Frida Brings Mexican Cuisine and Community Spirit to West Hartford

When it arrives at the table, the Frida Tower at Frida Mexican Cuisine in West Hartford is a sight to behold. It’s a collection of shrimp, octopus, tomatoes, onions, cucumber, cilantro and avocado all stacked in a multicolored cylindrical tower inspired by the Mexican Flag. To eat it you have to break the tower, so all the ingredients combine together. The whole process is inspired by the restaurant’s namesake Frida Kahlo, the legendary Mexican painter, who was admired as an icon of feminine creativity.

“The tower represents Frida, because she was a strong woman, she was a woman that knew where she was standing,” says general manager Bryan Omar, the restaurant’s general manager. “When you break it in half, you are remembering that she was betrayed. ”

Despite this there is nothing somber about the incredibly flavorful ceviche which bursts with seafood and citrus freshness and the dish’s final message is ultimately about joy and triumph. “The color of the Frida Tower reminds you that even though she was breaking in pieces, she was still being Frida, and she was still enjoying life,” Bryan says. 

Note that Frida was in a bus accident when she was 18 and suffered from the injuries the rest of her life. Yet she and her husband, Diego Rivera, another legendary Mexican painter, lived the fullest of lives. The is the spirit that Frida Mexican Cuisine honors.

The flavor of this dish and the symbolism behind it are the perfect introduction to Frida as a restaurant. The destination-worthy spot offers wonderful Mexican cuisine with everything you’d expect: guacamole, burritos, tacos and more, all made to perfection. But the place is about more than food. Founder Sandra (Sandy) Sanchez envisioned a restaurant as a community gathering spot and to help lift people up. Sandy moved to the U.S. from her native Colombia when she was only 18. Before she knew how to speak English, she had a job at Dunkin Donuts where she met her husband Juan, a native of Mexico. Over time she became enchanted with her husband’s culture.

"Being a Colombian with a Mexican husband, I started to fall in love with his culture more and more — loving their diversity and colorfulness,” she says. “I had the pleasure of visiting Mexico for the first time in 2016 and that's where I learned the story of the iconic Frida Kahlo. She was a powerful woman who lived a difficult life just like I did, and a woman who pursued her dreams just like I did. She inspired me to believe that I could do way more than what I thought I was capable of. ”

Portrait of Frida Kahlo

From left: Coyocan 'meat forward' Board; QuesaBirria; Queso Fundido; and an Alma de Frida cocktail

While working at Puerto Vallarta restaurant, Sandy pursued her dream of becoming an educator going to college and getting work as an assistant teacher at Charter Oak Elementary School. Yet she wanted to do more for her community.

"As a Latino woman I feel the necessity of sharing my dreams, my experiences, my motivations with others,” she says. “Having my restaurant in West Hartford has given me the opportunity to represent our culture and traditions with so many different people from other ethnic backgrounds — creating connections and enjoying our favorite phrase that Frida says, ‘Viva la Vida.”

This message of loving and enjoying life is easy to follow while at Frida. In addition to the ceviche tower guests will not want to miss the Coyoacan Board, which is designed to serve two and is a bargain at $36. The dish is an assortment of sizzling meats and seafood including steak, shrimp, chicken, chorizo, carnitas, queso fresco. It comes with rice and refried beans, and six corn tortillas. Each of the meats are fantastic and that slab of melted queso takes everything to the next level. The corn tortillas are warm and crisp. The bar program also impresses with a mix of classics such as margaritas and palomas with creative twists such as the option to sub in mezcal instead of tequila. A passionfruit mezcalita made with Ilegal Mezcal was smokey and refreshing, everything you’d want in this fruit and mezcal-forward take on a margarita.

Beyond the food and drinks, both Sandy and Bryan say what makes the place special is the welcoming feel. “If you come here on a Sunday night, you’re going to see everybody hugging. It's a family, that's the environment that we're going to bring,” Bryan says.

“One of the things that really makes me feel proud of Frida is the family-like experience we provide to our customers,” Sandy says. Adding, “Visitors at the restaurant really feel like they are a part of us, that they have a place where they can be themselves with no judgment. ”

• Frida’s Mexican Cuisine is located at 1150 New Britain Ave in West Hartford.
  Visit www.fridarestaurantwh.com

The glamorous Frida Tower featuring fish ceviche, shrimp, octopus, tomatoes, onions, cucumber, cilantro, avocado, and FRIDA sauce