VENUE: Mexican Flair at Danzon

Zarela Martinez, sassy chef/owner of Zarela and mother of Aaron Sanchez, head chef at Lower East Side Latin fusion restaurant Paladar, has teamed up with daughter Marissa Sanchez to open Danzon, a Veracruzano restaurant located in the Gramercy area. Veracruz, a region of Mexico along the east side of the Gulf, offers cuisine with Spanish-Mediterranean and African influences, with dishes like tatabiguiyayo (a beef stew) and pollo en chile seco (a half chicken braised in chiltepin chile, orange juice and papantla vanilla sauce). Architect Jack Baum designed the venue, which features a wall mural painted by Alex Baker that illustrates steps of the danzon, the sexy dance that gives the restaurant its name. A private room can hold as many as 30 guests, and the entire venue can accommodate 100 for a two-course tasting menu with side dishes. Prices start at $46 per person. --Suzanne Ito
Posted 08.07.01