Bacanora
Arizona
On Phoenix’s Grand Avenue, Bacanora centres its Sonoran cooking on a wood-fired grill. Chef Rene Andrade opened the restaurant in 2021, and the changing menu moves between smaller dishes and substantial plates for sharing. Embered elote arrives with spicy lime crema, cotija and chiltepin. Other dishes have included bone marrow with charred mushrooms and brown-butter salsa macha, short rib asado with an agave glaze, and roasted half chicken with potatoes, beans, quesadillas and tortillas. The drinks continue the northern Mexican connection. A Bacanorita mixes the agave spirit bacanora with lime and agave, while a paloma uses charred grapefruit and an Oaxacan Old Fashioned combines mezcal with piloncillo.