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Mexico City has been a culinary capital ever since the time of Moctezuma. Chronicles tell of the extravagant banquets prepared for the Aztec emperor with more than 300 different dishes served. Today's Mexico City is a gastronomic melting pot, with some 15,000 restaurants. You'll find everything from taco stands on the streets to simple, family-style eateries and elite restaurants. The number and range of international restaurants is growing and diversifying, particularly in middle- and upper-class neighborhoods like Polanco, San Angel, La Condesa, La Roma, Lomas de Chapultepec, and Del Valle. Argentine, Spanish, and Italian are the most dominant international cuisines; however, you'll also find a fair share of Japanese, Korean, Arabic, and French restaurants. Mexico City restaurants generally open 7–11 am for breakfast (el desayuno) and 1–6 for lunch (la comida)—although it's rare for Mexicans to eat lunch before 2, and you're likely to feel lonely if you arrive at a popular restaurant before then. Lunch is an institution in this country, often lasting two or more hours, and until nightfall on Sunday. Consequently, the evening meal (la cena) may often be really light, consisting of sweet bread and coffee, traditional tamales, and atole (a hot beverage made from corn and masa and sometimes chocolate) at home, or tacos and appetizers in a restaurant.
If having dinner, most locals start out at 9 pm; restaurants serving dinner stay open at least until 11 pm during the week, and later on weekends. Many restaurants are only open for lunch, especially on Sunday. At deluxe restaurants dress is generally formal (jacket at least), and reservations are recommended; see reviews for details. If you're short on time, you can always head to American-style coffee shops or recognizable fast-food chains all over the city that serve the tired but reliable fare of burgers, fried chicken, and pizza. If it's local flavor you're after, go with tacos or the Mexico City fast-food staple, the torta (a giant sandwich stacked with the ingredients of your choice for about $3). Eating on the street is part of the daily experience for those on the go, and surprising as it may seem, many people argue that it's some of the best food in the city. Still, stick to crowded stands to avoid a stomach illness.
Also cheap and less of a bacterial hazard are the popular fondas (small restaurants). At lunchtime fondas are always packed, as they serve a reasonably priced four-course meal, known as the comida corrida, which typically includes soup of the day, rice or pasta, an entrée, and dessert. There are few vegetarian restaurants, but you'll have no trouble finding nonmeat dishes wherever you grab a bite. Vegetarians and vegans, however, will have a more difficult time, as many dishes are often prepared using lard.
Colonia Polanco, the upscale neighborhood on the edge of the Bosque de Chapultepec, has some of the best and most expensive dining (and lodging) in the city. Zona Rosa restaurants often fill up with tourists, so don't expect to be sitting with the locals here. The Condesa and Roma neighborhoods buzz with a younger crowd all week.
This sunny, easygoing bakery/café---part of a popular Mexico City chainlet---lies conveniently across the street from handsome Parque de La Bombilla, which is the perfect spot to savor some of the exquisite, freshly baked tarts, cookies, and pastries sold here, along with a coffee or tea. For a heartier meal, choose one of the more substantial options, such as the Jamón serrano-Manchego sandwich or vegetable quiche.
One of the few spots in Coyoacán with the hip factor of Roma or Condesa, this tiny artisan roaster turns out some of the best, and most interesting, coffee drinks in city as well as selling connoisseur-worthy beans to go. The classics, including single-origin pour-overs and lattes, are superb, but you'll also find tasty iced drinks, like the refreshing Greench (green tea, kefir, and soda water) and the soothing Trago Tranquila with coffee, coconut cream, pineapple, and tonic water.
Open since 1930, this coffee spot on one of Centro's most hectic streets is one of liveliest places in town to sip a cortado (espresso mixed with warm milk). Café Equis is by no means a third-wave coffee joint—the beans here, entirely from Mexico, are a touch over-roasted and you won't find any plant milks on offer—but with its painted walls and lively air, it's a bona fide institution.
