EDVARD MUNCH

rustic Camptown Lodge right off a less than glamorous stretch of highway on the way to Home Depot, Hernández chose to devote his efforts to not just being inspired by his Mexican roots but by returning to basic techniques that technology had simplified rather than improved.

Few Mexican restaurants make a big deal over masa anymore because it’s now almost as easy to make as a Duncan Hines Devil’s Food Cake. One bite of Hernández’s daily corn ground gold and red masas and you can’t help but go “How am I eating anything this special in the middle of Leeds?” It’s the first clue that you probably won’t find Mexican food as directive as Hernández’s in many places in Manhattan either.

According to the young chef, “part of my goal was to share and celebrate the rewarding labor-intensive work from my home that we rarely see in the states, even when it comes to making street food. It’s like how many people discovered how much they loved sourdough bread when they started making it on their own during the pandemic. Grinding your own corn every day is just one way cooking from scratch can make a difference,” he says.

But Hernández was also adamant that Casa Susanna wasn’t going to be mired in old world techniques with a cornucopia of menu classics including tacos and enchiladas. “There’s so much here that’s special to the Hudson Valley,” says the chef. Guests are surprised when they can’t find guacamole on the menu. “Well, you know what? They don’t grow avocados anywhere around here. What’s the point of not taking advantage of what we do have that’s unique?”

Gorgeous squash blossoms in salsa verde, pears set soaring with a rub of Meyer lemon, Gochujang and a flash of Calabrian chili and someone who finally knows how to treat cauliflower as something other than fake steak in a cloak of hummus with thick pumpkin seed paste fragrant with sikil pak. For those still afraid of the term “blood sausage” get over it and eat it. It’s so good.

But where you really see the ballsiness of Hernández’s desire and talent are in the selection of six entrees. Only two are anything you might expect anywhere on 28th Street and Park let alone on a lonely road in Greene County–delicious duck confit in fermented black mole and a fine grilled 40oz ribeye. But the other four? You got your seat belts on?

Sweetbread tacos, grilled mackerel in red chilies, beef tongue in salsa Macha (chilies, peppers, nuts and oil) and goat birria tatamada. All are common to Hernández’s origins, and he has the skill and bravado to prove why each is worthy of your attention and gestation.

Because bluefish is so meaty and oily, he seasons the fish the way others might do a roast pork. The result is a fish I’ve never cottoned to that now boasts a mysterious new depth and attraction. Hernández thinks sweetbread tacos are like popcorn and don’t bet against him. I haven’t eaten tongue since I was eight. I’ll now happily eat it again. But only if Hernández is cooking it. As for the goat… Honestly, it’s simply the best dish in the house. Like beef stew but with a layer of briny richness, and sinewy succulence no cow could ever pull off. For all you skeptics, the daring quartet are four of the house’s most consistent best sellers. So, please go for it. You won’t be sorry. Just like you’ll believe Susanna’s prickly pear sorbet should be sold at the door hand packed by the pint.

“My family is in México,” says Hernández. “My sister is in Southern California. My wife is from the area, so she’s always comfortable here and I love being with her. But when I get into that kitchen, I go back to my childhood, my roots, my best memories, and it helps me bring out the best part of myself forward. I start to feel closer to who I am. And that makes me very happy.”

He’s not alone. “Why this goat! This damn goat!“ cried out one diner. “This is so goddam good it’s worth singing about. Except I can’t think of one nice song with a goat in it.” Actually, T-Pain has a famous positive hip-hop song called “Goat Talk.” But damned if I was gonna tell him.

CASA SUSANNA

800 County Road 23

Leeds, NY

Open: (Dinner) Thursday-Saturday 5-11pm Sunday 5-10pm (Lunch) Saturday/Sunday 10am-2pm 518.719.0097

Reservations: Resy