"The latest restaurant to land in coastal Carlsbad Village is a second project for Linda DiNitto, who owns the nearby 264 Fresco. Fresco Cocina explores her upbringing in Venezuela through a menu that includes Venezuelan dishes along with plates from Peru, Brazil, and Uruguay. The dinner menu includes the pabellón criollo, the national dish of Venezuela, interpreted here as braised short ribs paired with black beans, rice, and fried sweet plantains. There’s also the Peruvian classic, lomo saltado, along with prime skirt steak, grilled in the style of Brazilian churrasco, and an Uruguayan specialty called a chivito, a multi-meat and cheese sandwich often topped with a fried egg. Fresco Cocina also does a weekend brunch, with options like plantain pancakes, mole-spiced salmon hash, and a breakfast burrito with carne asada, eggs, and yuca fries. Its cocktails center mostly around rum drinks like the Sol y Arena with spiced rum, sweet vermouth, strawberry, lemon, and soda, but the list also includes refreshing pisco sours and caipirinhas infused with cucumber and black pepper." - Candice Woo
