Au revoir, France, hola Venezuela: Charlotte Bistro is now Mesa

By Lesley Abravanel | Lank@aol.com4/27/2012

After a few stabs at full blown French cuisine, the diminutive Gables restaurant formerly known as Charlotte Bistro is now known as Mesa, which  marks the return of chef/owner Elida Villarroel to her Venezuelan roots. As with most restaurants these days, Mesa's ingredients are "consisting mainly of organic and locally sourced ingredients," but this table offers some pretty unique dishes, Latin dishes "grounded in French techniques."  Among them: mackerel with curry orzo and sauteed spinach; crab risotto with truffle heart of palm; duck breast with sauteed apples, honey raspberry sauce and baby arugula; pork loin with ginger apple and a vermouth rosso sauce; sesame organic tofu with cilantro eggplant, garlic flowers and chardonnay soy sauce; and bay scallops with celeriac, curcuma and herb salad. Prices range from $8 to $10 for soups and salad; $11.95 for daily specials; $14 to $22 for entrees, and $12 to $16 for cheese and charcuterie plates. Villarroel's signature dessert is her Chocolate Soup with coffee aroma, butter tuile, and coffee ice cream. Check out the full menu here. “Mesa is my vision of an old fashioned kitchen, like my mother’s or grandmother’s, with genuine service and unforgettable cuisine, within a modern and chic environment,” she says.