Good morning to our second day in Mexico City! Today is also the day that we would be eating at Pujol. It would literally be our last meal in Mexico City. Our reservations are at 930pm Mexico time. (Yes, I know we only allocated 2 full days for Mexico City and it is definitely not enough. We did not realize there would be so much to do in Mexico City other than eat good eats)! We definitely have to revisit Mexico City with a wholesome itinerary of activities.
But today is going to be street taco day!
First thing in the morning is to get a cup of coffee. We let Vince pick the coffee shop this time and he chose one based on where he would like to buy a bag of coffee beans to try. This place is called Cafe Emir. We also got two hot mochas. Unfortunately, they tasted more bland and mild. Vince liked it but I was really expecting the rich, thick, decadent Mexican chocolate-ness. Vince says the coffee beans (he chose a light roast) had a weird taste.
Then we took a short walk purposely towards a birria taco stand that we saw yesterday while walking to Contramar. We each got a quesabirria. There is cheese in it. We did see consommé but we were standing right in front of the stand while we had the crazy crowds of PRIDE behind us so we didn’t order it. There would be no hands to hold anything! It was crispy and good. I enjoyed eating on the streets while watching them make more. What I noticed and loved about these taco stands is that they commonly use reusable hard plastic (or melamine) plates and wash them after. Great for the environment!!
Afterwards, we walked in circles to find another taco stand. Surprisingly, it was hard to find a taco stand given the PRIDE event and weekend. We finally just decided to go back to the same taco stand we saw last night. The taco stand is open 24/7, but the taco chef changes. Vince and I shared these 5 tacos. Oh man, of all the taco meats, I love tripa!
Look at how delicious, moist and juicy the tripa looks. I am still drooling and craving it. We went to a tripa taco stand in LA this past weekend because I wanted more and it just wasn’t as good as this one. 🙁
Then we went to get churros!
I was going to order a Mexican chocolate but from the description, I opted for the hot Spanish chocolate for the rich, decadent chocolate.
Next stop was to relax and chill at a Top 50 Best Restaurants called Fifty Mils located at the Four Seasons Hotel. Need I say more?
BILLY THE KID. Butter Fat Washed Bulleit, Zubrowka, Caramel Tea, Cinnamon & Saffron Syrup, Lime Juice, Angostura Bitter. (250.00 mxn). This is Vince’s drink. The waiter used a lighter and burnt the wood next to the cup a bit to create a burning, smoking aroma so that whenever Vince dipped his head down to drink his drink, he will get a whiff of it.
LA RUAH Mezcal, Green Tea with Mango Leaf Infusion, Absinthe. (300.00 mxn). I ordered this drink because it was hyped up by a friend as “the best drink ever,” but I thought it was whatever. Not too impressed. There was nothing particularly special about this drink to make it a best drink ever even though I don’t drink cocktails.
CHEESE AND CHARCUTERIE TABLE . Selection of Mexican Cheeses Accompanied by a Portion of Serrano Ham (390.00 mxn). We wanted to try Mexican cheeses! They were very good! Typical charcuterie board.
BUGS BUNNY. Tanqueray Ten, Carrot Juice, Lemongrass Syrup, Lime Juice, Tres Chiles Bitter, Perfumed with Fernet (250.00 mxn). Now THIS drink is THE drink to get! I don’t like carrot juice, but oh my, this carrot cocktail makes me want to gulp the whole drink in one go! It tasted so good. It was just so bright and refreshing. The deep orange color was inviting.
MARCO XII. Macallan 12 infused with Macadamia Nut, Caramelized Nut and Orange Essential Oil with Angostura Bitter (320.00 mxn). Eww I didn’t like this drink. It was like an Old Fashioned.
Right before our Pujol reservations, we also got reservations for Limantour, which is also another World’s 50 Best Bars. As you can see, it was finally raining.. I can finally put my bright green rain boots to use.
DROPLET. Boodles Gin, Aquavit, Elderflower liquer, lime sherbet. Drink to the right is my drink. I ordered it because it has elderflower but it wasn’t as good as Vince’s drink..
BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS. Scotch Johnnie Walker Black infused with peanut butter, banana juice, lemon juice. Drink to the left is Vince’s drink. I also didn’t like it as much because it has banana juice in it. However, I do appreciate the creativity of a “breakfast cocktail.”
