Gusanoz – July Quick Look

If you are looking for an electrifying setting with authentic food at a reasonable price, Gusanoz in Lebanon is your place. To add spice to an already festive restaurant the owners, Mexican native Maria Limon and her husband Nick Yager, clear a dance floor twice each month for an evening of salsa music and dance provided by the “Black Beans,” a live Latin American dance band, or by “DJ Spin Doctor” of the Upper Valley Dance Network and John Tomeny, who also helps the uninitiated with salsa lessons.

Although tequila samplers are touted (they have 60 different varieties) as are the house margaritas and Mexican beers, the glow of the diners comes from being comfortable in unpretentious surroundings, where one is not limited to the standard fare of burritos, enchiladas or tacos. My meal began with beef taquitos, with corn tortillas shipped from Mexico, followed by a delicious tilapia sautéed with lime and cilantro, served with rice, beans and fresh avocado slices. My husband had the same fish seasoned with a dry rub and served with soft tortillas. According to the menu, Gusanoz means a “casual restaurant featuring authentic Mexican cuisine in a warm setting.” For this diner, the definition holds true.

– Helen Brody

Gusanoz, 410 Miracle Mile, Lebanon
(603) 448-1408, www.gusanoz.com
Monday through Thursday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday through Saturday: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Sunday: Open until 9 p.m.

Helen Brody is author of “New Hampshire: From Farm to Kitchen,” co-author of “Cooking with Fire: Two Hundred Years of Recipes and Foodlore” and a New England writer for newspapers and magazines.