Mexico
Mexico City, Coyoacan, Roma, Condesa, Teotihuacan
Trip 1: From October 15th to 19th, 2022
Day 1
We landed in Mexico City on a Sunday and realized that the whole main drag (Calle Chapultepec) was closed Sunday of every week for the public to go out and use it for exercise. I had never seen a city do that and it was fun to see all groups of people getting exercise together
We went for lunch at Casa de Tono in a cute neighborhood. We knew the wait would be a little longer so we walked around the street while we waited. We ordered everything on the menu and walked out with bellies full.
Took a car to see Coyoacan, but had the driver drop us off at a park nearby so we could work off a little but of our big Mexican lunch. The park was a kind of peaceful park with natural art inside, groups of people meditating, doing yoga, tai chi, and many other peaceful activities. There was a garden co-op there as well.
While walking to the center of Coyoacan, we ended up finding a large nursery [name?] that was selling all kinds of plants and flowers. A lot of the decoration was for Day of the Dead upcoming festivals.
We first spotted the longest line in all of Coyoacan, which was for the Frida Khalo Museum. We did not end up going inside, but promised to come back and give it more time.
We found many mini streets that led into the Mercado Coyoacan, where you can find almost anything under the sun. Again, the theme was Day of the Dead and many people were gathering decor to prep for the celebrations.
Before heading out, we managed to find an esquire’s cart and loaded up on great Mexican streetcars before we headed out to the next spot.
Our first big bar was maybe one of our top favorite bars: Brujas. Themed after brujas (witches), the ambience, the menu, the cocktails, the crew… everything fit the witchcraft theme perfectly. It was a cool spot where many of the local expats came to have a drink and tell a story.
After a long but exciting day, we made it to Pizza Roma where we had some incredible Detroit style pizza. You’ll see us mention Pizza Roma a few more times with each of our Mexico City travel trips.
Day 2
We were determined to get some great local Mexican food, so Max found one of the higher (if not the highest) rated spot in downtown Mexico City, Los Panchos on Miguel Hidalgo Street. You could tell that other tourists had found the spot, but the other restaurant guests were definitely locals and you can tell they’d been going there for years.
We walked after lunch down the Calle Chapultepec and saw all the marigold flowers lining the main busy street. The city had started its transformation process to gear up for Day of the Dead in the streets.
We decided to show up early for a bar reservation we had at Handshake Speakeasy Bar. A smaller bar, but a creative menu that had us ordering some very unique cocktails.
We had reservations at the next spot, but saw that it was pouring rain outside. No rideshare companies were available, or rather, the traffic and rain was so bad that everything was gridlocked. We decided to get a little excercise in and ended up running, yes running to the next bar. It was only about a mile away. We showed up at Baltra, a Galapagos Island inspired bar, and everybody there was definitely on island mentality. It was nice and relaxing, but we only had 2 drinks before our big dinner at Mexico’s most well known restaurant.
Although it wasn’t our first time at Pujol, we were as excited as if it was. We were most looking forward to the smoked baby corns and, of course, the mole. It did not disappoint.
Day 3
The next day we decided to go a bit outside the city and see one of the larger attractions in Mexico City. We had a tour and guide with us to see the temples at Teotihuacan. We spent about 2 hours walking around, learning about the civilization that pre-dates the Aztecs, but has yet to be labeled by historians. This was such a highlight, and learning the history of the temples and the speculation about what was done there was fascinating to hear about.
After about an hour and a half car ride back from the Teotihuacan ruins, we had our driver drop us off at the St. Regis and we walked to lunch at the Ritz Carlton rooftop restaurant, Hakkasan. We had views for days and it was really fun to overlook the Chapultepec park - it’s a lot bigger than you would think!
Next on the bar list was Hanky Panky speakeasy, and we had a little bit of trouble finding it. Our driver dropped us off at the address of the bar, but we couldn’t find anything labeled as the place. After 5 minutes of walking around, considering ordering another car to pick us up, a street vendor made eye contact and asked if we were looking for the bar. With a smile on his face, he pointed to a small looking local cafe that was offering menudo (a spam/hotdof soup) as their “house specialty”. We went into the cafe and asked if they had a drink menu. With that, they escorted us back behind the cafe kitchen and we were in Hanky Panky.
Hanky Panky was very impressive, their menu was the theme of a passport. The staff there had traveled all over the world to the other top 50 bars, learning their cocktails, making friends with their bartenders, and their menu consisted of highlighting cities, bartenders, and beverages from their world tour. It was exciting to see some of the bars we had been to in Italy, England, etc. At the end of their menu, they had a complete Mexico City recommendation guide. We took a picture of it and have listed their recommendations out below. advantage of. See their list below.
