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Celebrated chef and cookbook author Roberto Santibañez has created a rare New York restaurant: a relaxed, affordable neighborhood spot that also serves exciting contemporary Mexican cuisine. Santibañez blends care and authenticity with the creative urban flourishes that distinguish the food of his native Mexico City. At Fonda’s three locations—in Chelsea, Tribeca, and Park Slope, Brooklyn—the tortillas are hand-pressed, the guacamole is made to order, and the margaritas are thoughtfully crafted.
His version of enchiladas in black mole, the legendary sauce made from dozens of ingredients, would impress any grandmother in Oaxaca, while modern dishes like duck zarape, braised duck tucked between tortillas lavished with habanero-spiked tomato salsa, keep jaded New Yorkers coming back for more since 2009.
ROBERTO SANTIBANEZ is the chef/owner of Fonda restaurants in Manhattan and Brooklyn and the culinary director of Mi Vida in Washington DC. Born in Mexico City, Chef Santibañez graduated with honors from Paris’s prestigious Le Cordon Bleu. His award-winning international career includes culinary consultant, author, and teacher.
He founded three highly acclaimed restaurants in Mexico City before serving four years as executive chef at Fonda San Miguel in Austin, Texas and five years as culinary director for Rosa Mexicano restaurants based in Manhattan. His New York City Fonda restaurants showcase Santibañez’s lifelong devotion to his native cuisine.
Chef Santibañez has authored Rosa’s New Mexican Table, nominated for an IACP and a James Beard Award. His second book Truly Mexican was named by The New York Times as one of the Notable Cookbooks of 2011. Food & Wine magazine honored his Tacos, Tortas and Tamales as one of the best cookbooks of 2012. He serves on The Culinary Institute of America’s Latin Cuisines Advisory Council.
Chef Santibañez's first recommendation is a classic selection. According to him, "You can never go wrong with cocktails made with tequila or mezcal. They complement all Mexican cuisine."
Chef Santibañez wants to debunk those Mexican food misconceptions. And it starts by sitting down at the table and picking up a fork.
To help perfect your salsa making, we turned to an expert on the matter: Chef Roberto Santibañez.
When we asked Chef Roberto Santibañez what the best cut of beef for steak fajitas is, he didn't hesitate. "You want to use a nice fatty cut like skirt steak,"
No matter which Fonda you choose, the three places are fun, filled with energy, and the food, delicious.
“Chef Santibanez Classic Guacamole it’s one of the most popular genius recipes of all time on Food 52”
“Heirloom corn tortillas and Oaxacan black mole enchiladas prove that chef Roberto Santibañez can do Mexican as well as anyone, but his willingness to put a colorful twist on standard dishes is what really makes Fonda stand out”
“Chef Santibanez Classic Guacamole it’s one of the most popular genius recipes of all time on Food 52”
“All of Santibanez’s flavors are so bold that even the requisite enchiladas suizas and made to order guacamole are a marvel”
“Roberto Santibañez boasts quite a resume […], but his esteemed Park Slope restaurant is entirely without pretension. He offers unfussy, affordable renditions of beloved dishes from his native Mexico City…”
“Real Mexican cooking gets the “haute” treatment”
“The staff radiates hospitality”
“There are a couple good Guacs in NYC but “Fonda’s Guacamole” is incredibly delicious”
“The Best Happy Hour in Town with Great Drinks and Delicious Bar Food”
“Just call him the king of Mexican food. Chef Roberto Santibañez, the owner of Fonda”
“Some recipes originated in Santibanez’s grandmother’s kitchen in Mexico City, but the Fonda menu is elevated by the chef’s Le Cordon Bleu training in Paris”
