It's All Happening!
Where to Eat & Drink
Criollo
Dine in their Gorgeous Garden Amongst Chickens and Bunnies
Enrique Olvera of Pujol brings his brand of cookery genius to the food city of Oaxaca. The focus at Criollo – open since mid-2016 – is on local and seasonal ingredients to create authentic Oaxaqueña cuisine. The seven-course tasting menu changes daily. Located within a stylish, bohemian UNESCO heritage house, guests enter the courtyard dining room via the kitchen as tortillas are freshly prepared on one of four wood-burning ovens. Comfort food classics include tamale filled with Oaxacan cheese and homemade mole.
Origen
Voted Top 200 Restaurant in All of Mexico
We've had some of the best food we've ever tasted at Origen. Chef Rodolfo Castellanos (Top Chef Mexico Winner) is an expert at producing sharp, clean flavors that complement the dining environment. This city-center townhouse has been turned into a quick lunch restaurant, a cooking-class workshop space, and a formal evening dining space (on the second floor). The food is gourmet, the service is attentive, and the variety of options on the menu will have your mouth watering from the very moment you step in the door.
Los Danzantes
Mouth-Watering Mole in the Chicest Setting (Pictured Above)
Excellent Mexican fusion food in a spectacular architect-designed patio makes Los Danzantes one of Oaxaca’s special dining spots. The hierba santa (Mexican pepperleaf) rolled around two kinds of cheese are a great starter, and the goat's-cheese flan with figs, chocolate, and honey is a perfect dessert.
El Destilado
Known for Their 9 and 12-Course Tasting Menu
They offer a unique and gourmet tasting menu that we loved! They are great at customizing your tasting menu to your dietary needs. Belly up to the bar here and order a Mexican corn whisky, a small-batch mezcal, or one of the innovative cocktails. Or simply go for a local craft beer, which pairs nicely with the outstanding tempura fish tacos.
Tierra del Sol Casa Restaurant
Our Favorite for Breakfast and Cafe de Olla
We always stop here for breakfast on the rooftop terrace. They have delicious fresh pressed juices, scrumptious pastries, and the BEST coffee in the city. Chef Olga Cabrera is the architect of such gastronomic praise, and she achieves it from the knowledge and respect for an ancient cuisine that she inherited from the women of her family and her community, Huajuapan – in the heart of the Mixteca region of Oaxaca.
Ancestral Cocina Tradicional
Delicious Fish Dishes
Beautiful outdoor garden setting - particularly beautiful in the late afternoon/evening. Traditional Oaxacan cuisine aptly brought to modernity by chef Miguel Ángel Mijangos Cruz in a relaxed country atmosphere. Not to be missed: aguachile de tasajo; octopus yellow and ceviche. They also have a delicious hot stone fish soup that is heated tableside.
Casa Oaxaca
Note: Casa Oaxaca is Catering the Wedding
It’s not easy living up to the mantle of Oaxaca's best restaurant, but this place consistently achieves it. A glamorous rooftop terrace, theatrical tableside preparation, a posh cocktail scene, and an array of ravishing dishes – seared tuna, heirloom pepper stuffed with ceviche, duck in black-mole sauce, and grilled octopus among them. Iron your shirt and make a reservation.
Levadura de Olla
Emphasis on Local Vegetables
“All the dishes have the same importance. A soup or a salad is just as important as a meat dish. Everything is sacred, everything is food,” Chef Thalía reflects. The best example is the signature native tomato dish with beetroot puree and cinnamon vinaigrette.
Restaurante Alfonsina
Perfect for the Adventurous Foodies
It isn’t easy to find this magical spot. First, take a taxi to the village of San Juan Bautista la Raya, then turn down a dirt track and look for – a house that looks like every other house on the street. If Oaxaca is the food capital of Mexico, Alfonsina must be one of the best restaurants in the country yet it remains just a handful of tables in the courtyard of chef Jorge León’s childhood home. Book in advance to enjoy five courses based on whatever Jorge has found in Abastos Market that day. Chileate (parsley soup), octopus tacos and shrimp with amaranth leaves are all skilfully cooked, but the real star of the show is his signature moles.
