Elite Event: Mexico to Dublin

What a fabulous event! I was excited to get a taste of my well missed home of the Southwest.
Being able to partake in buckets of Corona and pitchers of margarita’s really set the mood for the Mexican cooking lesson. I enjoyed learning how to make my own tortillas (and getting a little bag of mix to take home and try myself!) it was a great touch. Now I can go home and make real Pico de Gallo or what I made at the event that I’ll call Pico de Guac.
The mariachi band and the fake cactus to wrap it all up was a brilliant touch! Great job!

What a great way to start a Friday night! A few beers and learning how to make some amazingly simple but delicious Mexican food.
Hugo was great and his passion really inspired the crowd to get into the cuisine and eat lots and lots of z dips and hopefully to make tortillas with the flour he so kindly gifted to all of us! The mariachi really topped off the night.
A trip to café Azteca is in order soon!

om nom nom nom
I’m not sure what else I could say that hasn’t already been said… it was defo the best elite event yet and I’ve been daydreaming about those tortilla chips ever since. omg so good. I will try to make some someday, mark my words! and Café Azteca has just shot up to the top of my list of places to try.
can’t wait to see what you come up with to top this one Annie…
my one single tiny bit of feedback would be to echo what Francesca said about wishing there was a bit more to eat cuz I was also starving. I did feel pretty full when I left but I blame that on the booze :)

what a great event… my head is a bit angry at me today for drinking all those margaritas. Hugo’s cooking demo was brilliant to watch, and even better to eat the results of.
I managed to not attempt to make tortillas when I got home in my drunken state — did anyone else have a tequila induced attempt at it?
The food, the booze, the band and the company were all fantastic. Hard to know how you’re going to top this one Annie!
I’ll be definitely visiting the café azteca!

Andalé! Arriba! Hope I spelt those right.
My review will be short given all the pesky running I had to do this morning. What’s not to like? Great food that’s delicious and easy to make (but difficult to master!), good company and some authentic music
Was being a good boy and not partaking in the boozahol but had a few lovely cups of tea and all the lime wedges I could suck.
Good job, Annie!

Olé! Olé! Olé!
What could possible be better than margaritas, Mexican beer, and fantastic lessons in how to make salsa and home-​made tortillas?
Doing it all with Unilocalers to the tune of Mariachi music in an awesome venue, that’s what!
CM Annie and her team of Unilocal pixies (at least one of which bore a striking family resemblance ;) pulled off what this humble reviewer thinks was the best Elite event so far.
I’m a foodie, and a Californio, so having Hugo there from Azteca to share some simple tricks about making good pico de galla and guacamole was a treat, and of course, drinking margaritas while reclining on bean bags was pretty cool too!
Bottom Line: Arriba arriba!!!

I really want one of those little Mexican guitars after this event!
Lessons in how to make Mexican food has somehow developed into an addiction with Tortilla Chips… I am even going to make an attempt to make them today (don’t worry I have the Fire Brigade on standby)
Hugo was wonderful at explaining all the different types of chilli’s and spices (although I wish someone would have taken a bite to see how hot they were… that would have been amusing) and a great explanation of the meaning behind Mexican food (passion and booze is what I got).
The Mexican band was a fantastic surprise. The Margaritas were possibly a bit too good, I found myself eyeing up the jug wondering if anyone would notice me walking out the door with it (don’t look at me like that I would give the jug back once it was empty)
I loved the venue (I found it easily enough thanks to the balloons outside, good idea Annie!) and the grounds outside was a lovely touch as the sun was shining so all the Unilocalers could wander in and out.
My only gripe is that I can’t buy it and turn it into my apartment…
After this event I am determined to take a trip to café Azteca (and take a hoard of people with me) as the food was so delicious last night I can only imagine what they do in the café!

Best elite event I’ve been so far definitely! (although it was my first, I think that might be true otherwise too)
I’ve been a huge fan of Café Azteca before this event and have also been to the cooking class, but it was loads of fun seeing it all again, especially in this beautiful building. The courtyard was just amazing to hang out in the Irish summer and the surprise band just made it perfect.
We came back for seconds and thirds of the self-​made guac and Pico de Gallo but luckily there was way enough and also the beers and margaritas fit so well.
I must say I take a bit of ungiven credit for reminding Annie of trying out Café Azteca again as I wrote my review just a few weeks before she seemed to have discovered him.
Now I’m eager for more classes at Azteca!

So what if the margs were rimmed with sugar and not salt– they had limes for every Corona, and buckets of fixins so everyone could scoop salsa and guacamole to their heart’s content. Of course I can’t leave out the eNORmous box of handmade tortilla chips (munch, crunch) or the mariachi band! Azteca keeps a low profile on the street, but its name is growing and I think this event can only help. I’ve loved Azteca for ages and I hope this only brings them more and more success.
Hugo seemed nervous at the start (sure who wouldn’t be, standing at a food-​laden table in front of 20-​odd tipsy Unilocalers?) but grew more confident as the lesson wore on (and those pesky Californians kept talking over him). I like the branded recipe cards he gave out, and the love for food that he projected.
I filled my belly with pure happiness on chips and guac alone, but would have liked to know in advance that that’s all we’d be getting, as I assumed there would be bigger food involved and so came quite hungry.
Having no kitchen on site, I wasn’t sure how he’d do his classic lesson, but the adaptation of make-​your-​own pico and guac was truly inspired! Showing people how and then letting them at the pre-​chopped ingredients to adjust to their own tastes was a fabulous idea. Sombreros off to Annie, Hugo, and the Centre for Creative Practices!