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$$$ | La Condesa |
When it comes to authentic Mexican food, chef and food historian Ricardo Muñoz Zurita literally wrote the book with his Diccionario Enciclopédico de la Gastronomía Mexicana (Encyclopedia of Mexican Food). Here in his art-filled, elegant Condesa restaurant, you can sample some of his superb regional Mexican dishes, such as beef drizzled in a smoky Oaxacan mole that takes three days to make, Veracruz-style fish, or ancient Mayan dishes from the Yucatán. In addition, there is always a seasonal menu highlighting cuisine from a different state of Mexico, with recipes by some of that state's star chefs, as well as Muñoz. Azul has additional locations in El Centro as well as on the campus of UNAM in Ciudad Universitaria.
Av. Nuevo León 68, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06100, Mexico
Known For
- Cochinita pibíl
- Authentic Mexican breakfasts
- Chocolate dessert tamales
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner Sun.
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$$$ | Centro Histórico |
An essential, if touristy, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack stop downtown, this Mexican classic opened in 1912 in a section of an old convent. At the entrance to the main dining room are huge 18th-century oil paintings depicting the invention of mole poblano, a complex sauce featuring a variety of chiles and chocolate that was created by the nuns in the Santa Rosa Convent in Puebla. A student group dressed in medieval capes and hats usually serenades diners Wednesday through Sunday afternoons.
Calle Tacuba 28, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06010, Mexico
Known For
- Live music by students dressed in medieval attire
- Classic tamales
- Old-school atmosphere
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$ | Polanco |
Carmen "Titita" Ramírez—a culinary expert who has been featured in various U.S. food magazines—has turned El Bajío into a true icon of traditional Mexican cuisine, with 19 locations throughout the city (the Polanco branch is likely to be most accessible to visitors). The empanadas de plátano rellenas de frijol (plantain turnovers filled with beans) are popular, as are the tortas de huauzontles, fritters of a Mexican green. The decor and clientele combine both old and new Mexico; business meetings happen alongside boisterous family outings.
Alejandro Dumas 7, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11550, Mexico
Known For
- Good value
- Traditional recipes
- Family-friendly atmosphere
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$ | Polanco |
Polanco's most beloved taquería serves up tacos, tortas, and panuchos of cochinita pibíl, the Yucatecan specialty of achiote-marinated pork. People from all walks of life, from hipsters to construction workers to businesswomen, line up throughout the day for a quick fix, topped with the habanero salsa and pickled red onion (and Montejo beer) typical of the Yucatán. If you can grab a table, get the sopa de lima, a mildly tart chicken soup made with the region's tiny limes.
Emilio Castelar 212, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11560, Mexico
Known For
- Authentic atmosphere
- No-nonsense service
- Best cochinita pibíl in the neighborhood
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$ | Coyoacán |
This casual Spanish restaurant is known both for traditional tapas like tartar de atún con ajillo, croquetas de jamón serrano, and patatas bravas, and for its Iberian take on tortas, the classic Mexican sandwich. The tortas are among the best in the city, some with Mexican touches—like the secretaria (pork leg, chorizo, and cheese)—but the specialties are the calamar (chopped baby squid in chimichurri sauce) and vegetariana (a hearty stack of roasted eggplant and melted cheese). The small, stylish café has a long selection of artisanal Mexican beers, and may be the only tortería in town with a wine list.
Av. Centenario 91--C, Mexico City, Mexico City, 04100, Mexico
Known For
- Anything with squid or octopus (including tortas and tapas)
- House-brewed artisanal beers (available by the bottle)
- A pretty good wine list
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$$$ | Polanco |
The internationally acclaimed chef at Pujol, Enrique Olvera, continuously reinvents traditional Mexican dishes and their presentation, and is largely responsible for the country's gastronomic revolution. The dining experience here can be as educational as it is hedonistic, and the two seven-course menus are designed to create a holistic flavor experience. There is also a 10-course taco menu available, with drink pairings included. Despite the tailored setting and haute cuisine, Pujol is a dressy-casual place; reservations aren't required, but are a good idea.
Tennyson 133, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11560, Mexico
Known For
- Exqusite local flavors
- Best set menu in town
- Surprisingly low-key atmosphere for such haute cuisine
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Children under 12 discouraged
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$$$$ | Polanco |
Chef-owner Jorge Vallejo cut his teeth at Pujol before opening Quintonil (named after a wild green herb often found in milpas, a Mesoamerican crop-growing system) in 2012. Vallejo eschews fussiness to let the ingredients shine: smoked trout from nearby Zitácuaro or a salad of greens and herbs from the floating gardens of Xochimilco. A seasonal set menu is available, as well as the à la carte selections. The discreet, refined restaurant is locally focused all the way up to the rooftop garden.
