House & Garden Tour
Sun, Mar 29, tour departs at noon
Biblioteca Pública
Insurgentes 25
US$15 or 200 pesos
Breakfast at Café Santa Ana starts at 9am
House & Garden Tour
By Jennifer Hamilton
| Wooden San Miguel, Bustamante ram’s head, Gaudiesque gem |  |
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1. This is an elegantly appointed house with wide-open spaces and sophisticated accoutrements. After entering through the wide front door, you see a beautiful wood sculpture of San Miguel atop the stone fireplace open on all four sides to heat the entire open spaces—living room, dining area and kitchen. Mantelpieces are topped with antique clocks, artwork, vases and other exquisite objets d’art. Deep leather sofas and chairs in the living room are backed by a heavily framed, antique mirror and tables filled with rare art pieces. A large bedroom leads from the sala, with an impressively carved four-poster bed and copious bathroom with an oversized Jacuzzi and rounded European shower containing water jets from top to bottom. The library contains a remarkable portrait on one wall, with bookcases placed at an angle under the intricately carved iron staircase. Upstairs one enters the office area with more antiques, art objects and large carved lamps. The bedroom has a rounded wood bed with an exquisitely carved ancient chest at its foot. The sizeable garden contains a large pool and trickling stone waterfall. All rooms contain high French doors swathed with draperies which lead to the outside garden and a patio upstairs. Collectors and lovers of fine art and statuary are sure to love the beauty of this exquisite home.
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2. This home, with its collection of English antiques and exquisite, historic French furniture, is an elegantly furnished, open house high on a hill in Los Balcones. |
In spite of the house itself being built in the Spanish Colonial style with all rooms facing a central patio or with private decks of their own, the combination works incredibly well. The oldest piece is a seventeenth-century “hope chest” in the master bedroom, complemented by the high four-poster bed and bright colors. The objets d’art are mostly Oriental and European. Of special note is the ram’s head in the stairway, a beautiful example of Bustamante’s work and after traveling to several countries over many years has finally found its way home back to Mexico where it rightfully belongs. The patio in the entranceway is lush with rich shade from the bougainvillea and other local, flowering plants, as are the decks leading from the three bedrooms on the second level.
| 3. This enticing “Gaudiesque” home on a narrow street in Centro just a few blocks from the main square is truly a mysterious gem hidden behind one of the San Miguel front doors. | |
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The exterior of the house is over 300 years old and visitors are immediately struck by the jungle-like, spacious garden filled with a drought-resistant plants and flowers surrounded by the curving structures of the main house and casita. The unusual curvaceous wavy staircase leads to the second floor. Small stones were painstakingly set in concrete by local craftsmen throughout the entire property. Two captivating ponds with flat-stoned waterfalls were built on opposing walls. Everything throughout this home, be it architectural or furnishings, is undulating, curved, waved and, well, sensual. Polished cement is used in the den for the bookcases and colorful folk art as well as for the base of the two sofas. Granite countertops in the kitchen are curved rather than hard-edged, with a dining area outside facing the garden below. The sala and dining rooms are warmly designed with wood-strip beamed ceilings, flat slate floors, a stone gas fireplace (again, meticulously built with small pebbles) and whimsical artwork. Of special note is the bathroom leading from the bedroom at the far end of the garden—the rounded shower, walls, mirrors and even soap holders are all imbedded with small stones shipped here from Mexican beaches. This very special home is painted in soft colors accented with colorful rugs, artwork and folk pieces, and a 360° vista from the spacious rooftop. A real feast for the eyes!
The House & Garden Tour thanks the following for opening their beautiful homes
On Sunday, March 22, 2009
Sally & Jim Osbon
Pam and Don Knoles
Sandra Ippolite
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4th Sunday in March for 2008 No Tour
4th Sunday in March for 2009 Easter Sunday 254 visitors on tour
Year to Date 2008 - 3,351 visitors on tour
Year to Date 2009 - 3,094 visitors on tour
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Food & Wine
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La Bugambilia restaurant Mercedes Arteaga, chef/owner Regional Mexican cuisine Open daily, noon–10pm Hidalgo 42 Entrees 150–200 pesos |
Chiles are Mexico’s gift to the world
By Kris Rudolph
Mercedes Arteaga is the chef/owner of La Bugambilia restaurant who also teaches regional Mexican cuisine at La Cocina Cooking School about once a month. She’s a significant presence in fine dining in San Miguel. In this interview, she answers a dozen questions, from the best food she’s encountered to restaurant career advice. To add flavor, she’s provided a favorite recipe to share with readers: Cream of Poblano Soup with Squash Blossoms.
