349 Best Restaurants in Mexico

Renowned for its breakfast, Carmelita's serves up a daily variety of guisados (stewed meats) like beef tongue in tomatillo salsa and pork ribs in red sauce. Don't miss the signature requesón (a ricotta-style cheese, seasoned with herbs), served with a stack of freshly pressed corn tortillas. You'll also find scrambles, omelets, and other usual suspects.

A lovely, inviting spot for a light meal, Casa Cardinal employs a team of well-trained baristas devoted to producing some of the finest coffee drinks in the neighborhood, using the method of your choice (Aeropress, Japanese siphon, Chemex pour-over, and a few others—plus very good mochas). There's always cool music playing, and you can dine inside or out at one of the sidewalk tables. There's a location in Condesa, too.

Though it serves good basic pastas, salads, and burgers, as well as some Mexican bar-food favorites, this restaurant's popularity is primarily due to its delicious cocktails, aguas frescas, and lively atmosphere. You can dine outside, enjoying the activity on Paseo Montejo, or inside, where the people-watching is just as interesting.

This institution is right on the malecón, just a few steps from the fish market. The atmosphere is not fancy, but the walls radiate bright orange, and a courtyard fountain splashes in a minor key. The staff is helpful yet unobtrusive, and the food habitually good. The fare consists of Mexican dishes and such simple seafood plates as fish steamed in foil and served with rice and french fries. Lobster is a specialty, though it and the well-loved seafood platter will push your tab into the $$$$ category.

Part private home, part restaurant (and owned by the same family since the 1980s), this place evokes a country hacienda in mainland Mexico. Although the setting, with tables lining the veranda, outshines the food, stalwart fans nevertheless rave about the huge platters of fajitas and grilled fish. The on-site botanical garden has mango and papaya trees and a small zoo with caged birds. Casa Mission also has two more centrally located sister restaurants, La Mission and Parilla Mission.

Although the food is consistently good---omelets, chilaquiles, tamales with mole sauce at breakfast, and salads, pastas, and pizzas in the afternoon—the best reason to dine in this home that once belonged to famed silversmith William Spratling is the elegant setting. The high-ceilinged dining room and terraces of the gracious colonial building exude old-world charm, and tables have wonderful views of the town's red-roofed homes. The restaurant closes at 6 pm, making it an option for only for very early dinners.

Campechano families come here to enjoy a light supper, perhaps a delicious sandwich claveteado of honey-and-clove-spiked ham, along with a typical drink like agua de chaya, a mixture of pineapple water and chaya (a leafy vegetable similar to spinach). The dining area is a wide colonial veranda with marble flooring and tables decked out in plastic tablecloths. No alcohol is served, and you simply mark your choices on the paper menu (note that for tacos, "m" means maíz, or corn; for tortillas, "h" stands for harina, or flour). On weekends, try the tamal torteado, a tamale with beans, tomato sauce, turkey, and pork wrapped in banana leaves—although not listed on the menu, it's available on request. 

Chilaquiles are by far the top draw at this friendly brunch spot a block from Avenida Amsterdam; it also offers up a nice selection of other all-day dishes, from fruit-yogurt bowls and avocado toast with eggs and goat cheese to molletes topped with butter, beans, Oaxacan and manchego cheeses, and pico de gallo. The chilaquiles are build-your-own: you choose your sauce (chipotle, habanero, and more), protein (eggs, chicken breast, cecina steak, vegan chorizo), and other ingredients (anything from asparagus to panela cheese)---with enough toppings, this can be a dish to last you the entire day. 

For a refreshing caffeine pick-me-up in the southern reaches of Condesa, pop into this cute and cozy third-wave espresso bar that serves delicious breakfasts and sandwiches, too. Students and freelancers work away on their laptops in the triangular white-brick interior space, while you're more likely to spy friends gabbing at the sidewalk tables. There are a couple of additional locations around town.

Follow your nose to this dessert café, where the aromas of French pastries and rich cocoa waft into Campeche's narrow streets. Tucked inside a stone-walled colonial building are small wooden tables and a collection of antiques, like a vintage cash register still used for ringing up transactions. Drink recipes originated from the owner's research into Mayan traditions and her time spent with local families; prepared with the purest form of organic cocoa, they're infused with mint, chile, and more. Not a chocolate lover? You’ll enjoy all-natural fruit juices made with jicama and piña. Crepes and cookies make nice accompaniments. A small gift shop sells locally made products and blocks of dark chocolate.

A branch of the historic churro restaurant in Centro Historico, this is a great place to stop and take a break on the eastern edge of Polanco. Delicious churros, hot chocolate, milk shakes, and coffee will satisfy your sweet tooth here

This is the place for a quick taco fix; $2 (fish and shrimp) or $3 (grilled scallop) gets you some serious tacos, while $8 will buy you a killer aguachile. This is the locals' go-to spot for quality seafood and affordable cold beer. There's another branch in Leona Vicario, near the Decameron hotel. 

