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Águila Y Sol
A modern temple of somewhat stark decor coupled with exciting updated Mexican flavors, Martha Ortiz is something of a culinary goddess in these parts. Start in style by sipping a bandera mexicana, so named because it features the colors in the Mexican flag (green, white and red): three shot glasses filled with oak-barrel aged tequila reposada, — a tomato citrus drink — and lime juice.
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Antigua Hacienda De Tlalpan
The setting is sublime; an 18th-century hacienda tastefully resurrected into one of the city's quintessential colonial-style restaurants. The dining rooms are set around lovely gardens, complete with showy peacocks and a small pond with swans. The menu reads like a novel, with a vast choice including some delectable soups: pumpkin flower, cold avocado, lobster bisque and black bean. Follow this with a fish or spicy meat dish like roast pork loin in a chili sauce.
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Azul Y Oro
Ricardo Muñoz Zurita famously travels throughout the country searching out traditional Mexican dishes which he then re-creates in the kitchen here with delicious results. There are four seasonal menus, special dishes that change monthly, and a daily three-course menu, made affordable for students on a budget, at just around $50 .
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Bar Montejo
A paradise for office workers, Bar Montejo is always jam-packed. Come early and leave late. The constant stream of botanas is one of the best in the city, starting with shrimp soup, continuing with tacos fritos and peaking with paella. But the real treat is cochinita pibil (pork, marinated in chilies, wrapped in banana leaves, and pit-cooked or baked).
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Biko
Co-owned by San Sebastián chef Bruno Oteiza, the menu is based on traditional Basque recipes that have been given the nouvelle treatment, such as tuna steaks served with ham and dried fruits. The dining room is unostentatiously chic and less bleakly minimalist than some top-end restaurants in these parts. There is an adjacent bar with bucket seats, intimate lighting and rooftops views.
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Café de Tacuba
Way before the band there was the restaurant. A fantasy of colored tiles, brass lamps and oil paintings, this mainstay has served antojitos (traditional Mexican snacks or light dishes - literally 'little whims') since 1912. The food is overrated, but the atmosphere is just right for a plate of pambazos (filled rolls fried in chili sauce) or tamales with hot chocolate.
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Cambalache
You can expect a good grilling at this, one of the better steak houses in town. The front window provides a taste of what's to come, with steaks roasting on the spit. The low-ceiling dark wood dining room gets packed with local businessmen during the week dining on a menu that, aside from the steaks, includes sucking pig, mixed grill, veal sweetbreads, fondues and (would you believe) a blessedly digestible watercress salad with a choice of Roquefort or bacon dressing.
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Churrería El Moro
A fine respite from the Eje Central crowds, El Moro manufactures long, slender deep-fried churros (doughnut-like fritters), just made to be dipped in thick hot chocolate. It's a popular late-night spot, perfect for winding down after hours.
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Coox Hanal
Started in 1953 by boxer Raúl Salazar from Mérida, this establishment over a billiard hall prepares Yucatecan fare just as it's done in Don Raúl's hometown. The poc chuc (grilled pork marinated in sour orange juice), papadzules, (tacos stuffed with chopped hard-boiled egg and laced with pumpkin seed sauce) and cochinita pibil (pork, marinated in chilies, wrapped in banana leaves, and pit-cooked or baked) are of a high standard.
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Covadonga
Nicknamed 'Covita,' and the place to see journalists, celebrities and government officials, this is the trendiest cantina in the city. A better reason to visit is the tortilla española .
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Don Keso
This casual, reasonably priced hangout near Parque México has great baguettes and salads, plus an exciting cocktail selection. Crowds rush in for the good-value comida corrida (around $65 ).
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El 91
Lunch is served to piano accompaniment at this triple-decker restaurant-bar - dumbwaiters deliver the food to the top terrace. It offers a different menu daily, with a long list of homemade soups and mains.
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El Bajío
Owner Carmen Titita Hernandez Oropeza (better known as Titita) is one of the best-known and -loved culinary figures in the city. She has written several cookbooks and built a reputation on producing down-home Veracruz-style food. One of five restaurants in the city, this branch has striking folkloric-inspired decor, with one entire wall decorated with colorful woven baskets, another with framed hand-woven fabrics.
