Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences
Slide Nr 1Mexican food: it’s almost universally beloved, and yet so hard to find outside of Mexico (and the luckier parts of the US). But it’s not impossible. Here are 20 of the best Mexican restaurants, taquerias and beachside mariscos stands from Mexico City to Melbourne. May your salsas be spicy, your tequila cold and your tortillas made in-house.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 2Copenhagen: Hija de Sanchez – Tacos in Copenhagen? Yes, absolutely, when they come from ex-Noma pastry chef Rosio Sanchéz. Sanchéz serves a rotating selection of tacos at two locations, ranging from the traditional (lengua, carnitas) to her own creations (crispy fish skin with gooseberry salsa).
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 3Houston: Hugo’s – Hugo Ortega’s story is often called the American dream: Born in Mexico City, he worked his way up from dishwasher to open some of Houston’s best Mexican restaurants, and has recently been honoured with a James Beard Award for his efforts. Here, at his namesake restaurant, he specialises in traditional Mexican cuisine with everything made from scratch, in house.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 4Barcelona: Hoja Santa – Hoja Santa is fine dining Mexican from Paco Méndez and Albert Adriá (brother of Ferran), where they take the techniques of Spanish haute cuisine and apply them to Mexican ingredients and flavours. Not feeling fancy? Check out Hoja Santa’s sister restaurant, Niño Viejo, just next door.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 5Ensenada: La Guerrerense – Not just any tostadas. The tostadas. Open since 1960, this tostada stand by the beach truly came into its own thanks to Sabina Bandera (aka La Güerita), her signature salsas, and the finest seafood Baja has to offer. And, according to Anthony Bourdain, it’s among the finest street carts in the world.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 6Puerto Vallarta: El Arrayán – “Notice: This food is not Tex Mex,” declares the website of El Arrayán, and they are not kidding. This is a restaurant that specialises in traditional, regional Mexican food; specialties include duck tostadas, crispy cricket tacos and real-deal cochinita pibil. No wonder it’s regularly called the best Mexican food in Puerto Vallarta.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 7Melbourne: Mamasita – Credited with launching Melbourne’s current infatuation with Mexican food, Mamasita is often called a taqueria. But they do a lot more than that, including shared plates like Chiles en Nogadas and whole fried snapper, as well as the ¡TENGO HAMBRE! 9-course tasting menu (paired with mezcal, if you like).
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 8Madrid: Punto MX – In this fine dining ode to Mexican cuisine, chef Roberto Ruiz develops high-end Mexican tasting menus that have diners raving. They even caught the attention of the Michelin Man: Punto MX currently has one Michelin star.
7/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 9Mexico City: Pujol – Enrique Olvera’s Pujol is, perhaps the most lauded restaurant in Mexico City. Currently ranked #25 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, Pujol recently moved to a new location that allows them to amp up their wood-fired cooking. And if you’re not planning a trip to Mexico, you can catch Olvera’s other restaurants, Cosme and Atla, in New York City.
8/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 10Sydney: Dos Señoritas – Opened by Guadalajaran chef Domingo Medina, Dos Señoritas claims to be Sydney’s sole authentic Mexican restaurant. And while they do indeed serve moles, tamales and hibiscus-flavoured aguas frescas, they are perhaps best known for their selection of burritos.
9/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 11Los Angeles: Broken Spanish – At this bustling hub of Los Angeles’ modern Mexican dining renaissance, chef Ray Garcia explores the food of his Southern California heritage. The food is fresh and interesting, with an inclination towards offbeat ingredients like trompa (pork snort) or snails dressed in stinging nettles. Thankfully, it’s all delicious.
10/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 12Toronto: Torteria San Cosme – Tortas, the overstuffed Mexican sandwiches, are something of a rarity in this part of the world. But owner Arturo Anhalt delivers: the bread is baked locally, and combinations like the salchicha (hot dogs with all the fixings, where the fixings are jalapeno relish and chipotle mayo) and milanesa (breaded chicken with cheese and refried beans) keep Torontonians coming back for more.
11/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 13Mexico City: El Tizoncito – If you’re in Mexico City, you have to eat al pastor tacos (made using spit-grilled shawarma meat brought to Mexico by Lebanese immigrants), and El Tizoncito claims to have invented them. Whether that’s true or not, they’ve been slinging their pork-and-pineapple tacos since 1966, and continue to do so at their incredibly popular locations throughout the city.
12/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 14Austin: Veracruz All-Natural – There are breakfast tacos, and then there are the migas tacos at Veracruz All-Natural. Made by cooking crispy tortilla chips with scrambled eggs, cheese and pico de gallo, these are not to be missed. (Although other menu items, such as the fish tacos, are excellent as well.)
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 15Tulum: Gitano – Get jungle fever for this posh mezcal bar and jungle that is nestled into Tulum’s lush vegetation. Making incredible cocktails – including one actually called Jungle Fever – Gitano serves modern riffs on local favourites like ceviche and whole fish. And as good as the food is, it’s the dreamy outdoor setting you’ll be thinking about long after you go home.
14/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 16San Francisco: La Taqueria – Despite its name, La Taqueria is primarily known for a different dish: burritos. Here, Miguel Jara has been serving his particular style of burrito – no rice, lots of everything else – since the ‘70s. And if you’re feeling it, you can order an “El Dorado” burrito, which gets crisped up on the grill before serving. [Photo: rick/Flickr]
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 17Mexico City: Contramar – Seafood is the name of the game at Contramar, where dishes like raw tuna tostadas and the red and green grilled snapper have taken the city by storm. There’s a bit of a wait, but it’s worth it – if it’s nice out, sit outside and watch fashionable locals stroll past. A must for lunch when you’re in Mexico City.
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 18Los Angeles: Coni’seafood – Another excellent mariscos spot, Coni’seafood is famous for their pescado zarandeado, or grilled snook, which is sold by the pound and takes a solid half hour to prepare. But be sure not to miss other specialties, including fish tacos and pretty much any shrimp preparation under the Mexican sun. [Photo: T.Tseng/Flickr]
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Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 19San Antonio: Ray’s Drive Inn – Every city in Texas is famous for a different kind of Tex-Mex specialty; in San Antonio, it’s puffy tacos. And Ray’s Drive Inn is famous for puffy tacos. Their carne guisada and barbecue iterations, nestled in corn tortillas puffed up from a bath in the deep fryer, are particularly notable.
18/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 20Oaxaca: Casa Oaxaca El Restaurante – Here, chef Alejandro Ruiz plums the fertile flavours of Oaxaca – one of Mexico’s most diverse gastronomic regions – for his take on local cuisine. Bonus? It’s also a hotel, so you won’t have far to go to crash after sampling their extensive mezcal collection.
19/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
Slide Nr 21Seoul: El Pino 323 – Mexican food can be tricky to find throughout Asia, but lucky Seoul has had a bit of a Mexican food boom in recent years. At the forefront is El Pino 323, run by Kim Dong-hwa, who was born in Korea but grew up in Los Angeles. It’s perhaps better called Cal-Mex than traditional Mexican, but the enchiladas are worth your time either way.
20/21
Food
The World’s Top 20 Mexican Dining Experiences.
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