The Mexico City Food Guide: From Taquerías to Tasting Menus

The mammoth metropolis of Mexico City is a good place to find yourself hungry. Whether it’s a couple of tacos eaten standing on the street or an exquisite course of a Michelin star tasting menu, this city has an almost unrivalled commitment to eating well.

The huge scale of Mexico City, or CDMX as it is known, rewards those who stay longer or make return visits. Making the most of the city’s sprawling food scene takes some organisation and curation. We’re not here to tell you about all the good spots you have to hit but instead, our favourite places worth pushing to the top of your agenda.

The Mexican capital has long attracted food lovers, but in recent years, its gastronomy scene has found space on the international stage.

First, UNESCO gave Mexican cuisine Intangible Cultural Heritage status and then the country joined the Michelin Guide in 2024. Mexico City now has 11 Michelin star restaurants with its top tables Quintonil, Pujol and Rosetta repeatedly appearing in The World’s 50 Best Restaurants in the past few years.

A city where both high and low cuisine excel, the joy of eating your way around CDMX is enjoying the spectacular street food and elevated gastronomy that sit side by side in many of the city’s neighbourhoods. When it comes to this Mexico City food guide, we want to celebrate this diversity at both ends of the spectrum.

Mexico City’s street food culture is a huge part of what makes this city such an exciting place to eat. After all, you can’t understand the food culture of Mexico without partaking in the local ritual of standing streetside for a breakfast tamale or hitting the suadero stand late at night. 

Founded in 1959, this is one of the city’s original tacos al pastor specialists and the place to try this taco classic. While they now have taquerías across the city, the original location by Mercado San Juan is the best one to perch out the front and enjoy a few of these pork tacos topped with spicy green salsa. 

This itty-bitty Roma district hotspot retains a few trad elements (street level, standing room only) but the comparisons stop there because the menu is elevated with complex sweet and sour flavours. Think Eastern spices like star anise, ginger and allspice steering a menu that feels more south-east Asian than Mexican. 

Vegetarians look away, at this 24-hour taquería in the Centro Histórico they are known for their cauldron of meats and not just the typical cuts either. Alongside suadero (a slow-cooked beef brisket), you’ll also find tongue and tripe gracing the menu. Late night is a fun time to swing by when the crowd is lively and the meat has had a chance to simmer for hours. 

At this spot, fluffy, fresh corn tacos come hot and fast to a rowdy, tightly packed crowd of hungry diners who sip craft beers and cluster on the buzzing pavement. It’s all about the duck here and we love the shredded duck with beans and the Thai-style sauce. The covetable high-back bar stools are best for keeping an eye on the crazy quick kitchen chaos.

The fluffiest tamales around sell out fast at this takeaway spot on a quiet street in the Roma neighbourhood. A family-run establishment, they offer savoury and sweet options and some creative combinations. The mushroom with pork never disappoints, or try the fig with cream cheese if you’re craving something sweet. 

At breakfast or lunch, Mexico City’s many covered markets are some of the best ways to experience authentic dishes like a local. Often in these markets you will find fondas, small and family-run restaurants showcasing traditional home-style cooking. The comida corrida, a fixed-price lunch, is always good value. 

One of the city’s oldest and much-loved markets, Mercado de Coyoacán is handy for a late breakfast or lunch before heading to the Frida Kahlo’s house in this suburban neighbourhood. Pull up a plastic stool at one of the handful of spots selling traditional Mexican antojitos (street snacks), and don’t miss the tostadas piled high with ceviche, octopus or chicken tinga. 

This market which serves the Roma and Condesa neighbourhoods is a great place to sample an everyday comida corrida. Join the office workers on their lunchbreak for this set menu which normally includes soup, slow-cooked meat, rice, tortillas, as well as a soft drink and dessert. 

Beyond the street food and market dining, Mexico City has a thriving contemporary gastronomy scene. Shaped by a number of notable chefs including Enrique Olvera at Pujol, Jorge Vallejo at Quintonil, Elena Reygadas at Rosetta and Gabriela Cámara at Contramar, these names have pushed the boundaries in the city and been rewarded with Michelin stars as a result. Now, as the scene evolves, these chefs are opening further restaurants and new names are coming to the fore. 

