Opening Night: Chef Karina Garcia's new all-day cafe Consuelo brings a taste of Mexico to Harlem

NEW YORK -- Back in 2019, Karina Garcia and her husband Eduardo "Lalo" Rodriguez began hosting dinner parties at home for friends to share their love of good food and cooking.

The dinner parties were such a success that soon, strangers began knocking on the couple's apartment door asking how they could get involved.

Garcia and Rodriguez's home operation quickly expanded and eventually, the couple found themselves frying up over 700 doughnuts a week in addition to still hosting full-blown dinners and even offering a delivery taco service.

"I'm so lucky that ever since I was a little girl, I knew what I wanted to do," Garcia explains of her love for cooking. "And I'm the type of person that I'm very determined, always, that when I want to do something I get it done."

Garcia and Rodriguez had experience working at various esteemed New York City restaurants including Cosme and Eleven Madison Park, so when Garcia came around to the idea of opening her own restaurant, she drew from her own past experiences and knew she would make it happen, no matter the obstacles.

For over a year, the couple renovated a space in New York City's Harlem neighborhood with the goal of turning it into an all-day cafe. Influence for the cuisine was to come from a variety of sources including Rodriguez's Mexican heritage and whatever seasonal produce was available.

Despite the challenges that arose throughout the construction and subsequent permitting from the city, Garcia remained optimistic ahead of Consuelo's grand opening.

"Every day is an opening night literally, so every day I'm anxious. I want people to eat my food, that's it. That's the hope, for people to eat my food and enjoy it, hopefully. Every day I'm nervous, but I was born for this, baby."

Consuelo is now open at 130 Hamilton Pl, New York, NY 10031.

You can find out more info at cocinaconsuelonyc.com.