Discover Mexico City’s Incredible Michelin Star Restaurants

Mexico City is known for its culture and history thanks to its many museums, parks, and historic sites. The capital of Mexico also serves up incredible street food such as tacos al pastor. However, Mexico City’s amazing cuisine isn’t limited to street fare. Some of the best restaurants in the world are located in this city.

Mexico received a Michelin Guide in 2024. As of now, there are only seven restaurants in Mexico City with Michelin Stars. However, these seven restaurants aren’t the only ones in Mexico City worth visiting. Today we will dive into the restaurants that have already been distinguished with Michelin Stars, and a few that we believe deserve this honor in the future. (After this article, read about The Mexican Dishes Americans Can’t Get Enough Of .)

Pujol (Two Stars)

Tennyson 133, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, Miguel Hidalgo, 11550 CDMX, Mexico

Chef Enrique Olvera opened this restaurant in the Polanco neighborhood in 2000. It soon rose to become a culinary gem, ranking in the top 15 for Latin America’s best restaurants in 2023. Chef Olvera also won the Flor de Caña Sustainable Restaurant Award in 2020, for his dedication to sustainable restaurant techniques and passion for culinary education.

Today Pujol continues to center its cuisine on three key elements of Mexican culture: corn, seafood, and vegetables. The restaurant’s six-course tasting menu includes dishes such as bluefin tuna fish crudo, braised lamb, and mango sake sorbet. However, it is worth noting that the menu is focused on seasonal ingredients, so they may be offering something different when you visit.

Quintonil (Two Stars)

Av. Isaac Newton 55, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, Miguel Hidalgo, 11560, CDMX, Mexico

Condé Nast Traveler and Food & Wine Magazine have both raved about Quintonil. It is the only restaurant in Mexico City with two Michelin Stars besides Pujol and its dedication to highlighting indigenous Mexican cuisine is next to none. Chef Jorge Vallejo and his wife Alejandra Flores run this incredible spot, which takes its name from an herb native to Oaxaca.

The tasting menu uses seasonal ingredients and is constantly evolving. When you visit, you may find dishes such as melon and tomato salad, braised oxtail, or crème fraîche sorbet with caviar and Melipona honey. Although these exact items may not be available, you won’t be disappointed with what the chef whips up.

Rosetta (One Star)

Colima 166, Roma Norte., Cuauhtémoc, 06700, CDMX, Mexico

Rosetta is without a doubt one of the best restaurants in Mexico City. This restaurant provides a vibrant and unforgettable culinary experience based on a deep respect for Mexican ingredients. Enjoy dishes such as sweet potato tamal with macha sauce and buttermilk or braised short rib and polenta, and finish it all off with poached pears, elderflowers, and tarragon ice cream.

Rosetta’s Chef Elena Reygadas was honored as the “Best Female Chef in the World” by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. This organization oversees a variety of regional awards as well, such as “Best Female Chef in Latin America,” which Reygadas also won in 2014. Reygadas received her training at the French Culinary Institute in New York and opened Rosetta in 2010.

Esquina Común (One Star)

Fernando Montes de Oca 86, Colonia Condesa, Cuauhtémoc, 06140 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Esquina Común is one of the most unique restaurants in Mexico City. This little eatery founded by Chef Ana Dolores González and her partner, Carlos Pérez-Puelles, was first located in the couple’s leased apartment in the Roma neighborhood. After Esquina Común exploded in popularity, the pair relocated their restaurant to the Condesa neighborhood.

Although Esquina Común is now far more well-known, it is hardly less exclusive. Reservations at this hot spot are only available by direct messaging on Instagram. If you do manage to get in, you’ll find a surprisingly relaxed vibe with dishes such as grilled cod in a green mole or masa and plantain tamal de pescado.

Em (One Star)

Tonalá 133, Roma Nte., Cuauhtémoc, 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Born in Veracruz, Chef Lucho Martinez traveled to Nashville and back to Mexico, all the while growing his love of gastronomy. Martinez’s restaurant takes its name from his daughter Emilia and offers a contemporary look at Mexican cuisine, using seasonal ingredients sourced from local small producers.