Crudo
Oaxacan-Japanese Fusion
Crudo is an intimate 6-seater restaurant that doesn’t have an a la carte menu. Instead, they do Japanese-inspired omakase with eight mostly seafood-based courses. Omakase is a phrase and concept in Japanese cuisine that means “I’ll leave it up to you”. Leave it up to the chef and what you’ll get is a unique dining experience that combines Oaxacan flavors with Japanese culinary techniques. Herbs, insects, and chiles are presented simply and unadulterated, combined with high-quality seafood, both raw and cooked, as well as with fruit and agave ferments. The entire experience lasts almost two hours, and the vibe is appropriately relaxed and private. It’s also reservation only, so be sure to book ahead.
Los Amantes/ Vaca Marina
Note: We Will be Having our Welcome Party at Vaca Marina
Absolutely beautiful views and delicious, unique food and cocktails! A magnificent place to watch the sunset! Great seafood dishes, like the seafood tlayuda.
Cobarde
Asian-infused Mexican Food
This little patio located by Santo Domingo makes for a very special dining experience. Cobarde is a restaurant focused on inspirational signature food achieving unique flavors through fire cuisine, with gastronomic influences from Eastern Europe and Asia. The menu is always changing based off of the organic produce that is in season.
Boulenc
Great Place to Grab a Pastry To Go
This place is pretty popular so make sure to get there early or you WILL have to wait in line. Their fresh-baked sourdough bread and drool-worthy pastries are definitely a lure, but it’s Boulenc’s menu of French, Italian, and international favorites like their impossibly addictive almond croissants, sourdough pizzas and the shakshouka (poached eggs in a tangy tomato sauce). Open late at night for pizza on weekends.
La Popular
Casual, Delicious Dining Experience
Cheap, quick, boisterous, and – as the name implies – popular, this little corner restaurant with a sideline as an art gallery does a variety of interesting antojitos (Mexican snacks) and other more substantial Oaxacan and Mexican dishes. Trendy it isn’t, which could be something of a relief if you’ve been overdosing in Oaxaca’s rash of hip new mezcalerías (mezcal bars). The soft tacos are good. The mushrooms in garlic are better. Always busy.
La Atoleria
Taste this Traditional Oaxacan Beverage
Inside Tierra del Sol. One of the things that Chef Olga and her team let visitors know is that: “atole, more than a drink, is a food.” However, it is also believed to come from Mayan origin. It is a traditional hot corn and masa-based beverage of Mexican origin. Atole can have different flavors added such as vanilla, cinnamon, and guava. Chocolate atole is known as champurrado or atole.
Mezcaloteca
Mezcal Library
La Mezcaloteca is no ordinary bar in Oaxaca City — it’s an exclusive tasting room offering mezcals that will blow your mind. During the experience, a master mezcalero will guide you through a tasting of either 3 or 5 mezcals (Tip: Choose the 5 mezcal tasting for the best value). Reservations required.
Selva
Voted One of the 50 Best Bars in North America
An absolutely gorgeous bar with delicious cocktails. Selva is an ode to the diversity and richness of local ingredients and Mexican Spirits, it is a journey through the flavors of Oaxaca, its culture, and heritage. An eclectic tasting space with room for conversations and thought-provoking cocktails.
Sabina Sabe
Delicious and Fun Tropical Cocktails
A series of different rooms, with vast amounts of mezcal throughout – what’s not to love? Taking its name from Mazatec medicine woman María Sabina, this bar is a love letter to Mezcal. In addition to neat serves of these exceptional local spirits, the bar team also uses them to create a number of compelling cocktails with an array of Oaxacan ingredients.
La Sentisima Flor de Lupulo
Dan's Favorite Bar for Craft IPAs
A smaller bar with excellent craft beers, as well as a list of cocktails and wines. They also have a cafe connected for some delicious tapas. We would recommend this brewery over Oaxaca Brewing Co.
Bar Ilegal
Dark and Moody Dive Bar with Live Music
Bar Ilegal is a true dive bar experience in the heart of Oaxaca. The bar focuses on mezcal and mezcal cocktails, and there are lots of other spirits and beer to go around. Featuring weekly special events, including live music, it's the place to let go of any and all pretense and tap into your wild side.