The behind-the-scenes founder of Cosme is stepping out on his own with a new downtown taqueria in an unusual arrangement attached to a longtime Mexican restaurant.
Santiago Perez — a partner with chef Enrique Olvera in restaurants like Noho’s Atla, Los Angeles’s Damian, and Mexico City’s Pujol under the Casamata hospitality group umbrella — is launching a solo restaurant. His name may not be as known, but his impact on New York Mexican food is outsized. And, on Thursday, May 22, he’ll open Santo Taco in Nolita, operating out of a storied storefront at 114 Kenmare Street, between Lafayette Street and Cleveland Place, a prime location that won’t lack traffic.
In the past couple of years, New York’s taco scene has leveled up, with players like Taqueria Ramirez. Casamata leaned in with Olvera and team debuting Esse Taco in Williamsburg last year. Naturally, people will have a desire to compare that with Santo Taco.
A TikTok that spotted the Santo Taco signage incorrectly suggested that meant former tenant La Esquina had closed entirely, causing a hoopla in the comments. It’s actually just downsizing, keeping its sit-down restaurant and downstairs area, a fixture of Lower Manhattan nightlife, and passing on its additional corner space to Santo Taco.
Still, it’s a bit unorthodox: The two independently run businesses both serve tacos in what is essentially a shared address. Perez said he’s known the La Esquina team for a long time and “it means a lot that they trust me with their space.” Bop from one to the other and you have a whole night’s plan.
The landmarked building gives a glimpse into the past: Santo Taco retains the old “Corner Deli” signage that was installed in 2005, as an homage to its former life as a deli. Perez is doing mostly cosmetic changes to the inside, updating the exterior marquee with the addition of the Santo Taco name, but otherwise, he plans to “honor its history” and keep the metal-front space as it has been. An archival photo Perez found from the 1940s will hang on the wall.
That also means the incredibly slender space (just 400 square feet) brings some New York-y challenges: Orders will be taken through the window, and there are just seven stools inside. Outside seating is in the works. With windows open, the space becomes a part of the streets, wafting smells beckoning. For now, the counter-service spot is dine-in only.
To streamline, simplicity is king: “There’s nowhere to hide” in a menu like that, he says.
There are just five tacos: a steak trompo — New York strip and sirloin with avocado salsa; pork carnitas (made with pork belly and ribs) with avocado salsa and tomato martajada salsa; chicken thigh with pineapple marinade, avocado salsa, and pickled red onions; and carne asada with potatoes and avocado salsa. The vegetarian option is a mushroom mix of shiitakes and criminis with squash blossom, but it will change by season. Each taco comes already dressed, but there’s a hot sauce station for add-ons. Agua santa with palo santo and Mexican sodas are available to drink. (They’ll consider a liquor license later on). There’s no dessert for now.
“When Cosme turned 10, it was a big milestone, and it prompted some reflection — we’ve had a great run, but what are my next 10 years about? Tacos have always been at the center of what I eat and how I grew up,” says the Mexico City native.
As such, Perez says he’s stepped down as CEO and away from day-to-day dealings of that very restaurant group he founded, but “remains a partner and friend.”
Now, he’s bringing his skill set opening restaurants over the past decade to Santo Taco. “I intend to take many of the elements we display at fine dining restaurants, like not cutting corners, quality the ingredients, knowing the provenance of our suppliers — at the end of day, we’re in the business of creating great hospitality, all of that translates well to a taqueria,” he says. “It’s a much more casual setting and accessible price point, but the principles are the same.”
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