This chef's new Mexican brunch restaurant riffs on classics as a 'love letter to Phoenix'

Bahar Anooshahr, Arizona Republic

Updated December 5, 2023 at 12:57 AM·4 min read

On a recent Sunday morning, the doors to Linger Longer Lounge at the corner of 16th Street and Maryland Avenue were flung open, patrons occupied high tops on the patio and the aromas coming from inside the bar made my stomach grumble in anticipation for the Mexican brunch I was there to try.

Requinto is a pop-up restaurant run by Erick Pineda, whose culinary experience includes stints at multiple restaurants at Desoto Central Market and most recently as the kitchen manager and head chef of Ollie Vaughn’s, where he worked for five years before deciding to branch out on his own in 2021.

The name is a reference to the slightly smaller and more high-pitched guitar often used in Bolero music, which Pineda’s late father used to play. He's maintained his connection to his father through music. In addition to cooking nostalgic foods under his mother’s guidance, he and his girlfriend, Stacie Huttleston, are members of the shoegaze band Citrus Cloud.

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Originally from Maryvale, Pineda's family hails from Chilpancingo, Guerrero. And dishes at the pop-up, like picaditas and green pozole, are nods to his Mexican heritage.

“My food is my love letter to Phoenix. I was born and raised here and in the last 10 years I’ve seen it change," he said. "I’m not a person of a lot of means, so this is how I pay homage to Phoenix and to Mexico.”

Requinto has reqular and vegan chilaquiles with salsa recipes from chef's mom.

What's on the menu at Requinto

The menu changes every two months but always offers a mix of traditional foods like pozole (a birthday treat in Pineda's family growing up) and dishes made with modern twists, like birote and lox, a play on bagel and lox made with Mexican bread.

The staples of the all-brunch menu include Guerrero-style white pozole made with slow-cooked pork, hominy, avocado, red onions, serrano, toasted chile arbol, lime and tostada and a chorizo con huevo huarache made with Masienda masa huarache, Meat Market beef chorizo, sunny egg, red potatoes, cotija, crema, Arizona microgreens and a side of salsa arbol and blistered chilis. Pineda said his flautas ahogadas or drowning flautas started as a special, but people loved them so much that he made them a permanent addition to the menu.

Menu prices range from $13.50 to $16.50.

To pair with the meals, guests can order cocktails from Linger Longer Lounge, like sangria, an Oaxacan old fashioned made with Madre Ensamble, Mexican cinnamon syrup and orange bitters and a Paleta Mimosa made with the chef's special paleta dunked in prosecco. Drink prices range from $8 to $13.

Requinto offers weekly specials and this special, chicken tinga biscuits, should make it to the permanent menu.

Classic chilaquiles and a killer chicken tinga biscuit

We ordered flautas ahogadas, chilaquiles and the special, a chicken tinga biscuit sandwich.

The colorful plates and serving-sized skillet added to the presentation of portions that were just right.

Three pork flautas came floating in a chipotle broth, topped with crema, pickled red onions, cotija cheese, Arizona microgreens and tomatoes with a side of salsa verde. From the first bite, it was clear this chef was an expert in flavor development.

The perfect crisp of the flautas gave way to well-seasoned ground pork. But the magic was in the broth. Pineda said he uses the stock he makes for his pozole and adds a simple chipotle salsa to make it. "It's mean to be like a warm hug," he said.

If you order the chilaquiles, I recommend digging in to get a bite with a bit of everything. The freshly fried corn tortillas are topped with chorizo made with four different types of chiles — guajillo, pasilla, cascabel and costeno— plus cloves for a beautiful depth of flavor. Break up the sunny-side-up egg before taking a bite and add a dash of the tart, herbaceous green salsa, one of several salsas he makes using his mom's recipes.

“The red chili arbol has been in our family for three generations," he said, "like my grandma used to make it for my mom and my mom taught it to me.”

The chef's special sandwich was unputdownable. The sandwich was made with chicken tinga topped with an over-medium egg, pickled onions and cotija on a house-made biscuit and served with a side of salsa roja and diced potatoes.

I recommend eating it with a knife and fork, as it can get messy. Regardless of how you eat it, what makes the sandwich special is the fact that each element tastes great on its own. The biscuit was flaky and moist with a hint of sweetness. The shredded chicken was tender and smoky with chipotle. The rich crema smoothed the transition between the textures of chicken and biscuit.

The consistent excellence and elements of surprise on the menu made me eager to return and try more, from the pozole to the chef's special to whatever new twists he decides to put on Mexican breakfast classics.