"I think that's spicier than you'll like it, sir," the counterman said, though not quite in those words.
Paleteria Fernandez waves in English speakers with the moniker "ice cream shop," but ice pops are the prize. You'll find typical Mexican varieties like tamarind, mango with chili, and "rice pudding" as well as familiar flavors like cherry, lemon, and lime. The pico de gallo, a bright mosaic of cucumber, mango, and jicama with orange, chili, salt, and pepper, was indeed spicy, enough so that I chased it not long after with a guanabana. This second paleta was much creamier, but it also offered a rustic touch: a few fibers from the soursop that flavored it.
Although the paletas ($2 to $2.50) are sold in name-branded wrappers, surely with an eye on wholesale business, on the premises the marketing is more idiosyncratic. The pico de gallo was also labeled as the "roaster's mix," the guanabana, as "sour soup."
Paleteria Fernandez
33 North Main St., Port Chester, New York
914-939-3694
