Mexico City, CDMX, DF, Mexico
Did
we say Mexico City is HUGE? (see earlier
posts).
And
you can find ANY food, in just about any price range.
(Well,
except Linda couldn’t find SPAM for sushi on New Year’s Day, but likely just
because we didn’t know where to find it.)
 |
| Turkeys! |
 |
| Got amazing fresh tuna here |
We
stayed near Mercado de San Juan, which is a famous “gourmet” market. It was
pretty amazing. They had everything. suckling pigs stacked like cordwood, a
deer hanging by its hind legs, every fish known to Mexico. Many edible insects.
Amazing produce. Pinatas AND prosciutto!!! We made many trips back to the cured
meat booth.
 |
| Got your goat! |
 |
| Pigs, lots of em |
 |
| Morels the size of a fist! |
 |
| Los Tacos! Mark's fav |
Mark
is a big tacos el pastor fan…marinated pork cooked “gyros style” with a
pineapple atop the spit, deftly sliced with a wicked sharp knife into tacos at
the speed of light. We probably tried it at 4 different places, Mark’s favorite
being the cheapest actually! Five admittedly small tacos for 38 pesos (less
than $2 USD).
We stopped in at Churreria El Moro, the
famous churros place served with thick hot chocolate sauce…fast service, tasty, and nice tilework on the wall.
Christmas
/ Three Kings Rosca de Reyes cake! This tradition comes from Europe, and is
similar to the New Orleans’ King Cake, but Mexico’s version is better! (sorry!)
Filled with a creamy filling, light and airy cake.We could eat this year
‘round. Three Kings is also when kids get presents, presumably from Da Kings.
In Ajijic, they have 3 king statues which lurk in the central plaza, and slowly creep up (with help) to the creche, arriving on January 6. |
| Naughty Panque de Nata...Yum! |
Panque
de Nata Cream sponge cake: we did a LOT of walking CDMX. And often we passed
this amazing smelling bakery that usually had a line in front of it, a good
sign. Wow, buttery, rich body but not too cloyingly sweet. If you timed it
right, you could get a warm one as soon as it come from the oven. Heavenly.
 |
| Pujol's famous smoky take on street corn...great |
 |
| moles -- joven y viejo |
Pujol is one of the Top100 restaurants in the world!
As most of you know, Linda is a bit food-obsessed and loves to go to creative
restaurants. And this one at Mexico prices! (Take THAT, French Laundry!) Known
for creative, and fusion approaches to traditional Mexican dishes, Pujol was a
very good experience. The service was excellent, the décor high end, simple Danish
60’s modern. Favorite dish: baby corn that was presented in a cloud of smoke in
a calabash shell. Very cool. But the Mole Madre that was about 2000 days old
and the amazing tortillas were highlights, too.
Hilton Hotel bar drinks: Ok, we know. But across from
our apartment was a Hilton with a lobby bar. With lots of gin. Mark misses his
good martinis, so this was a treat! The instructions we gave the barkeep were
for the martini to be “as dry as the Sonoran Desert,” which he thought was
funny. Being a Hilton, they also had a huge Christmas tree in the lobby, which
was nice to see since we were living from our suitcases.
 |
| Mark with tears in his eyes |
Winston Churchill’s: a New Year’s Eve treat for Mark,
Linda made a reservation at an English-themed restaurant known for prime rib
and yorkshire pudding (superb). And an excellent wine list. Mark was giddy. Our
waiter seemed somewhat tickled at how happy Mark was.
 |
| Truffle mountain! |
What other food-related experiences were most memorable?
- The food included in the chile class (see earlier post).
- Christmas Eve “linner” at a Roma’s Sartoria Italian restaurant…Great pasta, with tons of truffle shaved over; excellent wine and cocktails, free bubbly and an extra dessert! (Waddled home, though via a nearby traditional bakery.
A headlamp is a key cooking utensil! Attempting to cook holiday season meals in a kitchen the size of a small walkin closet, and outfitted very sparingly (we helped upgrade equipment a bit, and Linda travels with a chef’s roll of utensils).
We’ve seen a lot of press about Mexico City being a
hot food destination. We would absolutely agree, (and we only really scratched
the surface,) and it doesn’t cost anything near Napa Valley prices!
2018 diciembre / 2019 enero
Glad the eating and drinking were up to par. You can never go wrong with a decent gin drink, too!
ReplyDelete