6 Best Restaurants in Mexico

Set under a soaring palapa overlooking the rollicking surf, this restaurant above the beach in the Hacienda del Mar Los Cabos blends Asian and Polynesian ingredients with local products for a menu that showcases well-executed Pacific Rim fusion. Seafood-heavy dishes are the specialty. Try the blackened fisherman's option accompanied with Brussels sprouts, or the shrimp papillote (cooked in parchment paper) with squash blossom and laguna negra sauce. For an impressive presentation and fresh flavor, the surf and turf with either shrimp or lobster, comes with almond and habanero butter, creamy spinach, and filet mignon. Also on offer is one of the largest wine selections in all of Mexico with nearly 3,000 bottles, as well as private (and quite impressive) dining in the wine cellar for 10 people. 

Although the seasonings don't seem fully Thai, or Japanese, or Filipino, the dishes from these countries (for example pad thai, edamame or seaweed salad, and pansit) are both healthful and flavorful. The small restaurant—within Portico Hotel Cultural near the Tarascan fountain and the beginning of the aqueduct—gets extra points for fresh, modern decor, hip house music, and attentive waitstaff. Lunch doesn't start here until 2 pm.

It's walking distance to the Contemporary Art Museum and the Bosque de Cuauhtémoc park.

Dishes at this extremely popular pan-Asian restaurant include Thai garlic shrimp, pansit (Filipino stir-fry with pasta), and Singapore-style (lightly battered) crispy fish. The spinach and watercress salad with feta, pecans, and a hibiscus dressing is healthy, refreshing, and perfect for a late lunch (the restaurant opens only after 2 pm). Ceilings are high, and the decor includes dark wood, lacy potted palms, and Indonesian étagères.

Cholula is one of the few places in central Mexico outside of CDMX with some pretty good Asian restaurants, and this cozy, colorfully painted spot in the heart of city center is one of the best. It's known for robustly flavored bowls and soups, including spicy ramen with Mexican longaniza sausage and eggplant sofrito, and Thai ramen with shrimp and a fragrant green curry base. Plenty of tasty sides and appetizers are served, too, like spicy popcorn chicken and kimchi rice.

The name means "unexpected," and—thanks to the international dishes created by executive chef Juan Diego Solombrino—this place is truly a surprise. At breakfast, you can order hangover-healing eggs Benedict, Belgian waffles, or old-fashioned French toast; later, Imprevist pulls out all the stops with a hint of molecular gastronomy in the tuna tartare with lime and sake foam, and the chilled beetroot soup with goat cheese croquettes, truffle oil, and thyme cream. Risotto choices include a seafood number with squid ink and shaved fennel. The fish cooked in parchment is unbelievably moist, and the beef fillet with foie gras mousse practically melts in your mouth. Seating is available at sidewalk tables and in an intimate underground dining room.