Nico's serves casual and affordable tacos with fresh salsas and tequila drinks in a friendly and bright space.
Winter Restaurant Week Menu
***NOTE: dine-in and take out for their restaurant week menu. ****
Lunch — $15
Appetizer (Choose One):
- Sea Bass Ceviche; Tomato, avocado, cucumber, habanero, lime. On house tostada (gf, dairy-free)
- Frijoles Charros; Pinto beans stewed with onion, bacon, serrano, cilantro (gf, dairy-free)
- Pico de Gallo Uruapan; Tomato, avocado, onion, cilantro, jalapeno, lime. Served with masa chips (gf,v, vt, dairy-free)
Entrée (Choose One):
- Chiles en Nogada; Poblano chiles stuffed with picadillo & topped with a walnut-goat cheese cream sauce (nogada) (gf)
- Enchiladas Michoacanas; En chile guajillo. Potato, epazote, chicken adobo, queso Oaxaca. (Omit chicken for vegetarian option) (gf)
- Beef Picadillo Tacos (2); Mexican-style hash with guajillo/tomato ground beef, potatoes, peppers, onions, & zona rosa salsa. On Nixtamal tortillas
- Lamb Quesabirria; grilled with queso Oaxaca. Side of consomé topped with avocado, cilantro, & house pickled onions
Dinner — $25
Appetizer (Choose One):
- Sea Bass Ceviche; Tomato, avocado, cucumber, habanero, lime. On house tostada (gf, dairy-free)
- Frijoles Charros; Pinto beans stewed with onion, bacon, serrano, cilantro (gf, dairy-free)
- Pico de Gallo Uruapan; Tomato, avocado, onion, cilantro, jalapeno, lime. Served with masa chips (gf,v, vt, dairy-free)
Entrée (Choose One):
- Chiles en Nogada; Poblano chiles stuffed with picadillo & topped with a walnut-goat cheese cream sauce (nogada) (gf)
- Enchiladas Michoacanas; En chile guajillo. Potato, epazote, chicken adobo, queso Oaxaca. (Omit chicken for vegetarian option) (gf)
- Chamorro; Pork shank in chile guaje sauce, chayote guisado, & arroz blanco. Served with Nixtamal tortillas (gf, dairy-free)
- Lamb Quesabirria; 3 quesatacos with Oaxaca. Side of consomé topped with avocado, cilantro, & house pickled onions (gf)
- Beef Picadillo Tacos (3); Mexican-style hash with guajillo/tomato ground beef, potatoes, peppers, onions, & zona rosa salsa. On Nixtamal tortillas
Dessert (Choose One):
- Uchepos; Sweet tamal filled with dulce de leche & pecans. A Purépecha treasure! (gf, vt)
- Pastel de Tres Leches; Limited Edition con Fresas (gf, vt)
From the Restaurant
In 2020, we launched our ancestral Nixtamal tortillas made with criollo, heirloom corn from our homeland of Michoacán, MX. This is an important tradition in our culture, and something we have worked on bringing to Nico’s for several years. Our father Pedro was a corn farmer in Mexico, and grew this very corn in the highlands our land. The custom of Nixtamalization was practiced by our mother, Soledad, and is still used to this day by much of our familia throughout indigenous Mexico. This week we are featuring two specific heirloom corns native to our Purépecha people, Mushito Azul and Mushito Amarillo de Uruapan, Michoacán.
What is Nixtamal?
Nixtamalization is an ancient process discovered and used by the indigenous people in central and southern Mexico. In fact, many say it originated with the Aztecs and Purépecha people in our native Michoacán and surrounding region. The process involves soaking native heirloom corn overnight in limestone water, washing it, and then wet grinding it into masa. It is a time-consuming and painstaking process, but beautiful in the end. By taking the extra time to soak and cook the corn, we can bring out more flavors, aromas, and improve the nutrition profile, as well as increase the bioavailability of both protein and niacin, and reduce toxins. It also frees up Vitamin B3 and makes it a more wholesome food. And by using heirloom corn from “milpas” in Mexico (we source our corn directly from Michoacán and nearby states) you are getting a tortilla process that is hard to find anywhere in the world. But still exists in indigenous communities in Mexico, like our native Michoacán. And now...here at Nico’s!
-Alejandro, Andres, Isidro, Jenna
