Chef Diego Hernandez Opens a New Restaurant in Valle de Guadalupe | Eater San Diego

"Named after his late grandmother Mercedes Velasco, the restaurant reactivates a space long-held by Mesón de Mustafá and is being positioned as a family-oriented spot that celebrates the roots of Baja California home cooking. I see Hernandez and chef-partner Ana Juncal gearing the menu to local families with huevos al gusto, regional guisados, Ensenada-style ceviches and staples preserved from the previous restaurant like pancakes, chilaquiles with braised lamb and beans. Breakfast offerings include huevos rancheros, huevos a la Mexicana, huevos con jamón, and a take on eggs Benedict served on sopes with potatoes, chorizo and chipotle Hollandaise; guisados have been expanded to feature machaca de mantarraya (stingray), salt-cured nopales rancheros, and herbed queso ranchero en salsa verde with hoja santa alongside machaca de res and chicharrón en salsa verde. An intermezzo menu (noon–2 p.m.) will offer tortilla Española, sashimi, ceviches and huevos rotos, while from 2 p.m. until close the kitchen focuses on wood-fired asados—from arrachera with sauce choices to whole rockfish marinated in a Basque vinaigrette and cooked zarandeado-style—plus sides like roasted beetroot dusted with queso cotija and assorted organic vegetables from Hernandez’s garden finished in chile butter and a sherry wine glaze. The restaurant keeps the popular Moroccan-spiced braised lamb from the former occupant, offers affordable plates such as mole de olla, enchiladas and enfrijoladas (dining can start at about 160 MXP, or diners can share a roasted half suckling pig for about 1,600 MXP), and the bar serves local wine, craft beer, cantina-style cocktails and international wines; hours are breakfast 8 a.m.–noon, intermezzo noon–2 p.m., lunch 2–6 p.m.; closed Thursdays." - Bill Esparza