mmm-yoso!!!

Tequila Part 3 - Chocolate and Tequila Tasting at La Rojena, Fonda Chivo y Vaca, and the Sky Bar (Hotel Solar de las Animas)

**** Here's part 3 of my mostly photo posts on our stay in Tequila

We started our last full day in Tequila, with a birote as I noted in my previous post. We wandered around a bit before heading to a tour and tasting I scheduled. We were in Tequila and it would be almost sacrilegious to not visit the oldest Tequila distillery, right? And to make things more entertaining for the Missus, I decided to do the chocolate and tequila tasting as well.

This would take place at Jose Cuervo's Fabrica la Rojena distillery. I mentioned that Jose Antonio Cuervo was the first person granted permission to produce Tequila for sale in an earlier post. Fabrica la Rojena, the distillery was established in 1812, making it the oldest active distillery in Latin America.

Finding the place was easy.....it's located on, you guessed it, Calle Jose Cuervo. The view up that street is quite lovely.

We met in front of the Mundo Cuervo Hall, where that giant crow statue stands and were soon guided on a tour of the place.

Making it to the back of the distillery where we got to see the "pina", the heart of the agave plants being delivered and prepped.

Like the previous day, it was getting pretty darn warm....this is hard work.

I had worried that doing tequila distillery tours two days in a row might lead to a lot of overlap; but to our extreme pleasure, what we learned here actually added to what we had learned the previous day. We got to be much more close up to things as well.

And there were actual displays along the way as well. I didn't know that American Oak barrels were used for Reposado and Anejo aging.

After the tour, the Missus and I met up with the nice young man who guided us thru our tasting which the Missus truly enjoyed.

What I most enjoyed was chatting with him about his life; he was born in Glendale and his family moved back to Jalisco and Tequila when he was 10 years old. Can you imagine how being seprated from your friends at that age must be? And he was more comfortable speaking English at that time. He also liked that we enjoyed the varied tastes of Blanco. And then we asked him about the new Cristalino Tequila; where Anejo is passed thru a filtering process, making it clear, and taking it back to almost being a Blanco....but charging a person even more than a Anejo? He laughed and said it's kind of a hipster thing right now.....'nuff said.

We enjoyed our tour and tasting at La Rojena.

When we were done; it was...well time for lunch. We just wanted something simple and hearty. And yes, we were in Jalisco; so Birria de Chivo was high on our list. And there was a place named Fonda Chivo y Vaca close by!

Turns out it was a three story restaurant with views of the street. We were seated on the ground floor.

Of course we got some Birria de Chivo and also Carne en su Jugo.

The Carne en su Jugo had a very upfront acidity, which was interesting.....the beans were so earthy and perfectly cooked.

The Birria de Chivo was slightly gamy; nice smokey flavors, a bit of spice.

The meat was on the chewier side. Definitely not like Birriería Las 9 Esquinas, but miles ahead of what we have here in San Diego.

Fonda Chivo y Vaca
Jesús Rodríguez de Hijar 17
Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

On this day, we actually managed a nice siesta........

And then we woke and took a nice stroll. On an interesting note, we saw the really nice young man who did our chocolate pairing at La Rojena in the lobby of the hotel talking to the staff. Apparently, Jose Cuervo owns Hotel Solar de las Animas!

As the evening rolled around we took a nice stroll. This was a Thursday and the hotel was getting busier. As we strolled around Plaza Principal we could see the families doing there "evening thing".

We looked for a spot to have a seat and just take in the evening, but it was busy. It was then we saw a couple waving to us, they moved over on a bench and beckoned us over so we could enjoy the sights and sounds. These are the moments that make travel so special!

When dinner time came around; we just decided to head back to the hotel. On our first evening in the town, we enjoyed having a drink at the Sky Bar at our hotel. We also noticed that they had an abbreviated menu of  La Antigua Casona, the very popular restaurant in the hotel. So, we just decided to have our last dinner there. 

With a nice view of the town.

The Aguachile Negro and Jicama was just as good as what we'd had in the restaurant.