Kris Rudolph: How did you enter the restaurant business?
Mercedes Arteaga: My parents opened La Bugambilia under the Portal Allende in 1945. I spent my entire childhood in the restaurant, but actually started working there as the dining room manager in the sixties. My job was to make sure that everything ran smoothly out front while my mother worked in the kitchen. In 1983, I took over the restaurant and moved it to its current location on Hidalgo, which was our family home.
KR: What’s been your most interesting experience as a chef?
MA: I once had the opportunity to prepare a Mexican fiesta on a cruise ship going down the Nile River in Egypt. It was incredible to cook on a boat while watching the historic scenery pass by. There were no chiles, and alcohol couldn’t be served, so it was somewhat of a challenge. Mexican cuisine gave me this incredible experience.
KR: Do you have a favorite herb/spice?
MA: I like to fuse parsley, cilantro and spearmint, especially in soups. Combined, they give dishes a very distinctive flavor.
KR: How would you describe the Mexican cuisine of this region (el Bajío)?
MA: The Bajío is known for simple dishes, using rice, beans, chiles and a lot of pork. Centuries ago the cuisine was heavily influenced by the convents, which were abundant in this area. Candied and dried fruit, as well as different kinds of cookies (fruta del horno), came from these convents and were incorporated into many traditional dishes.
KR: What is the role of Mexico in world cuisine?
MA: Mexican cuisine is probably the fourth most popular cuisine, behind French, Italian and Chinese. It varies greatly from region to region, but in general it focuses on fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as numerous chiles, which is really the backbone of the cuisine. This has been Mexico’s gift to the world.
KR: What is the most popular dish on your menu? Where did the recipe come from?
MA: Chiles en Nogada are by far the most popular dish. I still use my mother’s recipe, which is a little different from the original. We make the chiles with only beef, instead of mixing it with pork. We also use pecans instead of walnuts.
KR: Do you feel there is a food that is overrated?
MA: In San Miguel one of the most beloved dishes is Fiambre (a mixture of pig’s feet, beef tongue, chicken and unpeeled fruit, all stewed together). It’s very labor intensive and used a lot as an offering on Day of the Dead.
KR: Who are the cooks/chefs/authors you admire?
MA: My mother and grandmother were incredible cooks and they influenced everything I do today. They taught me how to cook by observation and taste. I stood side by side with them in the kitchen and watched every move they made. My father had a very sophisticated palate and the entire family cooked for his taste, which is why everything was so delicious. I still use many of his favorite recipes in the restaurant.
KR: What is your most memorable dining experience?
MA: I think it would have to be at the Misión Conca in the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro. They served regional food made by indigenous women. It was very rustic and simple, but the flavors were amazing. My favorite dish was the picadas—river shrimp the size of crawfish with garlic and chiles.
KR: If you could plan a perfect meal, what would you cook and who would you invite?
MA: I would invite my daughter, a few relatives (some living, others not) and my life-long friends. I would serve a large buffet of traditional Mexican food with old and new recipes combining fruits, vegetables and old-fashioned desserts, accompanied by good tequila and excellent wine.
KR: How do you recommend visitors find the best restaurants in San Miguel?
MA: It’s always best to ask locals, especially restaurant owners. Guidebooks and magazines offer suggestions, but that only tells you they can afford an ad, not that the food is any good. Good restaurants don’t necessarily advertise.
KR: What advice do you have for young people considering careers in the restaurant industry?
MA: First, they need to gain practical experience by working in a variety of restaurants, not just one. They also need to work various positions: kitchen, bar and dining room. Once they realize how much work it is, they need to really think about whether that’s how they want to spend their lives. If they think they can hire employees to do it for them, they are wrong.
Cream of Poblano Soup with Squash Blossoms
8 servings
4 poblano chiles
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
25 squash blossoms, centers and stems removed
4 cups milk
1 cup corn
1 tablespoon powdered chicken bouillon
1 cup Mexican cream
salt and pepper to taste
1. Cut tops off poblano chiles, pulling out the seed pod. Roughly chop.
2. In a stockpot, melt the butter over medium-heat high. Add the garlic and onion, sauté for 5 minutes. Add the squash blossoms and poblano chile. Continue cooking for a few more minutes.
3. Add the milk. When hot, add the corn and chicken bouillon.
4. Empty into a blender and puree (or use a hand-held immersion blender). Return the soup to the stockpot. Add the cream, salt and pepper. Serve warm.
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