Named for the Silk Road, this inviting café with an enchanting outdoor patio overlooking tranquil Parque Santa Catarina does indeed draw its culinary inspiration from both East and West, serving delectable kimchi omelets, Cuban sandwiches, soba noodle and toasted sesame salads, and anise–avocado leaf cakes. Most of the fair-trade ingredients, from the coffee beans and teas to the whole grains and flours used in the artisan breads and pastries, are sourced organically. If you have trouble scoring a seat, you can always try the small satellite location a couple of blocks away on Calle Ayuntamiento and Avenida Miguel Ángel de Quevedo. There's also a small food cart next door that sells organic snacks (from chocolate brownies to paletas), reusable bags, honeys and jams, and soaps, and next to that is a branch of the artisan ice-cream parlor Carmela.
Just a block from the busy Avenida Ribera de San Cosme, this quiet and elegantly designed hideaway offers respite from the crowds of nearby Metro San Cosme. Decorated with antiques and smelling of freshly roasted coffee, it’s the kind of place where you can disappear for a quiet afternoon of reading or a nice meal alone or with a travel companion. There are two other Camino a Comala cafés in the city, but this one's the best.
For more than 60 years, the shop Aquí es Oaxaca has anchored this block of Calle Santísima that serves as Centro's unofficial Little Oaxaca, selling tamales as well as the mole pastes and cured meats known in the region. When visitors started asking for full meals, Casa Nela was born, and so up a distressingly narrow flight of spiral stairs you'll find Oaxacan classics served in surprisingly peaceful surroundings.
When you're seeking a calm break from the bustle of the big city, have a seat in this dainty and diminutive tearoom with white painted walls, a brick ceiling, and shelves piled high with beautiful teacups, kettles, and bins of tea. You'll find an impressive array of tea blends as well as yerba mate, and a staff who prepares every drink with great care—in fact, the shop offers classes in tea tasting.
This festive and always packed spot has been a mainstay for sweet tooths since 1935. The best plan is to share an order or two of long, crispy churros with at least two dipping sauces (condensed milk, chocolate, and—maybe the best—cajeta are your options), along with a churro ice-cream sandwich. The interior has white-tile walls with intricate blue patterns, simple light-wood tables, and bright lighting. There are milk shakes and hot chocolate drinks, too, in case you're somehow still craving sugar. There are numerous additional locations around the city, and the owners also run a lively roast-chicken-focused fast-casual restaurant, Pollos Poncho, a block away on Álvaro Obregón.
Tucked inside the small El Mercado Amazónico on the east edge of Roma, this tiny offbeat Asian-Mexican-fusion taqueria features duck in every one of its handful of dishes, all of them addictively good. In addition to both Mexican- and Asian-style taco preparations (the Peking duck–inspired "Kim" version is especially tasty), you can enjoy ginger-duck-filled wontons and spring rolls as well as duck tortas. There's also a selection of house salsas (red wine-hibiscus, tamarind, and Thai sweet chile), and they offer a handful of artisan beers. The original location in Condesa is also excellent, and there are two others, one in Polanco and one in Coyoacán.
In operation since 1962, you'll find an impressive array of tacos, tortas, agua frescas, and more here. Sit at the counter and watch the chefs whip up meals at an impressive speed.
Polanco's most beloved taquería serves 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. It's common to see a line here, so be prepared for a short wait.
The owners of this tiny Roma kitchen with volcanic-rock floors and walls are devoted to preserving Mexico's ancient culinary traditions, including the nixtamalización process of grinding corn into tortilla dough, which is used to create exquisite yet simple breakfast and lunch fare that changes day to day, according to what's in season. You might enjoy anything from corn tacos filled with fresh cheese, hoja santa (a peppery Mexican herb), and squash blossom, to a blue-corn tortilla topped with avocado, ants, and salsa. They also carry a beer made from corn, produced by the city's Dängo craft brewery.
