One bite. Just one forkful was all it took to recognize greatness this weekend when my family and I tried the tamales from the Azteca Rojo stand at the Sarasota Farmers Market.

For years, Azteca Rojo owner and chef Roci Mendez has been delighting farmers market faithful in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Wesley Chapel with her tamales. After spending time on the waitlist for Sarasota’s, she has unleashed her talent on a local audience, and she tells SRQ Magazine she plans to stay for the foreseeable future.

Every tamale Mendez serves is handmade, and she stays up late Friday night — sometimes nearly the entire night — steaming her tamales for the morning. The recipes she uses have been passed down from her grandmother, and her style is heavily influenced by her cuisine native to her hometown of San Luis Potosí, Mexico.

I had already devoured half of my daughter’s avocado toast when my wife, Janet, walked up with a brown box. “There’s a new tamale place,” she said. My eyes grew. My pulse quickened. I waited patiently for Janet to offer me a bite, and she had to wrestle it back from me. These tamales are LEGIT.

The tamal itself retains all the sweetness of the corn from the light and airy masa, but the real star of the show for the version we ordered was the chicken. Mendez slow cooks the shredded chicken breast in a sauce that boasts the roasty, earthy-yet-spicy flavor of the guajillo chili. In addition to the chicken, she offers a traditional cochinita pibil (Yucatan-style barbecued pork), plus a veg option.

The combo version is served with a side of fresh pico de gallo, made from ingredients purchased from the very farmers markets where Mendez sells her wares. There’s also a carrot salad that is sweet with a citrus tang and a spicy kick at the end. It also comes with a side of refried black beans, which are so rich and creamy — while lacking the heaviness of the pinto bean version — that they alone are worth the price of the entire meal.

For now, Mendez’ crew sets up in front of Dimmitt Automotive Group on State Street. (You know — that luxury car dealership where you walk up to the window and drool while you point out the car you could never afford.)

Look, I know that logically, it’s simply not feasible for me to eat Azteca Rojo tamales every Saturday for the rest of my life, but hey … a boy can dream, right?

Azteca Rojo, Sarasota Farmers Market, Saturdays, 7 a.m. - 1 p.m., State Street, facebook.com/AuthenticAztecaRojo/ 

Pictured: Azteca Rojo serves handmade tamales at the Sarasota Farmers Market every Saturday. Photo by Kevin Allen.

The Realm Restaurant Group is pleased to announce the reopening of Sage Restaurant after its annual three week fall hiatus. The restaurant was set to reopen on Tuesday, Sept. 27 but due to the storm, they are delaying their reopening date to FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 with a new seasonal menu for fall, which includes a number of new entrees, appetizers and cocktails. The culinary team, led by executive chef Christopher Covelli, has continued to honor the restaurant’s mission of offering a global culinary experience by introducing new menu items that demonstrate French, Italian and Asian influences. “This fall menu is bringing back that original creativity that we saw in the first two years we were open,” said Covelli, co-owner of Sage Restaurant. “You’re going to see ingredients and components in every dish that are going to be mind-blowing as we aim to hit all of your senses.”

Some of the new seasonal entrees include jamón and manchego salad with toasted walnuts, sherry geleé and a saffron vinaigrette; shrimp escabeche over a medley of roasted corn, tomato and okra; seasonal apple and capicola tartlet with a tarragon foam; pan seared foie gras with dried papaya, pistachios and tandoori spice; bison short rib with sunchoke puree, Szechuan carrots and roasted mushrooms; house-made rigatoni with braised lamb, cardamom yogurt and pickled blueberries; and Maple Leaf Farms half duck with bourbon foie gras butter, swiss chard and baby roasted potatoes, among others. The new seasonal cocktail list offers a number of creative and refreshing alcoholic beverages crafted by Sage Restaurant bartenders, including specialties like the Down to Earth, Unbeetable and Masa Colada, among others. To view the entire seasonal menu, visit SageSRQ.com/Menu. Sage is open Tuesday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., and Friday through Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m. To make a reservation, visit SageSrq.com or call 941-445-5660. 

Pictured: Seasonal apple and capicola tartlet. Photo courtesy of Sage Restaurant.

Sarasota County schools will close Tuesday, Sept. 27, out of an abundance of caution and to allow for time to prepare schools that serve as emergency evacuation centers. While there are no evacuations issued at this time, the county is expecting to announce an evacuation alert for Level A on Tuesday morning. To locate the nearest emergency evacuation center, visit scgov.net/beprepared. Please note that the following traditional public schools are serving as Hurricane Evacuation Centers in Sarasota County; Atwater Elementary School – 4701 Huntsville Ave, North Port; Booker High School – 3201 N Orange Ave, Sarasota; Brookside Middle School – 3636 S Shade Ave, Sarasota; Fruitville Elementary School – 601 Honore Ave, Sarasota; Gulf Gate Elementary School – 6500 S Lockwood Ridge Rd, Sarasota; Heron Creek Middle School – 6501 W Price Blvd, North Port; North Port High School – 6400 W Price Blvd, North Port; Phillippi Shores Elementary School – 4747 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; Southside Elementary School – 1901 Webber St, Sarasota; Taylor Ranch Elementary School – 2500 Taylor Ranch Trail, Venice; Woodland Middle School – 2700 Panacea Blvd, North Port. Register for emergency notifications at alertsarasotacounty.com. Stay in the know by monitoring local media stations, following @SRQC on Facebook and Twitter, or call the Sarasota County Contact Center by dialing 3-1-1. 

The Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller office will be closed from Tuesday, September 27, through Thursday, September 29. The Clerk & Comptroller’s website, www.ManateeClerk.com, will be offline at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, September 27. Jury duty is cancelled this week from Tuesday, September 27, through Thursday, September 29. For court appearances, please visit the Twelfth Judicial Circuit website at https://www.jud12.flcourts.org/ for updates. The Clerk & Comptroller-operated historical sites: Florida Maritime Museum, Manatee County Agricultural Museum, Manatee Village Historical Park, and Palmetto Historical Park, are closed for the remainder of this week. Please visit their respective websites for reopening notices. The Clerk & Comptroller is committed to ensuring its customers and staff are safe during this time. Follow Manatee County Government for continuous storm updates at https://mymanatee.org/. 

Sarasota Opera is pleased to announce that the DaCapo Society, a dynamic group of opera patrons between 21-40, will be returning to create a shared experience for all young professionals at Sarasota Opera's acclaimed productions. Members of the DaCapo Society will have access to fun and exciting social events, discounted performances, and a fantastic community of like-minded individuals. The DaCapo Society Thursday Night Subscription includes three operas in the 2023 Winter Opera Festival with the ability to add additional performances for only $50. Various social events will be held leading up to these subscription dates. See details: Puccini’s Madama Butterfly - February 23, 2022; Mozart’s Don Giovanni - March 2, 2022; Verdi’s Ernani - March 16, 2022. A reception will be held prior to each performance listed. On October 13th from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm, Sarasota Opera will host a Kick-Off party at the KanayaCondominium rooftop for all DaCapo Society members and future members. The first of many events, the Kick-Off Party will feature delicious bites, signature drinks, delightful performances, and will be entirely free to all who wish to join our community! 

Due to the threat of Hurricane Ian to orchestra operations this week, including rehearsal and travel schedules for its musicians and guest artists, Sarasota Orchestra has announced that it will cancel its Discoveries: Mozart and Tchaikovsky concert that was scheduled for this Saturday, October 1 at the Sarasota Opera House. The Orchestra stated its intention to move the program to next season if possible. Ticketholders can request an account credit, receive a full refund, or donate their tickets via a webform on Sarasota Orchestra’s website at https://sarasotaorchestra.org/.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens will continue “The Year of Photography” at its Downtown Sarasota campus with an exhibition that celebrates the stunning scientific photography of Selby Gardens’ own rare orchid collection. “The Orchid Show 2022: Capturing the Perfect Shot,” presented by Better-Gro®, is built around the massive body of beautiful photos taken by a group of dedicated volunteers who help Selby Gardens scientists document the institution’s living research collection. The show will include original horticultural vignettes inspired by the art of scientific photography in the Tropical Conservatory, along with gallery installations in the Museum of Botany & The Arts. This year’s Orchid Show runs from October 15 through December 4. The “living art” for which Selby Gardens is well known will be on full display inside the Tropical Conservatory, where installations will pay homage to the practice of photography by playing with lenses and mirrors while showcasing hundreds of live orchids in artistic arrangements. Different collection specimens will be rotated into the show throughout its duration, helping to ensure a new experience with repeat visits. The Museum of Botany & the Arts will showcase 15 large-format prints of the distinctive scientific photographs, which feature striking close-ups of their orchid subjects set against a jet-black background. Interpretive material will detail the photographic process and highlight six volunteer photographers who have contributed to an archive of more than 100,000 digital images of Selby Gardens’ plant collections. As a special feature of this year’s Orchid Show, a temporary photo studio will be set up in the Museum, where individual volunteers will periodically do their work in view of visitors and answer questions about it. The exhibition will be complemented by several programs and activities, including a virtual lecture on October 26 presented by Selby Gardens botany staff and an “Orchid Evening” on November 2 that includes after-hours access to the show and a live performance by The Circus Arts Conservatory. Access to the exhibition is included with general admission to the Downtown Sarasota campus. Admission tickets may be purchased in advance at selby.org or at the Welcome Center upon arrival. “The Orchid Show 2022: Capturing the Perfect Shot” is presented by Better-Gro. Sponsors include PNC Bank, Williams Parker Attorneys at Law, and WUSF Public Media. 

Pictured: Paphinia herrerae. Photo by Phil Nelson.

This edition of LIVING LAKEWOOD features BEST OF SRQ LOCAL LAKEWOOD RANCH AWARDS, GETTING SIRIUS, MEDICAL FOREFRONT Interview with Andy Guz, and GREECE TO INDIA.

Check out and stay tuned for these Lakewood Living features through this link, on our social media, or in the September edition of SRQ Magazine! 

Read the Issue Here!