The sprawling Railroad Square space previously occupied by 19Ten (and, before that, Jack & Tony’s) will reopen this summer as Aroma de Cafe Brunch.
Owners Luis Rodriguez and Alejandra Bravo say they’ve outgrown their tiny downtown Santa Rosa brunch café at 620 Fifth St. (not to be confused with A’Roma Roasters Coffee & Tea at 95 Fifth St.) and will move to the new location in late July.
The menu will remain the same, with a mix of Latin and American brunch favorites, including a pan dulce (sweet bread) basket, brioche French toast, chilaquiles, smoked salmon lavash wrap, torta Chilanga with chicken and refried beans, and eggs Benedict with guajillo chile and pambazo. The 620 Fifth St. location will remain open until the move.
At night, the restaurant will be a second home to one of Healdsburg’s hottest young chefs, Carlos Mojica of Guiso Latin Fusion. His new dinner-only menu fuses Mexican, Salvadoran and Italian cuisine.
I was skeptical of the odd mashup, but Mojica’s draft menu for his Aroma Bistro features dishes like pollo en mole ravioli, smoked pulled chicken with red mole in a clarified chicken broth and cilantro, beef birria rigatoni and carnitas pizza with queso fresco and roasted corn. Yes, on all of the above.
No stranger to fusion cooking, Mojica’s Salvadoran-Caribbean cuisine is an impressive mix of Salvadoran family recipes with island twists and elevated gastro-magic — like the Pulpo à la Plancha, a braised octopus tentacle with mojo rojo sauce, cilantro, rice chicharron, burned leek powder and lime foam.
After working in a closet-sized kitchen at Guiso for a decade, Mojica said he’s excited about the full-size prep area with a wood-fired oven.
“I’m also a little afraid of it. It’s huge,” he added.
You can reach Dining Editor Heather Irwin at heather.irwin@pressdemocrat.com. Follow Heather on Instagram @biteclubeats.