Isaac Newton 55, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11560, Mexico
Known For
- Accessible fine dining
- Thoughtful ingredient pairings
- Local ingredients, including from rooftop garden
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Children under 12 discouraged
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$$ | Juárez |
An immediate success since it opened on a quiet side street in Colonia Cuauhtémoc, tiny Rokai is perhaps the most authentic Japanese restaurant in a city where cream cheese, chipotle mayo, and bottled hot sauce adorn many a sushi roll. Japanese chefs Hiroshi Kawahito and Daisuke Maeda use immaculately fresh fish brought in daily from Mexico's various coasts, primarily Baja California and Oaxaca, and turn it into sushi and sashimi, as well as cooked dishes. There's also a ramen restaurant next door, bearing the same name and ownership.
Río Ebro 87, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06500, Mexico
Known For
- Traditional omakase tasting menu that is a bargain for the quality
- Reservations typically needed
- Vegetarian ramen dishes
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$$$ | Roma Norte |
Chef-owner Elena Reygadas worked for years at London's Michelin-starred Italian restaurant Locando Locatelli before moving back to her hometown in 2011 to open Rosetta in a stunning early 1900s belle epoque mansion. Despite the perfect risottos and handmade pastas in varying shapes, what her cuisine primarily takes from Italy is reliance on local and seasonal ingredients (the olive oil is from Baja California, the burrata cheese made in the town of Atlixco)—but much of the food has a creative Mexican heart. Breads both sweet and savory are baked in-house, and sold from the adjoining bakery, which has two other locations nearby.
Calle Colima 166, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06760, Mexico
Known For
- Superb modern Italian fare
- Fresh baked goods from the adjacent bakery, Panadería Rosetta
- Rosemary ice cream over herbs for dessert
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Reservations essential
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$$$ | Greater Mexico City |
Young, celebrated chef Edgar Nunez has developed a thoroughly ambitious approach to contemporary cuisine that uses both Mexican and international ingredients—consider seared tuna with jocoque, fennel, smoked grapefruit, and citrus butter, or Veracruz-style beef tongue with quelites and onion. The gently modern space (a 10-minute drive south of San Ángel) merges indoors with outdoors and is one of the sexiest spots in town.
Blvd. de la Luz 777, Mexico City, Mexico City, 01900, Mexico
Known For
- Stellar wine list
- Elaborate tasting menus with wine pairings
- A separate sushi bar within the restaurant, Kokeshi
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner Sun.
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$$$ | Polanco |
Open around the clock inside the Hotel Presidente InterContinental, this fashionable bistro continues to seduce well-heeled chilangos with high-end French classics. The oysters are flown in from France as well as Baja California; the roasted leg of pork with béarnaise sauce is the signature dish; green-apple sorbet with Calvados is a delicate finish. The extensive breakfast menu features both French and Mexican favorites. A fun indulgence at any hour, it's best for a decadent late-night repast, when the people-watching is at its best. (Another location, in the Hotel InterContinental Presidente in the Santa Fe neighborhood, isn't open 24 hours.)
Campos Elíseos 218, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11550, Mexico
Known For
- Late-night atmosphere
- Extensive wine list
- Impressive breakfast menu
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Nápoles |
Revolving slowly on the 45th floor of the World Trade Center, Bellini maintains a formal, reserved character. While it's definitely known less for its food than the views (romantically twinkling city lights at night and a pair of volcanoes on a clear day), it's still worth the dining experience, especially for its beloved osso buco and French onion soup. Despite the name, most dishes here aren't Italian but rather Mexican and international, with lobster as the specialty. Colonia Nápoles is a lovely residential neighborhood south of La Condesa and La Roma, and across Insurgentes Avenue from Del Valle Centro.
Montecito 38, Mexico City, Mexico City, 03810, Mexico
Known For
- Pricey international cuisine
- Panoramic views of the city
- Excellent lobster
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$ | Juárez |
Here you'll find everything you would expect from a petite bistro: an intimate environment open to the street, comforting food, good music that's not too loud, and excellent French wines. Start by ordering the house specialty, hailing from Lyon, France: fish quenelles with your choice of various sauces. A popular main dish is the carne bourguignonne, beef cooked in red wine and butter with bacon and mushrooms. If there's room for dessert, try the clafoutis, a French custard with cherries.