The Ceviche less so; but overall this was a nice, light meal.

Sky Bar (in Hotel Solar de las Animas)
Calle Albino Rojas #14
46400 Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

And of course, our room with the amazing view was just a minute away.

The next morning, we woke a bit earlier than usual and took a stroll around town before our ride to the airport.

We were indeed taken be the art, the colors.....the Tequila.....but there was more that made our stay wonderful.

It was the warm people....and the pooches.....

That had us contemplating as I got that Birote yet again.....

That we'd return once again, in the middle of the week to enjoy Tequila...both the town and the drink!

Tequila Part 1 - La Antigua Casona and Hotel Solar de las Animas

I'm catching things up on our trip to Jalisco. Basically doing a "Clearing Out the Memory Card"  and mainly posting photos as it brings back some nice memories. I'm dividing this visit into 3 parts.

We had an awesome driver who was quite prompt and made the hour and a half drive from Guadalajara to Tequila a breeze. Why Tequila? Well, personally, I enjoy my Mezcal. Meanwhile, the Missus enjoys Tequila more. We had already visited Oaxaca so the Missus requested equal time for Tequila. So, I went ahead and booked us three nights in the town. I was told that we should just do the Tequila Express from Guadalajara to Casa Sauza and more or less to a day trip. I thought spending a few nights in one of the Pueblos Mágicos would be fun.

We knew we were getting close to Tequila when we started passing all the fields of Blue Agave.

We were dropped off at our accommodation; the Hotel Solar de Animas, which turned out to be a fantastic choice as it was centrally located, had beautiful gardens, a restaurant, two bars. The place was super quiet.....I was told that during the middle of the week Tequila is more mellow. And we ended up with a top floor room in one of the towers.

With a small patio and awesome views.

And most importantly, a potent A/C, since the temperature was no joke!

After settling in, we decided to take a stroll. First exploring the hotel grounds.

The center of town is basically around the corner from the hotel.

We quickly noticed all of the artwork. This one is in the Edificio Municipal, basically the city hall.

Which stands across from the Plaza Principal...the main square with even more lovely public art.

Much of which feature the all important Jimador.

Right across the street is this lovely church; the Parroquia Santiago Apostol.

Here's a bit more info on it.

The street that bisects Plaza Principal and the Municipal Building is named Jose Cuevo....you know why, right? We had a tour lined up for Jose Cuervo and Fábrica La Rojeña on our last full day of our stay, so we just took a quick look.

The name of that sculpture is named "Cuervo", by artist Carlos Terrés. Why the crow you may ask. Well, Jose Antonio Cuervo was the first person granted permission to produce Tequila for sale by King Charles IV of Spain in 1795. And the crow adorned those bottles and has become the symbol of Jose Cuervo.

Also just a block away is the Municipal Market which is full of stalls and eateries, but the place was closing up for the day.

It was pretty darn hot out.

So we decided on taking a break in the air conditioned comfort of our room.

We also decided on an early dinner. The restaurant in the hotel La Antigua Casona, "The Old Mansion" seemed to be highly rated, so we decided on having an early dinner there.

Even though the dining area is located in a patio/courtyard area, it is protected from the direct rays of the sun, making it quite comfortable.

And a nice cocktail; this is called the Afortunado does help things out.

We ordered a bunch of smaller dishes and a salad. Strangely, our favorite item was the simple jicama. With the nice salsa rojo, it was so refreshing. Tied for second would be the rather refreshing Aguachile Negro and the Soft Shelled Crab Tacos which was fried perfectly.

The Barbacoa Flautas were nicely put together, but the barbacoa lacked the savory-spice we enjoy. It seemed a bit dumbed down.

The House Salad was fine, but nothing special.

Service was superb, as would be expected. 

La Antigua Casona (in Hotel Solar de las Animas)
Calle Albino Rojas #14
46400 Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

We took our typical after dinner stroll. Thru Plaza Principal.

Right across form Parroquia Santiago Apostol is this.

