Masa, the alkalized corn dough that may make or break a great tortilla, is an indigenous Mexican artwork with centuries of culinary experience, and Sobre Masa founders Zack and Diana Wangeman are ensuring Brooklyn is aware of all about it.
After assembly as excessive schoolers in Oaxaca, the Bushwick couple co-created Sobre Masa final 12 months as a love letter to the town of their youth — falling in love themselves within the course of.
Now, the newly-ish-weds have opened a brand new espresso and retail store within the Bushwick that goals to advertise dialog round Mexican tradition, the wealthy historical past of heirloom corn, and the producers and growers of Mexico by means of its choices of artisanal Mexican grocery objects, Oaxacan espresso store fare and tortillas by the dozen.
“It’s vital to showcase these specialty Mexican merchandise as a result of they’re endangered,” Zack Wangeman stated, including the couple wished to share, with confidence, that the merchandise have been top quality and there was a narrative behind them, “there’s a producer behind them.”
“We wish to empower Mexican producers, particularly with corn — our farmers have been working with this corn for over 200 generations. However the corn business is troublesome. Producers preserve getting overtaken by mass-production.”
Positioned steps away from the Morgan L-train cease, the store will open on January 4 and serve cafe drinks with house-roasted Oaxacan espresso and Mexican sizzling chocolate, together with Sobre Masa’s house-made tortillas, chips and masa.
The store will carry a line of the corporate’s salsas, together with its Chile Morita, Verde, Fried Arbol Chile and Garlic Salsa, and specialty Mexican merchandise like Oaxacan espresso beans, corn husks and vanilla extract.
For these in want of a fast pick-me-up snack, the eatery can even carry Mexican pastries like orejas, corn cookies and conchas, in flavors together with chocolate, almond and vanilla. Sobre Masa additionally has a rotating tamale menu, together with mole negro with hen, pork in salsa verde, rajas and queso fresco, and mushrooms in salsa roja.
Wangeman stated that the title of the restaurant, Sobre Masa, interprets to ‘about masa,’ but it surely’s additionally a play on the phrase ‘sobre mesa,’ which will be loosely translated to imply the mealtime dialog.
The brand new Bushwick outpost is the third brick-and-mortar the Wangemans — who have been lately named in Forbes 30 Below 30 for his or her work with Sobre Masa — have, after they opened a restaurant and bar in Williamsburg after which the Sobre Masa Taqueria in Bushwick. The taqueria has a wide range of conventional taco kinds and cocktails highlighting Mexican spirits — all with a give attention to top quality merchandise from Mexican growers.
“I may most likely go to 5 completely different supermarkets in New York and purchase the identical parmesan cheese the Pope eats,” Wangeman stated. “However Mexico, which is our neighboring nation… it’s simply so troublesome to get high-quality substances.”
Considered one of his favourite substances now stocked within the retail area is the oregano, which is specifically foraged from the Oaxacan desert. He stated there have been practically varietals of 60 heirloom corn particularly from Mexico, and the one the Wangemans used most was the Bolita varietal, which is from Oaxaca.
“It’s vital to know your substances and know who makes it,” Wangeman stated. “All of them cook dinner a bit otherwise and have an id of their very own.”
Sobre Masa’s new espresso store and retail area can be open at 52 Harrison Place from 7:00am to 3:00pm Tuesday by means of Saturday.