Río Nilo 42, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06500, Mexico
Known For
- Traditional French bistro atmosphere
- Popular carne bourguignonne
- Clafoutis for dessert
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, No dinner Sun.
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$$$$ | Polanco |
This beef-lover's dream (with three additional locations in Mexico City, as well as branches in Cancún and Toluca) is popular with everyone from businessmen to young families. Everything is grilled, from the Argentine beef and Australian lamb to the whitefish in a mild chili sauce. Desserts are large and inventive—try the riff on an alfajor, a typical dulce de leche sandwich cookie. The low-ceiling, wood-beamed dining room is hung with nostalgic pictures of Buenos Aires.
Alejandro Dumas 122, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11550, Mexico
Known For
- Generous portions of classic Argentine cuisine
- Passionate staff
- High-quality ingredients
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$ | Juárez |
The former ambassador to China was so impressed by El Dragón's lacquered Beijing duck that he left behind a note of recommendation (now proudly displayed on one of the restaurant's walls) praising it as the most authentic in Mexico. The duck is roasted over a fruitwood fire and later brought to your table, where the waiter cuts it into thin, tender slices, though it's served with flour tortillas instead of the traditional Chinese steamed pancakes. Most of the cooks hail from Beijing, but they mix up their regional cuisines.
Hamburgo 97, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06600, Mexico
Known For
- A good place to splurge on a meal
- A mix of regional Chinese cuisine, with a focus on Beijing
- Ideal location for a meal while out exploring
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Coyoacán |
Although a Uruguayan owns this fashionable eatery on Coyoacán's lively Jardín Centenario, the menu will be familiar to fans of Argentine cuisine: the superb provoleta (grilled provolone cheese with oregano), for example, and the stellar steaks. Uruguay's Italian heritage appears on the menu as well, with good pizzas and gnocchi with a creamy gorgonzola sauce.
Jardín Centenario 14, Mexico City, Mexico City, 04000, Mexico
Known For
- Prodigiously aged steaks
- Clericot (a classic Argentine drink of red wine, sugar, lemon juice, and soda water)
- Dulce de leche imported from Uruguay
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$$ | Polanco |
Built in the 17th century on the site of a mulberry farm, this hacienda has been transformed into one of Mexico's most elegant dinner spots. The atmosphere outclasses even the food, which consists of both Mexican classics and more experimental dishes that incorporate Spanish and Mediterranean influences. Live music in both the dining and bar areas, which might take the form of a string quintet, a lone pianist, or a strolling mariachi band, adds to the experience.
Juan Vázquez de Mella 525, Mexico City, Mexico City, 11510, Mexico
Known For
- Gorgeous colonial architecture
- Creative flavor combinations
- A variety of live music while you dine
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$ | Centro Histórico |
The oldest portions of this 16th-century mansion were built using stones torn down from the Templo Mayor, which lies just feet away. At lunchtime, you may want to reserve a table on the atmospheric second-floor terrace overlooking the Zócalo, cathedral, and national palace, or simply stop at the ground floor patio for a drink in the shade of the towering cathedral across the street. The menu is a mishmash of international (Cornish game hen) and Mexican (cilantro soup).
República de Guatemala 32, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06010, Mexico
Known For
- Nice craft beer and mezcal selection
- Mix of international and Mexican cuisine
- Outdoor seating
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, No dinner Sun.
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$$ | La Roma |
This popular veteran of the city's modern Mexican culinary scene is still a mainstay for reasonably priced, consistently well-prepared dishes like huitlacoche risotto with corn and poblano chiles, and grilled prawns with a sweet-spicy tamarind-guajillo reduction. The space is refined, relaxed, and ideal for conversation, and there are a few tables on the sidewalk overlooking Plaza Villa de Madrid and Fuente de Cibeles.
Calle de Durango 186A, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06700, Mexico
Known For
- Refined, quiet dining room
- Excellent selection of Mexican wines
- Artfully plated contemporary fare
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, No dinner Sun.
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$$ | La Condesa |
This cozy, old-fashioned restaurant and wine bar is ideal for conversation and lingering over a light meal from the eclectic menu that shows Mexican, Spanish, and Italian influences. Try the wild mushrooms and goat cheese in pastry with brandy sauce, the fish of the day with artichokes and white wine, and the cajeta crepes for dessert.
Av. Fernando Montes de Oca 52--A, Mexico City, Mexico City, 06140, Mexico
Known For
- Low-key, quiet ambience
- Excellent Eurocentric wine list
- Interesting mix of new-world and old-world cuisine
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, No dinner Sun.