It's the Capilla del Antiguo Hospital de Indios. Built in the 16th Century by Franciscan Monks, the hospital served the local indigenous people who were ravaged by the diseases brought by the Conquistadores. The red finish was part of a redesign that took place in the 1940's.

After this, we decided to do more of an extensive walk, so headed down Calle Juarez, which turns to Hidalgo, all the way down to Toluca. Heading toward Toluca gives you a more realistic view of the town.

Though Toluca has quite a few hotels on it.

It was fun checking out all the well behaved pooches.

We headed back to the hotel via Calle Leandro Valle because there was a statue I had wanted to see. Near the corner of Calle Francisco I. Madero and General Atreaga stands this statue.

It is of the Goddess Mayahuel, the goddess of the Maguey (Agave) plant.

From here we headed on back to our hotel. While walking past Parroquia Santiago Apostol, this pooch came rushing toward us. I wasn't sure what was going on. But as soon as she got to us, she rolled over......she just wanted some belly rubs! 

Her owner came rushing over to apologize, but we used our poor Spanish and hand signs to indicate that we loved it!

It was still pretty warm when we got back to the hotel.

I had read that the hotel had a "Sky Bar" with a nice view; so we decided to check it out. It was quite relaxed and lovely. 

And the view was nice as well.

We relaxed. The Missus had a Margarita; I got myself a beer.

We noticed that there was an abbreviated menu of La Antigua Casona available. It had our favorite dishes from that meal, so we'd end up having dinner here on our last evening.

It was lovely way to end the day.

And I had a lovely view as I typed away on my laptop.....

The hustle and bustle of city life seemed galaxies away.

Thanks for stopping by!

Guadalajara - Tikuun Comedor Local

I thought that this post was already done, but was mistaken. I'm so behind on travel posts, but just wanted to make sure to get this one done as it was our favorite meal in Guadalajara. 

After a nice, busy day of exploring Centro Historico, we took a nice break. When it came time for our last meal, I went with a place that no less then five people, all locals recommended to us. A place located in our favorite neighborhood; Colonia Americana, which I briefly mentioned here.

The restaurant was described as Modern, yet very Mexican, relaxed, with an interesting menu. Tikuun Comedor Local. The restaurant was located near the University, closer to the Northeastern side of the district.

The restaurant had a nice outdoor patio area overlooking the quiet street, so we decided to dine there. The service was quite friendly, though it got a bit slower as customers started coming in. It's quite a popular place.

The menu featured traditional Mexican cuisine with international touches. Which can sometimes really disrupt the soul and key flavors of dishes. Here at Tikuun it seemed to work well in most cases.

I stuck with a couple of cervezas with dinner and the Missus enjoyed the house win here.

As we will often do; we went with a meal of all starters as those dishes seemed the most interesting to us. Like the Pellizcadas de Chicharron de Pork Belly.

For those not familiar with Pellizcadas; it's masa based, sort of like a sope; though I believe these have the "boundary edges" like a like Picaditas. The maize tones came out so clearly; as did the porkiness. The black beans "grounded" the dish which had a bit of acidic heat. This was out favorite dish of the evening.

The Sea Bass Aguachile with Katsuobushi was a nice dish.

While we initially had doubts about the freshness of the fish; this was wonderfully fresh. The brightness of the marinade went quite well with the uber-savory, umami katsuobushi. Nice amount of spice in this one as well.

Of course, we couldn't resist ordering the Sweetbreads; even though it was prepared with Ssamjang!

While the sauce was a bit much for the dish, the pickled onions and radishes were essential in balancing things out. Still, the buttery texture of the sweetbreads contrasted nicely with the greens and veggies. The addition of the spicy-fermented-savory Ssamjang and the Chiltepin chilies made for an interesting heat. The blue corn tortillas were really good as well.

The Scallops were so sweet, tender, and briny.

The firm, nutty-earthy fava beans added an interesting texture and a nice layer of flavor. Good acidity as well. The gremolata had peppermint in it which kind of rendered pungent tones out of the equation.

As you can see; this was an interesting dinner, which we really enjoyed. The sometimes novel combinations worked more often then not. And heck, if Tikuun were here in San Diego we'd be eating here every once in a while.

