![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/08\/pedros-1.jpg\" "\\"pedros-(1)\\"")
<\/a>Never thought I\u2019d go to Kennebunk\u2019s Lower Village to get my mojito on, but there it is, a delight to behold at Pedro\u2019s, the new high-concept Mexican watering hole smack dab in the middle of the most \u2018New England\u2019 of towns.<\/p>\nThe brain child of Pete Morency and wife Kate, owners of Pier 77 and The Ramp in Cape Porpoise, Pedro\u2019s is a scrumptious chili pepper tossed into the neighborhood\u2019s extraordinarily tasteful restaurant cuisine.<\/p>\n
Having traveled throughout Mexico together, the couple shares a love for the country, stemming from Kate\u2019s having lived in Zihuatanejo for a year and Pete\u2019s work as a chef for 20 years in San Francisco, where his kitchens were \u201cmade up entirely of Mexicanos, Guatamantecos & Nicaraguenzas\u201d who shared with him their language, music, customs, and how to prepare the \u201csimple, full flavored food.\u201d He recalls with warmth these \u201cgreat guys, hard workers, and passionate people\u201d nicknaming him \u2018Pedro.\u2019<\/p>\n
Conjuring up Mexico\u2019s widely celebrated festival, the Day of the Dead (Nov. 1-2), Pedro\u2019s bright walls and pathways are filled with intriguing tchotchkes<\/em>: a spirited ancient accordion; carved bull\u2019s head with immense horns; a big, white, distressed cross; and tall, elegant blue bottles in the windows, majestically\u00a0 catching the light.<\/p>\n On warm autumn days, you can also bask in the gorgeous fall light while dining on the expansive deck adorned with tiki lights and the ubiquitous flower of Mexico, the seductive orange-red hibiscus.<\/p>\n Beyond the mojitos (they\u2019re so good, must we go beyond them?), there\u2019s an impressive array of Margaritas; a strong beer list, including canned tecate, a Mexican light; and red or white Sangria.<\/p>\n And the food! You can\u2019t beat the Gringo tacos (with rice and refried beans, $12). Definitely not your tex-mex fast food mish-mash, these creations completely deconstruct the ground beef as a ho-hum ingredient, giving it spectacular highlights with the freshest, crispy greens, spicy chipotle sauce, luscious guacamole, fresh home-made cheese and cheddar, and a zesty salsa fresca. We are on a roll.<\/p>\n Next, we try the chic Chicken Enchiladas Verde ($13), adorned in a pleasingly piquant green sauce containing tomatillos, cilantro, avocado, and topped with shredded queso fresco. Served with rice, refried beans, and salsa, it\u2019s beyond just a memorable experience.<\/p>\n The Mahi Mahi taco has a sophisticated twist, with lime-scented cabbage, salsa, and sliced avocados. A sure winner is the Chicken Tinga taco, with lots of guacamole, fresh cheese, lettuce, and salsa.<\/p>\n Especiales de la Semana feature alluring concoctions from various regions whose people and recipes have so strongly influenced \u201cPedro.\u201d These include: Argentinian bistec con chimichurri (skirt steak, garlic, cilantro parsley, rice, and beans, $15); Peruvian Empanadas de carne (pastry turnovers stuffed with braised beef, $12); Brazilian Feijoada (pork and chorizo black bean stew with rice and collard greens, $15); and Nicaraguan Tomales de Pollo (steamed masa filled with seasoned chicken and salsa, $12).<\/p>\n Be sure to keep an appetite for dessert, as the toasted coconut flan is out of this world (there\u2019s diversity for you!). Pedro\u2019s is rocketing to the top.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" September 2011 \u00a1Holy Mole! Pedro\u2019s brings a piquant-touch to Kennebunk. Never thought I\u2019d go to Kennebunk\u2019s Lower Village to get my mojito on, but there it is, a delight to behold at Pedro\u2019s, the new high-concept Mexican watering hole smack dab in the middle of the most \u2018New England\u2019 of towns. The brain child of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4558"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4558\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4590,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4558\/revisions\/4590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}