Taste Local Flavor: Mexico City’s Best Places to Eat and Drink

There is no denying that Mexico City offers some of the greatest food on the planet.

Delicious bites can be found everywhere in Chilangolandia, or CDMX as the locals refer to it, from high-end restaurants and bars to curbside taco stands. Since it’s quite easy to become overawed by the array of options, my best advice for visitors visiting Mexico City is to take a stroll through each neighborhood to get a feel for the vibe and tempo of each area.

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My second piece of advice is to make reservations well in advance if you want to get a desired seat. A two- or three-month waiting list for some in-demand locations is not uncommon. If your trip is only for a long weekend, I would still include a quality sit-down dinner in your agenda and leave the other meals to casual cafes.

Breakfast

Spend a day touring Centro Histórico and have a sumptuous breakfast at El Cardenal, a Palma Street institution that has been a Mexico City staple for decades. The cuisine served at the restaurant is classic Mexican fare. Get the conchas, a well-known sugar-dusted Mexican pastry, and hot chocolate with conchas. Huevos a la cazuela are scrambled eggs served in a clay pot with red sauce. The finest spot to order escamoles (ant larvae), if you’re feeling daring and want to sample one of Mexico’s traditional foods, is El Cardenal. They taste especially delicious when they are served with freshly cooked tortillas and are expertly seasoned with butter and epazote, a pungent indigenous herb.

A late brunch option available only on weekends, barbacoa (lamb roasted in a pit oven) is a must-try if you find yourself in Mexico City on a Saturday or Sunday. Travel to Los Tres Reyes in the Mixcoac area with Uber in fifteen minutes. This laid-back restaurant, which is still family-run, makes the greatest barbacoa in town.

Coffee

There is a vibrant coffee culture in Mexico City. Take your time, just like the natives do. Mexicans celebrate social occasions by sitting down for coffee and pastries with friends and family, in contrast to the US’s grab-and-go coffee culture.

In Juarez, my favorite coffee shop is Quintin Miscelanea. It is situated in a peaceful walking alley corner. Since the project’s creators are nearby coffee roasters, the drip and espresso coffee are of the highest caliber. The coffee shop’s baristas are also really cool and kind. With freshly baked bagels, a breakfast sandwich, and pastries, Quentin Miscelanea serves a brief yet sweet breakfast menu.

I recently learned about Post Café, which is situated in Roma Sur. Its method for brewing coffee is similar to its simple design. It’s a small, simple place that can accommodate eight people at most. It serves light roast, aromatic, and tastefully made Americanos, as well as espresso and cortado.

Lunch

Fondas are mom-and-pop-run restaurants that charge between M$60 and M$100 for daily, freshly prepared meals that include soup, spaghetti, or rice, and a stew made of vegetables or protein. Fondas are available all across the city, but particularly in the local marketplaces. Every chilango, or resident of Mexico City, has a to-go fonda nearby their place of employment or residence. My favorite is Cocina Margarita in the Juárez market as they have a rotating menu that includes the hot beef and vegetable soup, mole de olla.

Esquina Común offers a well-executed dining experience and highly customized attention for a casual lunch that is available only on weekends. Well-known for her inventive, rainbow-hued meals, Chef Ana González also pays close attention to the quality of her ingredients and presentation. She serves a six-course lunch menu that changes with the seasons and is influenced by flavors from South America and Mexico. Operating as a speakeasy, the restaurant has a “secret” location in Condesa. Seating is strictly reserved; to reserve a spot, send an Instagram direct message.

Enrique Olvera, the most well-known chef in Mexico and the proprietor of the upscale restaurant Pujol, serves superb, corn-based Mexican cuisine. If you’re staying in Polanco, you should definitely visit La Ventana de Ticuchi, one of his informal restaurants in Mexico City. La Ventana offers corn-based, Oaxacan-inspired antojitos, or what are best described as street cuisine bits, through a window that looks out into a kitchen that is centered around comal. Open from 1pm, Enrique’s snack window is a great place to grab some on-the-walk lunch snacks. Its tiny but carefully chosen menu has corn specialties like tamales, tetelas, and layudas, which are big tortillas folded over toppings. I suggest making sure to try the esquites tamal.

Aperitivo

Oropel is a specialty of aperitif hour, offering a small menu centered around a selection of natural wine and vermouth. The most of the seating is outside on the lively sidewalk, and the interior bar is fairly modest. With a constant stream of people from Mexico City’s hotel sector, the environment is always bustling. Oropel is very busy on the weekends, and although the service is always very nice, it can slow down a bit—which is to be expected for an aperitif bar.

Visit Cicatriz, one of the original ventures that put Colonia Juarez on the hip map of Mexico City, for stylish people watching while sipping cocktails. Locals have been raving about Chef Scarlett Linderman’s restaurant bar for the past seven years. Excellent small plates made with fresh ingredients are also served there. Comfort food favorites like soft-boiled eggs with bread, butter, and tomato-fennel salt are among the meals.The Yoko, Cicatriz’s take on an Aperol Spritz infused with mezcal, is the drink that first gained popularity.

Dinner

“Which is your favorite restaurant?” is a question I get asked a lot. My answer changes according on the situation.

North America’s top restaurants can be found in Mexico City. My usual choice for a treat or a celebration is Maximo Bistrot. Under the direction of Chef Lalo García, this premier location shines as one of the culinary gems of the city, emphasizing perfectly prepared local, seasonal foods. Although Maximo has a tasting menu, I advise going à la carte. Maximo’s signature dishes include the octopus ceviche “a la Mexicana,” the sweet onion cooked in whey, and the stone crab with bearnaise sauce. Don’t miss them. Since this is one of the hardest reservations in town, make your plans in advance.

My favorite place to go on a more relaxed evening is Lup Bar. If you want to learn more about Mexico City’s natural wine scene, stop by this wine bar and cafe. Chef Joaquin Cardoso and wine importer Gaëtan Rousset, the project’s driving forces, have been in the vanguard of the movement since 2017. The beef tartar, veil milanesa, and fish ceviche are some of my favorite dishes at Loup.

Bar

Mexico City boasts a thriving drinking culture and nightlife.If you wish to sip on regional alcoholic beverages, Bosforo is the best choice. Primarily known for its ambience and musical choices, this little mezcal bar offers the greatest agave spirits from several mezcal-producing regions in Mexico. You’ll be set for a fun-filled evening at Centro Histórico if you can at least attempt to order your drink in Spanish.

A worthwhile drinking experience can be had at Bar 686 thanks to its attentive service, delicious drinks, and wonderful atmosphere—perfect for a romantic night or get-together with friends. The bar welcomes you to sit and enjoy the menu’s classic libations while the salon is dimly lit and has music loud enough to carry a discussion. A martini at Bar 686 is a great way to start the evening.

In Mexico City, having tacos to end the evening is like a religion.El Vilsito is a late-night taco stand in the Narvarte area that is well-known for its hot salsas and pastor tacos.