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El Borrego Viudo
More than a dozen white-capped men labor over a steaming grill at this busy neighborhood taquería just below the Viaducto freeway. The menu announces the taco variations in sparkly type: suadero (beef), longaniza (sausage), tender tongue, and their specialty, pastor, sliced off a huge cone by the entrance. The tacos are small but substantial, bathed in a potent salsa verde, and are best washed down with a mug of tepache, a pineapple drink fermented in a wood barrel.
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El Califa
This very popular taquería on Condesa's southern edge puts its own spin on the classic Mexican snack, grilling thin slices of beef and tossing them on handmade tortillas. Tables are set with a palette of savory salsas in sturdy clay bowls. Often jammed well past midnight, the place attracts after-hours prowlers in the mood for comfort food.
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El Califa De León
Practically hidden amid the surrounding ambulante activity, this standing-room-only joint is sought out by taco mavens from all over. Unlike at thousands of similar places, the twist here is that the beef is not chopped up but grilled in thin slices. The salsas - chipotle and salsa verde - are exceptional.
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El Cardenal
Possibly the finest place in town for traditional Mexican fare, El Cardenal is a family-run institution frequented by politicians and businessfolk - former Mayor López Obrador used to hold breakfast meetings here. The restaurant occupies three floors of a Parisian-style mansion with a pianist playing in the background. Breakfast is a must: a tray of just-baked sweet rolls and a pitcher of frothy, semi-sweet chocolate are a prelude to eggs, scrambled with chilorio (Sinaloa-spiced minced pork).
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El Charco De Las Ranas
Men in white bonnets work the big, gleaming grill at 'the frog pond,' a modern branch of the renowned taquería located in the southern DF. Aside from the well-crammed tacos al pastor and huge alambres (kebabs of beef, peppers, onions and bacon) - best washed down with an ice-cold horchata - you might try the chicharrón de queso, rolled sheets of crispy fried cheese.
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El Cuadrilátero
Owned by luchador (wrestler) Super Astro, this shrine to lucha libre features a wall of wrestlers' masks, many donated by his ring pals and enemies. Not just wrestlers, but also ordinary denizens of the Centro frequent the joint for its gigantic tortas, versions of which are displayed at the entrance. If you manage to consume a 1.3kg cholesterol-packed Torta Gladiador in 15 minutes, it's free.
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El Farolito
Old-fashioned place with smiley service, a vast outside terrace and a menu including tacos, quesadillas and salads (such as Cesar and Greek) plus, astutely reflecting current cholesterol-obesity concerns, a list of taco 'light' choices, such as chicken breast.
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El Figonero
In the midst of all the trendiness is this little neighborhood place, offering a three-course comida corrida that's a bit more creative than usual. Show up before to avoid the lunchtime rush. There's sidewalk seating or you can squeeze into the crowded little comedor .
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El Generalito
A longtime queer hangout in the Centro, this cozy restaurant opens on pedestrian lane Filomena Mata. Paintings by owner Juan Carlos cover the walls. There's a reasonably priced comida corrida and draft beer.
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El Jardín Del Pulpo
At weekends this timeless classic gets packed out as locals descend on the long shared tables to devour shrimp tacos, fried whole fish, shrimp and oyster cocktails, caldos (broths) and the namesake pulpo en su tinta (octopus cooked in its own ink).
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El Mirador De Chapultepec
Another cantina with a great legend. It is said that Mexican dictator, Porfirio Díaz, used a tunnel that connected the cantina to Chapultepec Castle. If true, he may have journeyed frequently to try huachinango a la veracruzana (red snapper Veracruz-style) or even the criadillas (mountain oysters).
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El Tizoncito
This is a branch of the popular chain that originated in Condesa. The atmosphere is, well, nil - unless you like bright lights and modern diner-style decor, but the place is spotless, the quesadillas and tacos are particularly good (try the taco al pastor filled with spiced slivered pork) and the creamy horchata is heaven in a glass.
