“We are emotionally connected to those dishes,” says co-owner Felipe Agustin, who runs the restaurant with his wife, brother, sister-in-law and parents. “It brings us memories of how it used to be.”
Mexican restaurants around the Valley frequently present a panoramic view of the country’s culinary treasures. Those that get regionally specific often feature coastal seafood or the grilling traditions of Sonora. A less common culinary story told in Phoenix is that of the Mexican state of Puebla.
As Cinco de Mayo revelers ready to celebrate here in the Valley, many may not realize the battle the day commemorates occurred in Puebla. In addition to its historical relevance, the state’s gastronomic influence is substantial — so much so that the late, iconic chef and raconteur Anthony Bourdain dubbed Puebla “where the good cooks are from.”
A breaded chicken cemita from El Rincon Poblano. Described as a "dish in a sandwich," the light, crisp sesame seed bun is stuffed with meat, Oaxacan cheese, avocado, onion and housemade chile condiments.
Rebecca Rhoades
The menu is guided by recipes from Felipe’s mother, Esther Agustin. She and her husband, Guillermo Tehuitzil, emigrated from Cholula, a city in the state of Puebla, in their twenties and continued to make those dishes at home for their sons.
“All the dishes, for us, it’s normal, but as we started to share our traditions with other people, everyone just started saying that’s an amazing story,” Felipe recalls of reactions as they shared the history of some of these dishes. His parents first launched El Rincon Poblano as a catering company, then opened the restaurant on Thomas Road near 33rd Avenue in 2019.
Mole poblano is one of El Rincon Poblano's signatures. The restaurant's mole uses an array of chiles, sesame seeds, spices, garlic, chocolate, Mexican biscuit cookies, fried tortillas and plantains.
Rebecca Rhoades
What is Cinco de Mayo?
Cinco de Mayo marks the Battle of Puebla, which was fought in 1862. The Mexican army, led by Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza, was outmatched but ultimately triumphed over French troops in the city of Puebla, about two hours southeast of Mexico City.Although the day is celebrated in Puebla with reenactments and parades, it doesn’t hold the countrywide weight of other milestones, such as Mexican Independence Day on Sept. 16, which marks the end of 300 years of Spanish rule.
In the U.S., Cinco de Mayo took on a new life among Mexican Americans at the turn of the 20th century thanks to geopolitics and the push for civil rights, including the Chicano movement.
In 1989, an importer of the Mexican lager Corona seized on a potential marketing opportunity by running ads encouraging people to drink Mexican beer on May 5. That would change the nature of the holiday forever. Today, Cinco de Mayo has devolved from its bicultural celebratory roots to become largely a drinking holiday fueled by the long-necked cerveza and shots of tequila.
Felipe and his brother Guillermo T. Agustin say that while their family in Puebla are gearing up to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, at El Rincon Poblano, they typically host activities or music to make for a festive, family-friendly event. They hope American celebrants learn more about the holiday’s roots.
“It needs more attention for sure,” Felipe says.
The restaurant won’t be serving chiles en nogada in May — they wait until late August or early September when pomegranates are in season to add the dish to the menu. That timing also coincides with Mexican Independence Day. The picadillo-stuffed poblano, topped with a creamy walnut sauce and pomegranate seeds, is said to have first been made in Puebla to celebrate independence from Spain and is a vibrant representation of Mexico's colors.
But, El Rincon Poblano’s memelas offer another depiction of green, red and white in edible form. To create the shareable snack, a tortilla is stuffed with black beans and fried. When ordered bandera style, it comes with fiery green and red salsas and is topped with crumbles of cheese and diced onion.
“We do the salsas, the red, green and the cheese. It makes a Mexican flag,” the junior Guillermo says.
Noemi Merino, the wife of co-owner Guillermo T. Agustin, flips tortillas on El Rincon Poblano's flat top. The restaurant goes through about 150 pounds of corn each day for its tortillas.
Rebecca Rhoades
Traditional Pueblan menu ‘comes from the heart’
Six days a week, the family arrives at El Rincon Poblano at 4 a.m. to begin prepping their scratch-made offerings.“Pueblan dishes are very traditional,” Guillermo Agustin says. “Everything is handmade. If it’s not handmade, it’s not Pueblan food.”
Among their signature dishes are mole poblano and pipian verde.
Though there is debate on whether mole originated in Puebla or Oaxaca, one origin story is of a nun at the Convent of Santa Rosa creating the dish in the 17th century at the behest of a visiting dignitary. At El Rincon Poblano, the sauce is made in a large clay pot with various chiles, sesame seeds, spices, garlic, chocolate, plain Mexican biscuit cookies, fried tortillas and plantain.
“It was a celebration dish,” Felipe says, adding, “The traditional dish is sweet.”
Though historically served with turkey, at El Rincon Poblano, a chicken drumstick and pork rib are bathed in the sauce — a change that Esther made to accommodate the tastes of her family, but one they’ve found customers like, as well.
“My dad didn’t like the turkey meat, so my mom substituted it with something else,” Felipe explains. “Our customers love it. Some customers just want the ribs, some customers just want the drums, or some customers want both.”
The pipian verde is a nutty and herbaceous pumpkin seed-based mole. Felipe says when his mom makes pipian, she tells them the story of growing up in Mexico. During lean times, her family would eat the sauce without any meat.
“We try to show our customer base that this can be tasty and that it’s also a dish that comes from us and comes from the heart,” Felipe says.
Brothers Felipe (left) and Guillermo T. Agustin in the kitchen of their restaurant, El Rincon Poblano. Family recipes, such as the mole poblano and pipian, are cornerstones of the menu.
Rebecca Rhoades
The sesame-seed bun is light but crisp — toasted before it's loaded with meat, Oaxacan cheese, avocado, onion and housemade chile condiments. The sandwich is historically made with a breaded, fried beef cutlet, but options at El Rincon Poblano include breaded chicken, al pastor and longaniza, a sausage crafted at the restaurant that is similar to chorizo.
Another dish, the taco arabe, is a precursor to tacos al pastor. Both tacos arabes and al pastor are influenced by Lebanese emigres who brought shawarma to the area. For El Rincon Poblano's tacos arabe, lamb is replaced with pork, which is marinated and grilled, served in a large flour tortilla and rolled tight like a burrito. It is served with cucumber and a morita chile salsa that is “more of a sweet-sour” sauce, Agustin says.
Through dishes such as mole poblano and memela, the family who runs El Rincon Poblano aims to share the story of the cuisine from Puebla, Mexico, as well as their personal history.
Rebecca Rhoades
Though mixiote was a lesser-known dish when El Rincon first opened, diners enjoyed the experience of having the parcel arrive in a tall bowl and watching the steam release as the parchment is opened. Interest in the dish spread, and it is now one of the restaurant's signatures, Felipe says.
People will drive from across the state, or further, to get a plate of El Rincon Poblano's Pueblan fare, the brothers say.
“We have a lot of customers that come by from Tucson, Flagstaff," Agustin says. "They just come for a cemita because it’s the closest food they can get to home."