Early risers and those heading off on fishing charters will appreciate the daily 5 am opening time. The café, which is filled with wonderful art for sale, has fruit smoothies, coffee in many manifestations, and tasty frappés with Oreo cookie bits or frosting-topped carrot cake.

Loved by locals and visitors alike, this beautiful place is a good spot to grab home-roasted specialty coffee (starting at $2.50), fresh juices (starting at $3), and paninis ($10). Check their calendar online for concerts and other events. Look for their second branch at La Playa near Puerto Los Cabos, which comes with a trendy bar and Sunday brunch.  

Tuck into plates of exquisitely prepared, traditional Mexican snacks like tlacoyos, sopes, flautas, and quesadillas with rich sauces and authentic, carefully curated ingredients. Tortillas are hand-made on the tiny restaurant's comal, and there's lovely outdoor seating in a sidewalk space decorated with vertical wooden slats and pretty plants. 

Always packed with locals---including plenty of expats from other parts of the Americas---watching fútbol on TV or enjoying the live music, this welcoming two-story Roma Sur mercado contains more than a dozen food stalls set around a central dining area with communal tables. Cuisines from mostly Central and South America are featured, including Brazilian feijoada, Peruvian ceviche, and Salvadoran arepes. There's an extensive selection of juices, soft drinks, beers, and cocktails, too. 

In Ocotlán the only place to eat is at Comedor Frida Kahlo, located within the main market building. Here, Frida (or her doppelgänger) will offer you the best in local cuisine. Afterwards, you can have a photo with Frida herself.

Typical food of the countryside—enchiladas, tamales, pozole, beefsteak with beans and tortillas, and so on—is served in an equally typical family home that has been expanded to welcome guests. Straw-bottom chairs are comfortable enough, and the oilcloths shiny and new. The small bar is at the back behind the large, open kitchen. It's open for breakfast, too.

This tiny open-air restaurant looking out onto the fields of La Trinidad's organic produce offers farm-to-table dining, literally. Gnocchi is tasty but too much for a main dish; it's better to share among your party so you can save room for one of the Korean lettuce wraps, a fresh green salad, or a pork loin sandwich. Absolutely not to be missed are homemade ice creams such as vanilla bean or coconut.

Go early for best selection; food is prepared fresh daily, and the kitchen usually runs out of some dishes by afternoon's end.

The farm is about 10 minutes outside of San Miguel.

A cheerful bakery-café near San Miguel Chapultepec's art galleries, Deli Lou serves crusty-baguette sandwiches with distinctive toppings (turkey with olives, goat cheese, Camembert, jamón serrano, and the like), plus freshly baked cakes, brownies, and cookies. There's also a small selection of jams, wines, artisanal juices and teas, and other gourmet goodies, plus a variety of espresso drinks.

A modern but tranquil sound track pervades this small, funky, and nonatmospheric sushi joint, which is just the ticket for travelers weary of Mexican food and pricey restaurants that are long on atmosphere but short on yum. For an inexpensive and healthful bento box, choose three, four, or five of the day's salads from the deli case, or have the sushi chef–owner, from Osaka, whip up a spicy tiger or a beautiful rainbow or spider roll. A large table outside in the pedestrian-only street seats larger groups or individuals willing to share their space.

Come early for the best selection of made-fresh-daily deli items.

You'll find this cozy but warmly lit coffeehouse immediately on your left as you enter trendy Mercado del Carmen—it's separate from the main food hall and thus a bit more intimate and peaceful. The menu features an extensive list of espresso and tea drinks, breakfast and lunch fare (from chilaquiles to sandwiches), and pies, cakes, and other sweets.

Sandwiches are a surprisingly uncommon treat in Mexico, prompting local couple Nicole and Robert Ellingwood to meet the need with their gourmet food truck. Located in the Buenos Aires Food Park along with a few other businesses-on-wheels, you can enjoy your “sando” in their shaded yard (stocked with fun yard games for kids young and old) or easily take it to-go.

Fine Italian food can be found at any of the three locations of this well-known local business. Casual attire is expected, with the location in Nuevo Vallarta being somewhat fancier and ideal for either romantic dinners or family reunions.

Sayulita institution Don Pedro's has wonderful pizzas baked in a wood-fire oven, prepared by European-trained chef and co-owner Nicholas Parrillo. Also on the menu are consistently reliable seafood dishes, yummy salade niçoise, and tapenade. The mesquite-grilled filet mignon is just about the best around; it comes with baby vegetables, mashed potatoes, and pita bread. The pretty second-floor dining room, with the better view, is open when the bottom floor fills up, usually during the high season (November to May). During high season they also have dance classes and dancing to Latin tunes, currently on Monday, and live flamenco guitar on Thursday. This is a good spot for breakfast, too.