11/26/2024
In order to talk about the restaurant “Moxche” (mo-shay) which means “tree root” in Mayan, I must discuss the chef behind its inspiration, Rosalía Chay.
Rosalía is a Mayan chef who is now famous for making the 1,000 year old recipe of cochinita pibil in her own backyard. She is Mayan, speaks the Mayan language with her family, raises the 1,000 year old pig species, grows the food used in the rub, and makes and wears Mayan embroidery. She embodies and preserves the legacy of the Mayan people through her cooking and her life.
The restaurant design has an angular floor plan and skylights inspired by the architecture and organization of epic Mayan temples like Chichén Itzá from Rosalía’s home town, creating an ethereal atmosphere that pays homage to this ancient civilization and their reverence to the sky. This restaurant is also the exploded recipe of her cochinita pibil.
In the right hand corner you will see an area where the rub for the cochinita is hand-ground with an ancient mecate and molcajete grinder.
Additionally, a cut-out wall will offer a view into the kitchen integrating diners with every phase of the culinary process. Watching this preparation while hearing the sound of the stone grinders prepare the rub will deepen their understanding of the ancient practice.
To the left is an area solely dedicated to the intimite art iof hand crafting fresh corn tortillas where diners can watch the technique that Rosalía’s family has passed down from generation to generation, and which she shares with her daughter in their home.
The design also features a beautiful view of the garden, where you can see the buried pib and earthen oven, along with the native Savannah and Yucatán ingredients being grown. If you take a walk through the terrace smelling the warm earthy smoke from the pib, each breath feels like an invitation to step back in time.
Overall, Moxche is not just a restaurant, it’s a cultural experience that the city of Savannah needs, from halfway across the globe and thousands of years past.