Experience Em in three ways: the a la carte menu, the tasty menu, or with a place at the chef’s table (by request only). You may encounter dishes such as crispy, carrot buñuelo covered in roe or grilled lobina with savoy cabbage, beurre blanc, and mushrooms.

Sud 777 (One Star)

Blvrd de la Luz 777, Jardines del Pedregal, Álvaro Obregón, 01900 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Sud 777 opened its doors in 2008 in the Pedregal neighborhood of Mexico City. Chef Edgar Núñez leads the culinary team, presiding over a multicourse tasting menu as well as numerous a la carte offerings. Núñez helped Sud 777 earn a spot on Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list for four years in a row. He was also, of course, instrumental in the restaurant gaining Michelin Status.

Sud 777’s Michelin Star could not have been earned without Núñez’s artful dishes. The restaurant’s tasting menu changes in order to offer the best ingredients according to the season and many of these ingredients come straight from the restaurant’s gardens. Vegetables figure prominently on the tasting menu, though meat lovers still have plenty to enjoy.

Taquería El Califa de León (One Star)

This Mexico City restaurant is proof that earning Michelin Status has nothing to do with fancy decor or high prices — it’s all about the food. Taquería El Califa de León is a cash-only restaurant with room for just a few diners to stand at the counter. Food is absolutely the star, especially the Gaonera taco made up of a thinly sliced beef filet seasoned with salt and a bit of lime and served on a corn tortilla. Other meat options include beef steak, pork chop, or beef rib, and don’t forget about their house-made salsa.

Michelin Star Recommendations

Mexico City is one of the newest additions to the Michelin Guide. Due to this, not every noteworthy restaurant in the city has been highlighted by the Michelin Guide yet. These three restaurants might not have a Michelin Star, but they have been praised by publications such as Condé Nast Traveller and may just earn Michelin status someday soon.

El Cardenal

C. de la Palma 23, Centro Histórico de la Cdad. de México, Centro, Cuauhtémoc, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Even if you looked for it, you’d struggle to find a news outlet or online review that didn’t speak highly of El Cardenal. The Washington Post praised this restaurant as “hands down the best breakfast spot since 1969” and Conde Nast Traveller mentioned its escamoles and hot chocolate in their “Guide to Mexico City.”

El Cardenal includes incredible menus for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that dignify and celebrate Mexican cuisine. The first location opened its doors in 1969 in a building that housed the Royal and Pontific University of America. Today it has four locations and is proud to utilize raw and seasonal ingredients. They make their own tortillas, bake their own bread, and produce their own cheeses, offering some of the freshest and tastiest dishes in the city.

Meroma

Colima 150, Roma Nte., Cuauhtémoc, 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Meroma was founded by Chefs Mercedes Bernal and Rodney Cusic, both of whom attended the International Culinary Center in New York. The restaurant opened its doors in 2016 and since then has distinguished itself in the eyes of publications such as Vogue México , GQ, Condé Nast Traveller, and The Washington Post.

Visit the bar on Meroma’s ground floor to get a first taste of the restaurant, with drinks inspired by classics from the golden age of shaker creation, carefully selected wines by the glass, and tasty snacks.

For dinner, enjoy dishes such as grilled butterflied quail, soft-shell blue crab with white rice, and slow-roasted grilled lamb. Finally don’t miss dessert options like condensed goat milk tart and caramelized purple plantain with dark chocolate ganache.

Contramar

Calle de Durango 200, Roma Norte., Cuauhtémoc, 06700, CDMX, Mexico

Contramar has been recommended by Food & Wine and Condé Nast Traveler. It was even mentioned as one of pop singer Dua Lipa’s favorite restaurants in Mexico City, according to Service95 . Chef Gabriela Cámara focuses on seafood as the basis of the menu, using the freshest of ingredients to whip up an incredible array of salads, soups, ceviches, tacos, and handmade pasta.

Don’t forget to try their shrimp or octopus cocktail, indulge in a tasty drink or glass of wine, and finish your meal off with coconut flan or strawberry meringue. Since this restaurant uses fresh ingredients, the menu is subject. Regardless, you won’t be disappointed at Contramar. (Next, check out San Jose’s Culinary Elite: Michelin-Graded Restaurants You Must Visit .)

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