By: Lindsay Garbacik By: Lindsay Garbacik | October 11, 2022 | Food & Drink, Feature, Community,
Dia de Los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, is an annual holiday in Mexico celebrating family, ancestors, and those who have lived and died before us. Families prepare ofrendas, or offerings, filled with the favorite foods and pictures of lost loved ones, to usher in the spirits of ancestors lost. The family-centric holiday is celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2 each year, according to Day of the Dead's website.
To honor the holiday and connect guests with Mexican traditions, winner of Modern Luxury DC’s best Mexican restaurant and Michelin Guide member, dLeña, has launched a special, limited-time Dia de Los Muertos menu complete with a new roster of cocktails that pair perfectly with each dish and explore the flavors and scents of the holiday’s rituals. The new menu will be available now through Nov. 6 at dLeña’s Mount Vernon Triangle abode.
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In celebration of the launch, dLeña hosted guests and members of the media on Wednesday, Oct. 5 to experience a Mayan Copal Ceremony by healer Nataline R. Cruz, followed by a tasting of the four-course Dia de Los Muertos menu and cocktail pairings, prepared by chef Richard Sandoval and executive chef Carlos Camacho. Cruz led guests in a ceremony that explored energy flows within the body and its interactions with natural agave and palo santo smoke. Set amidst a colorful sunset, Cruz explained the use of different smokes within ceremonies, and how the body and its energy handle the grief of lost loved ones and stress.
Chef Richard Sandoval’s Dia de Los Muertos menu utilizes the four elements found in a traditional ofrenda: earth, water, air and fire. The restaurant is known for its wood-fired cuisine and playful use of smoky flavors in both cocktails and dishes on the menu.
On the Dia de Los Muertos menu, find mole coloradito enchiladas, made with chorizo, cotija and housemade mole, as well as the Palo Santo pan de muerto, made with smoked palo santo butter and a marigold-infused sugar, and created by Mexican chef Fany Gerson of La Newyorkina.
Specialty cocktails include the passion fruit and aloe Santo, which is composed of Patrón Silver, Chareau aloe liqueur, absinthe, lime, and passionfruit syrup. For a smokey sweet cocktail, try the Vanilla Smoke, made with Patrón añejo, Del Maguey VIDA mezcal, Licor 43, agave syrup, lemon zest, and coffee bean, and finished with palo santo smoke.
Check out the full Dia de Los Muertos menu on dLeña's website, and make your reservations for this unique experience here. dLeña will offer this menu now through Nov. 6.
dLeña and dLeña ROJA are located at 476 K Street NW, Suite D, Washington, DC 20001.
Photography by: Lindsay Garbacik / Modern Luxury