Everyone from postclubbing revelers to early morning workers to ardent foodies (the late Anthony Bourdain was a big fan) wait in line for a chance to feast on the hearty guisados served in this legendary breakfast joint. Come with a big appetite, and try a few specialties, such as refritos huevos (eggs whipped with refried beans), chilaquiles with salsa verde, and eggs stewed with longaniza sausage. Many of the best dishes sell out well before Fonda Margarita closes at 11:30 am, and there's usually a line by 8, so try to get here early.
Centro's most famous tacos are available all day from this hole-in-the-wall puesto (stall), but are best experienced in the early hours of the morning after several rounds of beer. The tacos here are all beef and are small, so plan on trying at least three. The most famous is the braised suadero, but if you're feeling adventurous the taco de tripa (intestine) is really unmissable.
Just a few steps down Calle Higuera from Plaza Hidalgo, this covered, open-air market with about a dozen stalls is home to some of the best street food in the neighborhood: barbacoa tacos, squash-blossom quesadillas, fresh-squeezed juices and smoothies, and plenty more, all of it affordably priced. There's nothing trendy about this bustling space where you may have to jostle a bit for a seat, but young buskers often entertain the crowds with great music. Having trouble deciding which vendors to try? Las Dietetics quesadilla stand is one of the best, as is the pozole vendor next to it.
Legendary chef and Enrique Olvera, a devoted practitioner of making tortillas according to tradition and with only the highest-quality ingredients, opened this hole-in-wall shop and café, in part to expand his world-famous Polanco restaurant to the masses. The short menu is basically an ode to maíz, featuring elote and esquites, enmoladas (chicken mole enchiladas), avocado-hoja santa tacos, chilaquiles con mole, huitlacoche tamales, and other perfectly prepared botanas (for breakfast and lunch). You can even sip a glass of atole (a thick and warm masa-based beverage with Mesoamerican roots). Although this is undoubtedly the least expensive way to sample the cuisine of Enrique Pujol, there's often a wait—arrive early if possible.
Since 1927, this venerable bakery has been supplying Chilangos with traditional European and Mexican pastries as well as savory rustic breads. Give yourself a little time to wander the aisles and make your way up to the second level to see the cake decorating area. Another location of the bakery can be found at 16 de Septiembre 18, also in Centro.
This simple take-out window on a quiet side street serves the best hand-crafted ice cream and sorbet in the neighborhood, always featuring just a handful of flavors that change regularly but might include coffee-cardamom, plum–goat cheese, guava-cinnamon, or matcha tea. Picnic also sells a few kinds of delicious cookies and brownies, too.
With a more charming setting than the original location in Roma, this buzzy third-wave coffeehouse is set along leafy Avendia Amsterdam and offers comfy seating in its plant-filled interior and on the sidewalk. The baristas are knowledgeable and professional, whether crafting a carajillo (a refreshing cocktail with iced espresso and Licor 43, a fragrant herbal liqueur), a cascara (tea brewed with coffee cherries), or a single-origin pour-over.
Although its name is barely visible on the sun-faded awnings, this neighborhood taquería is busy on most nights. It’s a true local’s spot and its bright lights are visible from the street; you’ll know it from the number of people mostly patiently waiting to place their orders (food is available to go as well).
This simple, tiny taqueria is a favorite standby for tacos guisados, a completely addictive style with stewed and richly seasoned braised meats like higado (beef liver topped with avocado), chicken mole, and a tuna-sardine blend. Hola stands out from the pack for its variety of vegetarian and vegan options, including squash, Swiss chard, nopales, and quelites, a distinctive Mexican herb that's commonly used in soups and stews.
If you watched the addictively tantalizing Netflix food show Taco Chronicles, you may have witnessed the scenes of al pastor deliciousness filmed in this humble but beloved taqueria on Calle Lorenzo Boturini, which is actually lined with great eats, including a few others featured on the program (such as Taquería la Autentica and El Buen Taco). In this no-frills spot that's open until at least 1 am nightly (it doesn't open, however, until around 4 pm), you'll of course want to sample the al pastor tacos, but you'll find dozens of other kinds, plus fantastic birria. This strip of taquerias is about 5 km (3 miles) east of Roma.
