Sancho Pistola’s Aims to Please

The folks behind Center City Mexican bar Jose Pistola’s cast opened the doors to their second venture Sancho Pistola’s yesterday evening. The Fishtown neighborhood restaurant is located just steps from SEPTA’s Market-Frankford Line Girard Station, occupying the corner spot formerly inhabited by Bubba’s Texas BBQ. Based on what went down at the grand opening, Sancho may be giving his brother Jose a run for his money.

The three amigos at the helm of the new Mexican bar–Joe Gunn, Casey Parker and chef Adan Trinidad–all hail from Jose Pistola’s (two of which had six and half years of experience there). The second restaurant opening was a right-place, right-time opportunity. As for where the name of their new Fishtown bar came from, they mentioned in an interview with Zagat:

Adan: “Sancho” has a not-so-nice slang meaning in Spanish (“the other guy”) and it’s used that way in restaurant kitchens a lot, so when I first suggested it, both Joe and Casey were like, no way. Then I reminded them it’s also the name of Don Quixote’s sidekick, and it turns out there’s a Don Quixote statue in Fishtown just a few blocks from the restaurant.
Joe: Don Quixote was the dreamer, but Sancho was more grounded, down-to-earth. It fits: Jose Pistola’s has kind of a party atmosphere, but Sancho Pistola’s will be more of a neighborhood place.

Seating is available at the bar stools flanking the long center bar, as well as at high top tables rimming the perimeter of the restaurant. With the channels tuned to sports stations, it’s perfect timing for the upcoming Super Bowl XLVIII.

Ten beer taps dispense local drafts, complemented by a solid selection of bottles and specialty drinks composed of tequilas and mescals.

Upon a recommendation from the bartender, I opted for the Borro Gordo. The tropical mix of tequila, house-infused cinnamon, whisky, agave, and pineapple was a refreshing start.

Sancho Pistola’s menu is a rift off of Jose Pistola’s, featuring more mid-sized entrees and a raw bar.

Of all the possible accompaniments to dip the warm, crisp, and corny tortilla chips into, the spicy tuna guacamole is the way to go. Like a decomposed sushi roll, the creamy guacamole is adorned generously with pieces of sambal-marinated tuna that have quite the kick. Scallions and sesame seeds round out the flavor profile of this Mexican-Japanese dish.

Latin-Asian fusion makes an appearance once again in the carnitas steamed buns. Sandwiched within the plush white folds of a homemade steamed bun, carnitas–moist and unctuous chunks of slow-braised pork–is perked up with pico de gallo, pickled jalapeño, and cool guac.

Sancho Pistola’s eschews the burritos and quesadillas found at Jose Pistola’s for a myriad of taco options, split into “Land” and “Fish”. From the ocean, the oyster po’ boy is piled high with fried oysters that exhibit the perfect balance between meat and crust, along with diced tomato, red onion, cilantro, and lime.

Other seafaring options include the red tail bass (tempura battered, pickled red cabbage, chipotle aioli, cilantro), tuna (charred, togarashi, mango salsa, guac, honey pasilla), and scallop (roasted cauliflower, pickled raisins, harissa, cilantro).

Carnivorous and vegetarian choices make up the “Land” tacos, including cecina (flank steak, roasted poblano, avocado espuma, cilantro), pork belly (bean puree, crema, cilantro, onion, salsa borracha), chicken tinga (onion, cilantro, queso fresco), and brussels sprout leaf (pickled jalapeño, caramelized shallot puree, sherry honey vinaigrette).

For more substantially-sized options, plates such as the chicken leg confit (mole negro, rice, sesame seeds) and pork porterhouse (mole verde, corn puree, pickled red onion) feature variations on the Mexican sauce recipe made by Adan’s mother. Seared monk fish (peanut, potato, olives, capers, tomato, plantains) and carne asada (skirt steak, chilaquiles, crema, epozote) caught my attention as classic yet creative.

You can never go wrong with churros. Let me repeat: you can never go wrong with churros, especially when paired with a rich chocolate dipping sauce. The only dessert option available, these fried sticks of dough are airier than most, almost crumbling between our fingers as we bathed them in the liquid chocolate. We didn’t mind licking our fingers clean of cinnamon sugar, a truly sweet ending to a sweet new addition to Fishtown.

— Nicole Woon