Photo: Mary Subialka
A few years ago, when the idea to open a restaurant in a gas station in Eagan came up, chef Cristian de Leon had some convincing to bring his wife and business partner Karen de Leon around to the concept. But the space presented a step on the path to their goal of owning a full-service restaurant, so these longtime local restaurant industry members were in, opening El Sazon Tacos & More at the BP station on Diffley Road in March 2022.
Flash forward to today, and this unexpected spot has earned a reputation for dishing up delicious food from its tiny kitchen—tacos, burritos, bowls, and torta with choice of protein, as well as twists such as birria ramen, birria pizza, and quesabirria (for takeout, delivery, and limited dine-in). The spot has also been creating a buzz with its special tasting menu dinners that have been held roughly once a month over the past year and a half or so. They get permission to close the station for the evening, pull out more tables, don them with tablecloths, and pull out the stops to create an unexpectedly interesting experience…in a gas station.
I first heard about El Sazon last month when my friend Jane and I were looking for a lunch spot before our Saturday afternoon hike at nearby Lebanon Hills Regional Park. Her husband had heard good things about the food, but I must admit I dismissed it as an option after looking it up and seeing it was in a gas station. So, when the opportunity to attend El Sazon’s Night at the Gas Station No. 9 this past Monday night came up it seemed fated that I attend—and Jane join as my plus-one.
El Sazon Tacos & More has been a great opportunity for chef de Leon to have freedom in the kitchen and create a menu showcasing his talents gained from his long career in the restaurant industry in places such as the Copper Hen, Chino Latino, the Good Earth, and the Icehouse, and bringing together his Guatemalan background along with Karen’s Mexican heritage. This ninth dinner also brought together a collaboration with Tyge Nelson, chef and owner of Pajarito (with locations in Edina and St. Paul), a friend of Cristian’s and former coworker at Chino Latino, as well as mixologist Zoilo Ruacho.
After settling in to the quirky concept of dinner in a gas station, surrounded by the beef jerky and energy drinks, and getting the puns out of our system about “filling up,” etc., we, along with about 50 others, were treated to a six-course dinner, each course paired with a tasty mocktail. “It’s the largest group we have had, and it sold out in about four hours,” exclaimed Karen de Leon.
El Sazon’s Night at the Gas Station No. 9
Each special dinner’s menu is different, and draws upon the chefs’ creativity, offering unique twists on their traditional dishes. They spoke to each course as it was served.
- The first course was woodfire grilled baby octopus fideuá—a version of paella that uses fideos pasta—with avocado, chive, and lime aioli. After getting over my initial reaction to seeing this dish, I did get myself to try a tiny piece of the octopus atop the flavorful pasta.
Mocktail: Pineapple Cooler—quite refreshing.
Photo: Mary Subialka
- Chochoyotes de Platano: Mole blanco, frijoles ducal, salsa macha, and berros: This tasty plate had balls of plantain, which were reminiscent of falafel, served with a delicious mole blanco and greens drizzled with a fresh-tasting dressing.
Mocktail: Fizz: This experiential drink was served in two glasses so each diner could be their own mixologist to create carbonation by marrying blue corn, guava, sugar, and baking soda to create fizz.
Photo: Mary Subialka
- Celery Roots: Nelson said these are probably one of his favorite root vegetables. Here, it was roasted and grilled on a little wood fire and served with salsa macha, which has hazelnut, sesame, and chilies, topped with goat cheese, flat leaf parsley, and Maldon sea salt, for a delicious twist on eating your veggies.
Mocktail: Lavender Lemonade
Photo: Mary Subialka
- Estofado de Pato: Chef de Leon said his mom used to make this dish with turkey and in this case, he made it with duck breast. It was served with an artistic root pave—thin slices of sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, and potato artistically layered in a cube—as well as tomatoes, leeks, and tamal.
Mocktail: Shrub with seasonal flavors of pear, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar: The acidity of the shrub designed to go well with the richness of the duck, noted Ruacho.
Photo: Mary Subialka
- Taco: Chef Nelson said his take on a taco is a cold taco. This tasty take had blue crab marinated with lime, cilantro, jalapeños, with cucumber, scallions, tomato, and queso fresco. The unexpected shell was done Doritos loco style, he said—so it has house-made cool ranch powder on the outside “just to kind of zhuzh is up a bit.” And it did.
Mocktail: Pear Spritzer
Photo: Mary Subialka
- Dessert: The evening was topped off with Pan de Muerto Bread pudding, a take on one of chef de Leon’s favorite items from his days at Chino Latino, the French toast with bananas. Here the bananas brûlée with Kahlúa caramel served with vanilla ice cream was a sweet way to top off the fun dinner.
Mocktail: The Tescalate, which is roasted maize, roasted cocoa bean, ground pine nuts, achiote, panela sugar, was a fitting complement.
Overall, the dinner was an unexpectedly delightful evening—a way to explore a variety of dishes and perhaps push yourself to try different things. Jane thought the flavor combinations were very unique—unique in a good way—and excited chatter I picked up from around our communal dining tables seemed to be in agreement.
The Next Courses
Growing from El Sazon Tacos & More—the “small kitchen with big dreams”—the de Leons opened their first full-service restaurant in late 2023, El Sazon Cocina & Tragos at 5309 Lyndale Ave. S. in Minneapolis, where you can find creative takes on Latin cuisine and cocktails.
The gas station space is still going strong, though, and the next special tasting menu dinner is in the works, with plans for the No. 10 dinner to include another chef collaboration. We will keep you posted on plans for this upcoming dinner.
Plus, look for more on Xelas by El Sazon, a new restaurant the de Leons are opening soon in Stillwater that will focus on Mayan cuisine.
The Mocktails
