Buen Provecho, the new Mexican-American concept in DTLB, has officially opened. With its few weeks of testing the waters of Downtown, it’s already created a collective sigh of relief: Taking over the space mired by everything from awful concepts and awful operators to the sad shuttering of Chef Jason Witzl’s promising mariscos concept thanks to the pandemic… The prime-location restaurant has sat empty for years in a spot that is absolutely clutch in connecting the Promenade below 3rd Street to the rest of its stretch above.
“Sundays have been a staple in my family for bringing everyone together from all walks of life,” said co-owner Stephen Ramos. “Our space here represents that. Always a good time with everyone welcome as we all share food and drinks together. And we hope our brunch menu will share the same spirit.”
As with its debut lunch and dinner menu, Buen Provecho’s brunch menu is expansive, definitively Mexican, with tinges of Californian love.
Buen Provecho’s regular menu—I’ll have more on that next week—has proven that it is actually a distinctly different variation from the seeming plethora of surrounding Mexican concepts. Within varying directions, there is Sonoratown, El Viejón, Leo’s Mexican Grill, Cinco de Mayo… But Buen Provecho sticks to the hefty, hearty classics that define the Mexican food experience across SoCal. Plates of stellar carne asada. Huaraches and cachete tacos next to queso fundido and tuna tostadas. And then some Californian flair: lamb neck birria. Short rib mole. Hot honey wings…
The brunch menu is no different.
Avocado toast drizzled in a cashew-peanut-pepita salsa macha. (Which some customers have complained is too spicy—and if I am being frank, I am exhausted with these spice-free machas appeasing weak palates for a salsa that is inherently about the heat. So Buen Provecho: change not.) Wonderfully crisp, masa-based pancakes with pilloncillo syrup. A wonderful steak and eggs rancheros, where hyper-crisp tostadas are slathered in salsa verde and whole pinto beans that are perfect with its over-easy egg. Even a play on biscuits’n’gravy.
A look into the brunch menu debuting at Buen Provecho
Unfussy but well-crafted. Straight-forward but not too boring.
Shrimp & Grits: Roasted Tomato Broth | Hominy Grits | Crema | Lardons
Steak & Egg Rancheros: Carne Asada | Fried Eggs | Pinto Beans | Crispy Tortillas | Salsa Verde
Biscuits & Gravy: Buttermilk Biscuits | Beef Chorizo-Pasilla Gravy | Soft-Scrambled Eggs
Chilaquiles: Tortilla Chips | Salsa Verde | Eggs | Queso Fresco | Pickled Onions | Cilantro | Choice of Mushroom Chorizo or Carne Asada
Breakfast Clasico: Eggs | Potato Hash | Chorizo or Bacon | Toast: Sourdough or Brioche
Breakfast Burrito: Eggs | Potato | Oaxaca Cheese | Smoked Chile Aioli | Flour Tortilla | Choice of Beef, Bacon, or Chicken Pibil
Guacamole Toast: Avocado | Poached Eggs | Salsa Macha | Cilantro | Sourdough
Beef Pozole Rojo: Carne Guajillo Caldo | Short Rib | Tostadas
Mesa Pancakes: Pancakes | Piloncillo Syrup | Whipped Cream
Churro Waffle: Cinnamon Sugar | Maple Dulce de Leche | Berries | Whipped Cream
Chia Bowl: Coconut Almond Granola | Seasonal Fruit & Berries | Melon Spears
Buen Provecho is located at 301 The Promenade N.