After Hanky Panky we made our way to the highest rated bar in Mexico City, Licoreria Limantour. This was probably one of the largest bars we’ve been to that’s on the top bar lists. They were having some kind of industry night event, and the place was crawling with people.
As if we hadn’t had enough, we went back to Pizza Roma for dinner again, like the crazy people that we are.
Trip 2: From November 22 to 24, 2022
Night 1
We made it back to the St. Regis and always love starting our day swimming at their pool they have on top of the hotel. Their gym is quite built out also.
We went back to our favorite pizza place in Mexico, Pizza Roma, to get our (mostly Max’s) fix of pizza. We needed to get a good base of food in before we continued our bar tour.
We first stopped at Tlecan Mezcaleria and were the first ones in the bar. Within 5 minutes, the entire place was packed full of people; locals and tourists. There was some kind of protest or Mexican National Guard procession going on outside the bar and it caused quite a stir.
We had a great time at Tlecan, but the only alcohol on the menu was mezcal. We needed a little variety, so we stopped at Maison Artemisia for a nightcap.
Day 2
The next say Street tacos at recommendation from Hanky Panky: Tacos Hola (or Taqueria Los Parados) on Calle Michoacan in Condesa.
Yes, we had already eaten, but we continued our food tour at a place called Comedor de los Milagros for second lunch. This was during the World Cup, so many people were headed here to watch games, drink cerveza, and try foods from all around the comedor. The comedor had foods from Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Mexico, Costa Rica and more.
It was a long day of walking so we were deserving of a treat. We stopped and ate churros at churreria El Morro in Condesa.
We went into the evening with our first bar stop being at Bar Cafe de Nadie in Roma neighborhood. This was a very cool and hipster bar that had a live DJ playing old vinyl records. It was fun to walk to the shops and food spots next door all inside the Pasaje Commercial El Parian. Highly recommend coming to this artistic area for a walk around.
The last stop of the day was dinner and drinks at Deigo Cocina, and upstairs was Kaito bar. The restaurant is technically Japanese, and we enjoyed it to the fullest.
Day 3
Thanksgiving day we flew to Tecate to spend time with Max’s family in Valle de Guadalupe.
Day 4
Wine tasting at Baron Balche
Lunch Decantos Vinicola
Wine tasting, Bruma Valle de Guadalupe, very hipster, tree in the pond, very cool restaurant just a short walk away
Fauna - a must must must
Multi coursed dinner at Animalon
Day 5
Wine tasting - Clos de tres cantos, very small local place, had our own private seating area, had chocolate pairing with wine
Sunset dinner at Cuatro Cuatros, Bar Bura - very scenic, highly recommend during sunset, right on the edge of the water
Next time we visit, we plan to check out:
Oaxaca
As promised, the list of recommendations from Hanky Panky bar on other places to eat, drink, shop around Mexico City. I send this list to everyone who asks me what to do, as this is the local’s advice.
Bar Recommendations:
Handshake Speakeasy - Great spot, get reservations on open table
https://maps.app.goo.gl/DqQw1gRhMriE96Bq6?g_st=ic
Licorería Limantour - This is a big bar and on a great street that is always going off
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GhajGi2qS5c7KJNQ8?g_st=ic
Hanky Panky Cocktail Bar - Get reservation before. Behind a taco shop, speakeasy style
https://maps.app.goo.gl/bAdAf8Cxxrg9zjbbA?g_st=ic
Tlecan - Great tequila/mezcal bar
https://maps.app.goo.gl/ogCATapRMUsKCVv46?g_st=ic
Xaman Bar
https://maps.app.goo.gl/RFYgwPXHyfBwV6D48?g_st=ic
Ling Ling by Hakkasan - For dinner one night. At the top of the ritz and amazing view
https://maps.app.goo.gl/2A9AbkMnnmeQAaTh8?g_st=ic
Contramar - Great seafood
https://maps.app.goo.gl/DTQtwazRSwwrFQHS6?g_st=ic
Pizza Roma - One of our fave pizza spots in the world
https://maps.app.goo.gl/M1NuWEnNqGT7nWDAA?g_st=ic
Playa Del Carmen
Stay
Belmond Maroma - for quiet, privacy, discretion, an incredible beach
Rosewood Mayacoba - for upbeat, lively, action, scene-y
See/Do
Dive in the cenotes at Zapote
Dive in the cenotes at
C56 ship wreck dive
Dive near Cozumel
Eat/Drink
Zapote Bar in the Rosewood Maycoba