoon, the woman who rules the kitchen through her cooking. We have spoons and antique ladles everywhere. The door handles are ladles.
The menu
We serve the emblematic dishes of South America, like anticuchos (skewered beef heart) and tamales from different parts of South America. We do chicken and pork marinated Peruvian style, with hot peppers, garlic, cumin and vinegar. We do about 40 little dishes, called piqueo (noshing, or sampling), like octopus in black olive sauce; mussels with panca peppers and Peruvian beer; bacala fritters; creamy soups from Ecuador, corn cakes from the wood-burning oven; empanadas; and Andean kebabs.
On adapting Latin dishes to local tastes
I haven't had to change anything. I've never had to tone down anything. The heart kebabs are challenging, but otherwise, I find our food to be so in tune with what Americans want that I don't have problems. They love tamales; they love croquettes. Americans love beans and rice. They pour the beans on top of the rice; I don't have to tell them. I'm serving quinoa a lot. Americans are really ready for this food.
I don't think in negatives when I'm doing a menu. I haven't said, "Americans would not like this," because in my experience, if it's well flavored and nicely presented, Americans will go for it.
Top sellers
Suckling pig. Roast pork Peruvian style. People adore things from the wood-burning oven. They love the ribs we make with a crust of brown sugar and stir-fried quinoa. And empanadas sell like crazy. People order everything; we don't have losers.
One great idea
Our bread is a beautiful flatbread finished with ground onion, red peppers and Manchego cheese. I created it; it's not from any particular country. Every table gets some; we make it to order in the wood-burning oven when you come in.
Beverage program
We do all the classic pan-Latin cocktails. Cubans have the best cocktails ever. I could not do without the mojito, and we do all kinds of things with Pisco, from the classic Pisco Sour to a drink with Pisco and sweet vermouth. We make a tea punch with rum on the rocks, vanilla syrup and a twist of lime. We offer daiquiris three ways: the classic, plus one with brown sugar, and one with sugarcane juice. We make a Mamapolitan with flor de jamaica (dried hibiscus flowers) and vodka. We use a lot of Amazonian fruits in our drinks. And we have a really nice wine list that is strictly South American and Spanish, except for the Robledo Family wines from Sonoma and a sparkling rosé from the Finger Lakes.