StreetLevel: Park Slope, Welcome to el Barrio

What’s a highly successful restaurateur do upon moving from Manhattan to Park Slope? In the case of Spencer Rothschild—one of the owners of the Upper West Side’s Calle Ocho, Gramercy’s BLT Prime, and Midtown’s Django—he opens Barrio, possibly the most highly anticipated new restaurant on 7th Avenue in forever. Rothschild moved to the Slope with his wife, Julie, last fall, and the pair set about finding a suitable location for a restaurant. They ended up taking the space on the corner of 3rd Street and 7th Ave. formerly occupied by Tempo Presto. Julie is a photographer and designed the space’s interior, which is notable for its pink color scheme, exposed ceiling rafters, and wall art that includes a large mural. It’s the pair’s first time opening a restaurant together, and Rothschild said they “wanted to do it right.” Rothschild notes that “New York has a mostly well-deserved bad reputation for Mexican food” and his menu will involve “staying authentic” (in other words, no Tex-Mex). Barrio’s executive chef and other partner is Adrian Leon, who has overseen kitchens at Rosa Mexicano and Zona Rosa. Leon’s menu at Barrio will include dishes like Puebla pork tenderloin with a peanut mole sauce (tentatively priced at $16.75), market fish tacos ($9.75), and an open-face chicken enchilada ($14.25). The restaurant will have a full liquor license and offer specialty cocktails like mojitos and caiperinas. Barrio is set to open this coming Monday, the 21st, and it’s looking like it might be the shot in the arm that 7th Avenue’s restaurant scene—so often a bridesmaid to the one on 5th nowadays—desperately needs. GMAP