Peter Jackson, Executive Chef at the Mexico restaurant group, has just returned from a foodie trip to Mexico.
He's fizzing with new ideas and the influence of his food exploration will be evident in Mexico's summer menu, which he’s now starting to develop. In the meantime, he's excited about the new spring menu, developed before he went away - a collation of customer favourites, plus some of the current popular Mexico signature plates.
“It was an amazing trip, eating food from street stands to fine dining restaurants. The aim was to immerse myself in their culture, eat the food and get a clear understanding of the way Mexicans cook and eat food. For me it was about the love Mexicans have for food and the respect with which they treat everything they do. I ate some really amazing food; the highlight was the Al Pastor and Tacos Arabe!
Peter loves the freshness and simplicity of Mexican food. “There’s so much flavour in one or two components. And quality of ingredients over quantity, which is a motto I stick to when creating menus.”
He has worked in hospitality for around 25 years. “I started very young and fell into cooking. I have always loved to cook and bake, so it was a natural fit for me.” At Mexico he creates the menus for the restaurants and offers training and support to all the kitchens. The chefs at each restaurant create weekly specials, which gives them the opportunity to be creative.
Every three months when he changes the menu, Peter conducts a Head Chef seminar where he invites all the head chefs to a two-day new menu training seminar. “Without the head chefs the menus I create would never be possible. We dissect the menu, prep and cook the entire menu.”
Peter also offers daily support for all head chefs who require it, and he visits all venues every two-three weeks or even weekly depending on how complex the menus are or if head chefs are on holiday. “It’s about offering a platform to learn,” he says.
“Spring is a fun time to create a menu,” he adds. This year the “favourites” menu takes top-selling dishes from the past four years. “It’s an exciting menu to cook and to eat.” Favourites that will stay on the menu include fried chicken, chimichangas and churros, to name just a few of Mexico’s classics; watch out for other favourites from the past..
Peter describes the Mexico menus he creates as a contemporary style of classic traditional Mexican street food with fresh seasonal produce; not “Tex-Mex”, nor entirely traditional. “I take classic Mexican street food and add complementary flavours and textures to elevate the dish. Since my trip to Mexico I have seen that there are restaurants in Mexico who are reinventing Mexican food and doing similar variations as my menus.”
Mexico, says Peter, fits in well with the Takapuna restaurant scene. “There is a wide variety of restaurants and eateries in Takapuna, and it’s good to be a part of that diversity. We offer an experience that can be enjoyed over and over again. We pride ourselves on making people happy, with food, liquor and service. When you step into Mexico, you get lost in our way. Mexico has its own unique way of providing a complete service through visual walls, colour, food and liquor. We tap into the vast variety of Mexican street food with a twist to excite the taste buds.
