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New Gio's Mexican BYOB Restaurant to Serve Mole, Breakfast, Tortas and More

By Casey Cora | December 26, 2014 5:28am | Updated on December 29, 2014 10:40am
 Chef Victor Quezaba and Ignacio "Nacho" Bautista are opening a second outpost of Gio's, this one with a Mexican menu.
Chef Victor Quezaba and Ignacio "Nacho" Bautista are opening a second outpost of Gio's, this one with a Mexican menu.
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DNAinfo/Casey Cora

BRIDGEPORT — The reliably good food, low prices and casual atmosphere that made Gio's Cafe and Deli a neighborhood hit for nearly 15 years are about to get re-created, Mexican style. 

The owners of the popular Italian cafe will soon open Gio's Authentic Mexican Food in the former Oliver's Cafe at 451 W. 31st St., which they've renovated with new tables and chairs, a splash of vibrant paint and Mexican folk art to adorn the walls. 

"This will be like nice meals, not like fast food. Nice meals, more authentic. Homemade,"  said Ignacio "Nacho" Bautista, who along with chef Victor Quezaba has run Gio's since their third partner, Giovanni Liuzzo, bowed out a few years back. 

Quezaba said his menu will specialize in homemade red and green mole sauces, which will be ladled atop dishes like bone-in chicken and drizzled across the insides of tortas.

He's also preparing a number of seafood dishes — garlicky, lemon-y shrimp al Mojo de Ajo and salty, herbaceous Tilapia a Veracruzana among them — to accompany heartier entrees like carne asada, chicken enchiladas and stuffed poblano peppers. 

The torta lineup includes chicken, tinga (shredded chicken in tomato sauce), chicharrons (fried pork skins), carne asada and milenesa de pollo (breaded chicken). The tortas will set you back about $6, which includes Mexican roasted potatoes tossed with peppers and onions. 

Breakfast will be served on Saturdays and a breakfast-brunch menu will be available on Sundays. The details on those menus are still getting hashed out, but Quezaba said diners can expect omelettes, frittatas and kid-friendly items.

All orders can be delivered for a $2.50 charge. 

The highest priced entree — a baked seafood entree with octopus, crab and shrimp topped with Mexican cheese — costs $17.95. Most other entrees hover in the $13 range.

Like its Italian counterpart at 27th Street and Lowe Avenue, the Mexican version of Gio's will put a priority on quality, not pretense.

"It will be a place where people feel like they don't have to dress up to get a good meal," Bautista said. 

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