Dead Sexy 

• Alex Springer

It seems like every time I check in and see how Sugar House is doing, there is some great new restaurant to enjoy. My favorites of these new places are those who take advantage of the neighborhood's walkability and its unique, vibrant culture—those that add more color to the city instead of taking it away.

During my last visit to Sugar House, I swung by the lovely new plaza near the Whole Foods on Wilmington Avenue that contains plenty of casual and patio-accessible dining options. Deciding which spot to try first was difficult, but the stylized candy skull grinning at me from above the doors of De Los Muertos (1215 Wilmington Avenue, Ste. 104, 801-869-1006) ended up winning me over.

Excellent décor aside, De Los Muertos has a lot to offer the casual wanderer of Sugar House's main drag. A patio filled with colorful chairs and plenty of seating welcomes those looking for some summer lovin' like birria, mole and cold cerveza with a tequila chaser. Once inside, diners can take advantage of the digital kiosk to make their orders, and then take a table marker wherever they'd like to sit. I've been seeing this tablet-based approach more often—thanks, COVID—but honestly, I kind of like it. My social skills have taken a pronounced nosedive over the past few years—thanks again, COVID.

Once you punch in your order, you can hang out either inside or out—though the patio is a bit more spacious than the interior. At the moment, the menu is quite a cozy affair consisting of just a few appetizers like chips with loaded queso ($10) or creamy guacamole ($11), some traditional melty tacos and a nice variety of overstuffed burritos. De Los Muertos also has a decent variety of cocktails for those in need of some stronger stuff with their traditional Mexican favorites, though the beer and tequila shot ($9) are always a safe bet.

I think the current star of the menu is the Abuela's Smothered Chicken Mole Burrito ($12.50). It's the dish that best reflects the ancestral respect that De Los Muertos is trying to capture with its menu, and it's a hell of a good burrito. For those who have been bewitched by the rich flavors and colorful heritage of mole, this hits all the right notes. The shredded chicken on the inside gets a braise with the mole before being stuffed into a flour tortilla with a few slathers of refried black beans. Then it gets topped with an additional helping of mole, melted cheese and a chipotle lime crema. The plate is hot when it comes to your table, providing a nostalgic reminder of the mom-and-pop Mexican food spots that I grew up with. The burrito also comes with some pico de gallo, shredded romaine lettuce, pickled onions and sliced radishes for a fresh crunch.

De Los Muertos definitely does right by their mole. It's a dark, luxurious brew that captures the unique balance of smoky, chocolatey and nutty that makes mole sing. I've had mole burritos that fail to let the sauce do all of the talking, but the mix of shredded chicken and refried black beans inside really complements the mole instead of overwhelming it. If you're headed to De Los Muertos for the first time, this is the best way to break yourself in.

For those looking for more of a grab-and-go kind of burrito, I'd recommend the Los Muertos Carne Asada Burrito ($11.50). It's packed with carne asada, bacon, tomatillo salsa and a hefty dose of guacamole. This is another one that showcases how talented De Los Muertos is at balancing flavors and textures. I've gotten plenty of dry carne asada burritos, but that tomatillo salsa and guacamole really livens the whole thing up. It's an excellent entry for Utah's burrito database.

I also snagged a few tacos while I was in, and they've got enough depth and breadth to hang with their burrito cousins. The birria taco ($5.25) is a stellar entry, with its tender beef birria coming at you with a 24-hour braise and paired with oodles of melty cheese. De Los Muertos has plenty of great recipes made with Impossible ground beef, so I decided to give the El Rey Mysterio Taco ($5.25) a go. Its chipotle lime crema, shredded lettuce and pico de gallo make this one a much lighter taco option, and the well-seasoned Impossible ground beef does a great job of adding some heft to the taco. Fans of plant-based tacos and burritos are definitely in for a good time at De Los Muertos.

While I am looking forward to spending a bit more time in this Wilmington Avenue dining plaza, I am glad that I started things off with De Los Muertos. Summertime and tacos are two inseparable concepts in my mind, so having a cool taqueria with ample patio seating in the heart of Sugar House is a definite win.