Responses by Jeff Beck, owner, Mixteca; Kasia Bannon, chief executive officer, Grandmerci; and John Wigham, designer and creative director.
Background: Mexican spirits are much more complex than what the general consumer might think of tequila. Our goal here was to showcase the diverse bounty of distilled spirits from Mexico in cocktails inspired by head barman Victor Lopez’s hometown of Puebla, Mexico. We are highlighting mezcal, tequila, sotol, bacanora, raicilla and many other cocktails and on the talavera-tiled back bar. Our target audience is the thirsty consumers of New York City looking for delicious cocktails, an expansive spirits list and tasty tacos from Tacos 1986, Mixteca’s neighbor restaurant that provides its food.
Design thinking: We enlisted Kasia Bannon of Grandmerci to brand the concept and Post Company to design the interiors. Kasia and John Wigham, the designer and creative director, delighted us with their listening and deep independent research to embody Mixteca based on Victor’s prompts. His smile was ear to ear when he saw the first drafts and is thrilled with the finished product. Tequila and mezcal cocktails are now the top selling drinks at our sister bar PDT in the East Village, so it felt appropriate to lean into that category for this project.
Challenges: Being thoughtful and authentic because they take the most time to consider. It takes a lot of patience, thinking, and then research and rumination to get these just right—as well as the art for the walls. But pragmatically, budget and permitting are the hardest part. Mixteca is in a landmarked building near the West 4th subway station, so we had a lot of red tape to get anything done with the New York City Department of Buildings, the MTA and the Landmarks Preservation Commission—not to mention Con Edison.
Favorite details: The logo, as it captures the essence of what we wanted to achieve. Finding that balance between authenticity of the local found signs and type of Puebla and the modernity needed for a contemporary cocktail bar.
Visual influences: The biggest influence was Puebla. From the culture and architecture of the city to the blue of Talavera pottery, the tile designs found throughout the city, and the marigolds or “flor de muerto”—“flower of the dead” in English. All can be found as little details throughout the identity.
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