Con aceite de oliva. Acompañados de papas chips hechas en casa. / With olive oil. With home made chips potatoes. I saw another table order olives and it reminded me of the comforting warm olives from one of Austin’s bar. They came with these airy chips on the left. There are 3 types of olives and they were delicious.
OAKLAND. Mezcal Ojo de Tigre, Aperol, Punt e Mes, Coffee tincture. This is Vince’s drink because he can drink a lot. I thought it tasted gross and bitter but Vince likes bitter.
Margarita Al Pastor. Patron Silver Tequila, Cointreau, Taco Mix and Lime. Oh now this drink is very interesting and tasty! This drink is inspired by al pastor tacos. You can see that they include taco mix into the drink. It was like a sweet yet savory drink.
Mezcal Stalk. Creyente Mezcal, Cointreau, pineapple Juice, agave honey and rimmed with work salt. This drink was also good! I really liked the sweetness from the pineapple and the agave honey. The smokiness of the Mezcal worked well with the salt.
And now it is the momentous time for Pujol!
You can’t tell from this picture but I loved the ambiance of the restaurant.
I ordered a hot drink apparently that has a wrapping of cinnamon, avocado leaf and avocado seed.
They gave us a starter of baby corn covered with Chicatana ant mayonnaise before we started our meal. I really loved the mayonnaise. It was hard to describe it but it was a light red-orange color that was vibrant. The corn was soft.
This is still a part of the “snacks” portion and it is a tostada with fava beans, radish and hazelnut. The tostada was very thin and crispy. The hazelnut spread was neutral and allowed the beans to shine. Radish was refreshing.
Amberjack ceviche, heart of palm juice, parsnip. First course. You put the amberjack ceviche in the lettuce wrap provided. You can also eat some of it by itself too. The amberjack was very tender and fresh. The ceviche soup was so delicious that I literally drank all of it. So light and refreshing.
Artichoke tamal, kale, cherry tomato. Second course. I finally get a tamale in Mexico City! This tamale has artichoke and it was do light and warm. The texture was very soft and smooth. I enjoyed the contrast of the crispy kale to the juicy, fresh, citrus-y tomato.
Rockfish, mussel, squash huatape, basil, cacahauzintle. Third course. Wow, this rockfish was delicious! It was so tender and flaky. The mussel was surprisingly soft and savory. The nuts and squash added a nice crunch.
Swiss chard wrap, rice, bulgur, chile-ajo, chickpea purée. Fourth course. This felt like a nice vegetarian healthy course. It didn’t do much for me as I was excited for the mole.
Mole madre 2829 days, mole neuvo made with seasonal fruit. Fifth course. Now this is the moment we have been craving for! Even when the waiters brought out our plates, the main waiter even started to speak of this dish as if this was the grandiose moment ever! I loved that on the menu, everything was typed except for the amount of days for the mole was written in black ink. They advise that you try each mole separately first before mixing it altogether to get the different flavors between traditional and new mole.
Mango pineapple, pennyroyal raspado, basil. Sixth course. Dessert round begins! Very creamy, cold and tangy.
CHURRO. Of course Pujol would not just give us only ONE dessert. Here is their delicious twisted version of a churro. Very light, very thin yet airy. It was delicious. Best churro I’ve ever had.
Apple sauce with ice cream purée. The bottom part almost looks like a wafer cookie, but it is actually apple sauce formed and served to look so steadily straight and stiff. The ice cream puree is such a puree white, so smooth and timeless.
Goat cheese caramel tulle. Complimentary birthday dessert for Vince again! It was so delicious.. The goat cheese pastry underneath was very lightly savory. There is a lot of flavor. There is a variety of fun textural elements.
Overall, the experience at Pujol was amazing. It is definitely a restaurant worth visiting. For the price of approximately $130 USD per person, this is such a rare affordable opportunity for being #9 in the world as of 2021. Vince says this is definitely a re-visit for him. The mole is unforgettable.
And that concludes the bulk of our Mexico City trip. We finished our meal at around midnight and we have a 9am flight the next morning, which we have to wake up extra early for because we couldn’t check in online to get our boarding tickets. We are excited to visit some Priority Pass lounges tomorrow morning though because Mexico City International Airport has 4-5 lounges!!
