Ix Restaurant

GUATEMALA 🇬🇹

Unless you take an interest, it is hard to ascertain just what Ix is all about from the outside. In a rapidly changing neighborhood, it seems to be a hangout for many of the newer residents of the area. The menu is absolutely all over the map, with Spanish tortilla de huevo, sandwiches, kimchi soup, and plenty of breakfast options with high end coffee and tea.

But look a little closer to some of the items, especially in the soups list, and you start to see some standouts. Alternatively you could find some of these soups on the menus of a Mexican or Guatemalan restaurant, but what they share in common is their roots in centuries old Mayan kitchens. Guatemalan dishes like pepian and jocón are just the tip of the iceberg for using ingredients to this culture that spanned the lands of what is now Guatemala and southern México.

For more on this, read our article about Tierras Centro Americanas in Jamaica, Queens.

One of my favorite dishes in the entire city is the jocón at Tierras Centro Americanas (link above), so I was ecstatic to see the dish listed on a second menu finally. The version here ($13, above) comes out looking perfect, topped with crisp green beans and a deep green color from tomatillos, cilantro, and green peppers. Toasted pumpkin seeds called pepitos, garlic, and onions provide the rest of the palate. Oddly left out was the heat that is usually a big part of this dish, which I later learned from the owner was an unfortunate byproduct of his customers who for the most part do not like spicy food. Make sure to request it spicy or add some of their homemade Mayan-style hot sauce available at the counter.

Soup on another day.

And that hot sauce? It is for sale at $6.50/jar and worth every penny. The main ingredient, chile cobanero, is a small red pepper from the area near the modern city of Cobán but has been used since the Mayans were the dominant people of the region. It is combined with olive oil and just a bit of garlic and salt. Simple yet delicious, the pepper itself is earthy and very smoky. I have been putting it on all types of foods at home ever since the purchase.

🇬🇹🇬🇹🇬🇹

PROSPECT LEFFERTS GARDENS Brooklyn
43 Lincoln Road

Map of Eat the World NYC: