Originally, when I used to think of Mexico City, the first thing that would pop into my head was the food. Mexico City has and will always be one of the great foodie destinations of the world, alongside the ranks of Rome, Tokyo, and Paris. This sprawling city has a wide variety of food options from family-owned eateries and street taco stands to Michelin star restaurants that book up weeks in advance. Although I was in Mexico City for only a short time, here is everything I ate and recommend-
Table of Contents
Contramar (11/10 stars)
Our first stop immediately after checking-in to the hotel was Contramar. We tried to make reservations for this Michelin Star seafood restaurant, but discovered there were none available for the next month. Deciding to risk it with a walk-in between lunch and dinner, we were lucky enough to get a spot at the bar. This place was packed with well-dressed individuals, and it’s easy to see why– Contramar has an outstanding 4.9 rating with over 18k reviews. If you want to impress someone with one of the best meals of their life, then you take them to Contramar.
Unsure of what to order since every single item on the menu sounded delectable, a local sitting next to us at the bar who frequented Contramar was nice enough to give us recommendations not only of what to order there, but where else to eat in town during our stay.
We ended up ordering tostadas, ceviche, and fish tacos al pastor. We also had our very first (of many) carajillos on the trip, which is a Mexican version of a espresso martini that is to die for. As far as food goes, Contramar knocked La Cevicherie in Cartagena, Colombia off its pedestal as the best ceviche in the world in my opinion, a feat that I thought was impossible until that moment. And the ceviche wasn’t even the best thing I tried. For me, it was the tostadas. We ordered several variations, but the scallop tostadas blew my mind. It’s worth flying to CDMX just to eat the scallop tostadas at Contramar.
This is my number one restaurant in Mexico City, hands down. I’m not recommending you eat here. I am telling you that you need to eat here. You’ll thank me later.
Bar Felix (10/10 stars)
One of the recommendations from our new friend that we met at Contramar was Bar Felix. He wrote it in my phone under recommendations for “Bars”, but in parenthesis said “Great Pizza”. As we were starting our first night out, we wanted someplace with great drinks and food, so naturally, Bar Felix seemed like our best option.
Bar Felix is a cool place with a front room that looks like a dilapidated building, bathed in red light with a lively back garden sitting area with green lights. When we got there, we were told that there was a wait, but then another waiter noticed us peaking into the red room and got us seats at a bar-like table facing the wall/mirror. The atmosphere was 10/10 on the cool factor. We got more carajillos (when we like something, we like it hard!) and ordered one of the many interesting pizzas on the menu to share (we got one with potatoes on it!).
Once again, I was taken aback. I spent a summer studying abroad in Rome a decade ago and this bar in Mexico City just served me one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. I never expected to be eating pizza in CDMX, let alone a pizza that would make it on my top three pizza list in the world. We were given dry pepper flakes and a spicy oil option to add heat to the pizza. Having a heavy hand, it felt I was on an episode of Hot Ones, and though I was tearing up, I never put down that pizza. It was incredible.
Broka Bistrot (7.5/10 stars)
Broka was our last dinner of the trip. This farm to table restaurant has a charming inner terrace. It’s one of those places where the inside looks like it’s outside. Definitely one of the more “Instagramable” restaurants during our time in CDMX. The menu is a modern take on Mexican food and has items like rabbit, fish quesadillas, and nopales tartar. The food was delightful, but the restaurant really shines when you combine it with the atmosphere and the service. We had a wonderful server who was quite attentive and very pleasant to chat with.
Churrería el Moro (8.5/10)
It would be a literal sin to visit CDMX and not eat a churro. There are several options for churros including street stands, but I thought it would be nice to pay a visit to the oldest churreria in Mexico City. Churrería el Moro‘s original location opened in 1935 and has since grown into a successful chain with locations all over the city. They have a selection of churros, dips, and coffee and chocolate beverages to choose from. I had a simple churro and an iced Mexican chocolate drink. I fear if I lived in Mexico City, I’d gain so much weight from devouring these churros on the daily.
Mi Guerrero Ikal (9/10)
After visiting Casa Azul, aka the Frida Kahlo Museum, we were growing hungry and asked one of the museum workers for recommendations in the area (Coyoacán). She told us about Mi Guerrero Ikal just a 13 minute walk away.
Mi Guerrero Ikal is a fusion between an art gallery and restaurant with beautiful Mexican murals on the concrete walls. The owners Saner, a renowned visual artist, and his wife Lalix, wanted to create a space where they can share their visions and experiences around food and art. The name of the restaurant itself is homage to their son, Ikal.
Mi Guerrero Ikal serves up their take on traditional Mexican food. I got the mole enchiladas which were not only visually stunning, but just as delicious. They offer refreshing non-alcoholic beverages, which are full of flavor like the passion fruit one I got. There are also some items on the menu that you don’t see everyday like Káajal, which is guacamole with grasshoppers in it. The table of two ladies next to us saw us staring at their order of Káajal and they generously offered us to try it. We did, and it was actually pretty good!
Terraza Catedral (Food 7/10, View 20/10!)
Want the best view in all of Mexico City? Then make your way to Terraza Catedral. This rooftop bar and restaurant faces the Metropolitan Cathedral, which started construction over 400 years ago. As you admire this piece of Mexican history, you can sip on delicious (and strong) cocktails and grab a bite to eat as well.
I skipped breakfast and we were well past lunch by the time we arrived so I ordered the massive Molcajete de carnes—a mixed-meat dish that serves two people. Although what I ordered was really good, I couldn’t recommend this place as a restaurant since the other menu options were more skewed towards typical “bar food”.
It does make for a perfect rooftop bar—out of this world views, great cocktails, and the music playlist was as if I myself put it together. I wanted to cry from happiness just sitting at my table, sipping a superb cocktail, feeling the breeze of an oncoming, summer afternoon storm approaching while admiring the magnificent architecture of the Cathedral across the street, thinking, “Man, life is pretty great right now”.
The other highlight of this place was the awesome staff! Our waiter helped us with our little “photo shoot” and went above a beyond to make sure we had a great time at Terraza Catedral.
Panderia Rosetta (7/10)
This little pastry shop was recommended to us by a friend. When we arrived, there was a line out the door, which is always a good sign. Panderia Rosetta has a selection of pastries, savory snacks, and coffee in a cute setting with mostly covered outdoor seating and bar seating indoors. It was a cozy place that made me feel like an autumn evening, even though we were there in July. Very cute and worth a visit if you are nearby!
Street Taco Stands
There isn’t a particular street taco stand I’d recommend over another, but I feel like it’s something that needs to be experienced in CDMX. As with all street food, proceed with caution—if there is a line of people then it should a safe choice since a) it’s clearly popular and b) there is a high turn around, so the food is not sitting out for too long. You’ll find them all over the city, so take your pick! You can and should try different kinds of tacos, but the OG is “al pastor”. If you don’t know what to order and want a guaranteed winner of a taco, go with the al pastor taco.
Recommendations we did not get to on this trip:
With stomachs only so big and us staying for so few days, we ended up not eating at a lot of places, unfortunately. Time simply ran out. That being said, I’ll still include the list of restaurants that the local we befriended at Contramar recommended, so that you can give it a try and let me know what’s a hit or miss for when I go back one day:
- Sartoria (Italian)
- Makan (Singaporean)
- Sushi Iwashi (Omakase)
- Campobaja (Baja Fish Tacos)
- Manque (Breakfast/Chilaquiles)
Useful Tips
Thanks to a little thing called “Montezuma’s Revenge”, a nickname for Traveler’s Diarrhea in Mexico, you have to take a few precautions when dining in Mexico City.
- Avoid tap water at all costs, including ice cubes and home-made popsicles sold from street carts. Ice cubes in beverages in nicer restaurants often use filtered water, but street food stands don’t. Luckily, you can purchase bottled water everywhere.
- Street food is the best way to get to know a country’s authentic cuisine, but can be risky. Like I mentioned earlier, only eat at street food stands with lines, which indicate high turnaround and good quality. Unlike in other Latin American countries, it’s not advisable to eat fresh fruit from street vendors due to the lack of proper hygiene. And, after all, Mexico City is a metropolitan city and not a tropical destination known for its fruit anyways. Food items that need to be cooked are a safer choice since cooking kills off bacteria.
- Taking a probiotic before, during, and after your trip will also help strengthen the good bacteria in your gut.
With a mix of high-end eateries and street food stands, Mexico City is one of the greatest foodie destinations out there. With many of the travel destinations that have been on my list for a long time, I have the tendency to build them up in my mind a little too much. I had sky high expectations going in, and CDMX, thankfully, did not let down. There are so many delicious dining options to choose from and, in the end, there is no wrong choice. Just follow your gut 🙂
