Dean Bailey heads to Durham and Shaun Hurrell’s Barrio Comida
We’ve spent quite a bit of time in Durham this summer, and while we love exploring the city and all its amazing places to eat, we’ve visited one place more than any other.
Shaun Hurrell’s Barrio Comida is a real highlight in a city with a rapidly improving food offering.
Loved by locals, visitors, foodies and those in the industry – including this edition’s Last Word interviewee, Pine’s Sian Byerley – the Cal-Mex restaurant’s permanent home has been years in the making, and Shaun has poured thousands of hours into researching dishes and sourcing incredible ingredients from Mexico and the UK.
Having explored the city to build an appetite, a short walk from the back of the cathedral over the Kingsgate Bridge leads to a haven of great food and drinks which whisks you thousands of miles in an instant.
It’s said you can’t have a great taco without a great tortilla, and Shaun and his team have spent years perfecting theirs – importing heirloom corn from smallholdings and farmers in Mexico who’ve got generations of experience, then nixtamalizing and stone grinding it themselves on-site. The results are simple, yet brilliant. While the menu includes quesadillas and burritos, we love the journey you can take with a selection of tacos – and we’ve tried each of them at least once this summer.
Highlights include the Birria – slow-braised beef packed with flavour and served with a fantastic consomé to elevate this to the top spot on our list.
The Pescado – starring baja-style fried fish – is a close second. The balance of the crispy fish with sweet pickled onion is a wonderful contrast to the rich Birria.
The Al Pastor and Carnitas pork tacos are wonderful combinations of melt-in-the-mouth pork and fresh ingredients – a squeeze of lime juice and a little puffed pork rind on the Carnitas make this one a must-try.
Great passion has gone into crafting everything here – from the essential side plates of puffed pork rinds, corn chips, guacamole and salsa to the laid back playlist and drinks menu. Each of the margaritas crafted by Shaun is a triumph, while the traditional mezcals and tequila are equally good, and even the Jarritos soft drinks from Mexico are worth writing home about.
Served fast and fresh from the open kitchen on disposable plates, every visit to Barrio – whether for a quick lunch or long dinner with drinks – is one of the great dining experiences in the North East.
Six tacos with sides and drinks for two is around £50-60.
Barrio Comida, 34 Church Street, Durham, DH1 3DG, tel 0191 370 9688, www.barriocomida.com
