Ruta Oaxaca Mexican Cuisine

I don’t root for sports teams, but I do root for restaurants. When Ruta Oaxaca Mexican Cuisine opened in our neighborhood (Boerum Hill) a few months ago, I was jazzed that we were getting not just a widely-praised Mexican restaurant, but one that specialized in Oaxacan cuisine. We were in Oaxaca last year and the food was unbelievable; I loved the idea that high-quality mole was just a stone’s throw away.

So did Ruta deliver?

It did, especially in the mole department.

Here atop a classic chicken enchilada was that profoundly flavorful sauce made with chilies and chocolate and nuts and dried fruit and maybe thirty more ingredients. So many layers of flavor — heat, sweetness, toastiness — and, as they say, you could’ve poured it over a leather shoe and it would’ve been delicious.

As for the rest?

Craig thoroughly enjoyed his enchiladas verde with “Swiss-style tomatillo cream salsa” and melted Chihuahua cheese. He gobbled it up faster than I could finish my mole.

One slight criticism: the guacamole that we ordered for an appetizer had zero flavor. Barely any citrus, barely any salt, it just tasted like mashed-up, watery avocado with decent-enough chips. Next time, we’ll order a different appetizer.

But if you’re craving mole that transports you instantly to Oaxaca, you’ll find it at Ruta Oaxaca Mexican Cuisine. To quote The Terminator: I’ll be back.

Ruta Oaxaca Mexican Cuisine / 138 Smith St, Brooklyn, NY 11201 / (718) 576-1507