Gabriela Cámara is best known for redefining Mexican seafood and while Contramar might get the most hype, her sister restaurant in Polanco is equally excellent. With a lovely open-air terrace, the pescado a la talla is the dish to get here, a whole grilled fish split into two halves, one covered with a red chilli adobo and the other with a parsley-based sauce.

Led by chef Luis ‘Lucho’ Martínez, this Michelin star restaurant is one of the new wave of contemporary Mexican restaurants using local ingredients through a global lens. The minimal and intimate space in Roma Norte serves up an eight to nine course menu that spotlights Mexican ingredients treated with Japanese precision. 

An ideal spot for a long, lingering lunch, Botanico’s modern, seasonal cooking is served in a lovely plant-filled patio in Condesa. Alejandra Navarro and Ernesto Hernández are at the helm, working their magic with fresh ingredients and a menu that is constantly changing. 

One of the newer chef-led restaurants in town, this stylish neighbourhood bistro is a more relaxed alternative to the tasting menu-style fine dining but equally delicious. While the Mexican influences are there, it’s not strictly local cuisine but instead led by what seasonal ingredients are available. 

From Norma Listman and Saqib Keval, this restaurant is doing something different with a blend of African, Indian and Mexican cuisines. Reinventing the comida corrida concept (the Mexican fixed-price, three-course lunch menu) from a fine dining perspective, lunch is the meal to book here.

This huge city can be thought of as a collection of villages and each neighbourhood has its own charm and eating options. 

Roma: This walkable neighbourhood is the heart of the contemporary dining scene with a big concentration of Michelin-starred options (think Contramar, Rosetta et al) but also newer chef-led restaurants and a bunch of standout taquerías.

Condesa: Roma’s neighbour, this leafier district moves at a slower pace but is just as notable for food whether it’s a comida corrida at Mercado de Medellín or a long lunch at Botanico.  

Polanco: The city’s most upscale neighbourhood is naturally home to some of the city’s finest dining options including seafood specialists, Entremar.

Centro Histórico: The historic centre and its standout sites are also a good part of town to grab street food with storied taquerías and excellent cantinas. 

As Mexico City becomes such a hotbed for dining, there is fierce competition to secure the popular tables. Most of the time, it is best to book a good few weeks in advance to ensure you get the bookings you want. However, if you want to dine at Pujol or Quintonil it is recommended to book at least two months in advance. 

It’s good to check in advance when bookings open for each restaurant as this can vary between spots. Plus, it’s good to bear in mind that it is easier to get a booking on weekdays or lunchtime than weekend evenings. 

For Maven Collection guests, our concierge service can ensure you get the reservations you want ahead of time. Just contact us once you have booked your villa.

If you want to stay in the heart of the food scene with restaurants on your doorstep and everything pretty much walkable, we recommend basing yourself in Roma, Condesa or Polanco.

You are truly spoiled for choice in terms of design-led Mexico City hotels but some of our favourites include serene Casa Tenue in the heart of Roma Norte, the minimalist six-room Octavia Casa in Condesa and the gorgeous Neocolonial Casa Polanco in Polanco. 

Mexico City is very much a year-round destination and while you can visit any month to enjoy the food scene, there are some times of the year that work particularly well. October through April is the drier, cooler window and the easier one for long lunches on terraces. 

The shoulder season in Mexico City (February to April and October to November) is the natural sweet spot with fewer crowds and easier reservations but restaurants are still at full pace. Having said this, the rainy season from May to September doesn’t mean avoiding the city altogether as the rain tends to only come in the afternoon so much of the food scene isn’t affected.  

There are some key moments in the calendar which bring with them extra appeal. During Día de los Muertos, the huge festival that starts at the end of October, you have the chance to sample seasonal dishes including pan de muerto, a soft, orange-scented sweet bread. Meanwhile, August and September bring the season of Chiles en nogada, a stuffed poblano chilli topped with a creamy walnut sauce which is closely associated with Mexican Independence Day on the 16th September.