Tikuun Comedor Local
Calle Emeterio Robles Gil 50
Americana, 44600 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

Well, we had really enjoyed our time in Guadalajara and really can't wait to return!

Yes, there are places that seem a bit on the "gritty" side.....

But folks were so warm, kind, and welcoming. We took a short walk after dinner. We started noticing some interesting places.....

As we walked thru Parque Revolucion; instead of heading back to the hotel, we headed north a bit up Calz del Federalismo. This busy district was again a total change from the other neighborhoods we'd visited on this stay. Which made sense since the metropolitan area of the city is home to over 5 million.

This had been such a fun stay!

We can't wait to return. But on this trip, our next stop was Tequila, the town, not the drink. Though we'd have our share of that as well!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Guadalajara - Birria de Chivo from Birriería Las 9 Esquinas and a Walk Around Centro Historico

After our Food Tour of Santa Tere, we headed on back to the hotel and had a short nap time. After waking and freshening up, we decided to head on out for dinner. I had a place in mind, one that had been recommended to me, by no less than three folks with Tapatio heritage. In case you didn't know, a Tapatio is what you call a person from the city of Guadalajara. In trying to figure out why; well, I came across several different "stories", but thought that this article was the most informative. 

It was still early, so in spite of the hot weather, we decided to take the "long way" to dinner, strolling thru Centro Historico. We had a private walking tour of the city scheduled for the next morning, but thought it might be fun to get a preview.

Being that the city was established in 1532 and founded in 1542, declared as the capital of Nueva Galicia, there's a lot of history here. And the diverse architecture illustrates the changes. We heard that Guadalajara is called the "Florence of Mexico" from several sources during our stay.

 Instead of heading straight down Avenida Juarez, the main drag, we strolled down Calle José María Morelos and of course we passed a couple of churches. This one caught our attention because it was open for visitors, so we decided to take a look.

According to the signage, this is Parroquia Santa Teresa de Jesús, which started it's existence as a convent. Construction on the structure was started in 1690 and completed in 1720. At the time of it's completion, this was considered the edge of the city!

According to Wikipedia, the convent was converted and sold to the Archdiocese of Guadalajara in 1977 and is now in service as a Catholic Church.

Just a few blocks down is the bustling Plaza Guadalajara, one of the four plazas that surround the Cathedral.

There are also several fountains in the plazas. This one is Fuente de Guadalajara, in other words, "Guadalajara Fountain".

It's really popular with the kids! 

We knew that the Cathedral would be part of the tour the following day so we took a left and quickly noticed a Rotunda.

  Looking at my Google Maps, I identified this as the Rotonda de los Jaliscienses Ilustres (Rotunda of the Illustrious Jaliscienses). The actual name I saw in my Google Maps was Rotonda de los Hombres Ilustres which is literally translated to "Rotunda of Illustrious Men". Which is a monument to those who have made Jalisco what it is today. There are 98 niches to house urns of those prominent figures. And 22 statues surround the monument. I quickly saw a statue of a woman, and would find out that the addition of Rita Perez de Moreno and Irene Robledo García would hasten a name change from our guide Diego the next day. 

Past the Rotunda, we saw a nice walkway and after a couple of blocks came across this charming looking Carousel.

  Guadalajara, at least what we saw of it seemed like a nice family friendly city. This is the Carrusel Monumental de Guadalajara.

And right past the carousel was yet another temple.

This is the Temple San José de Gracia, which was completed in 1890. It has an interesting story which you can read by clicking on the link.

By now, we were getting hungry, and our destination for dinner meant another 15-20 minute walk south. Past the plazas and the lively streets. 

We strolled past a very busy location of Liverpool, a popular department store chain, before finding ourselves in a nice plaza.

This is Plaza De Las 9 Esquinas. It is surrounded by restaurants, including several birria shops. You know us and birria de chivo, right? Well, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, there was one restaurant that came highly recommended. And the name was easy to remember as it is the namesake restaurant here; Las 9 Esquinas.

We had arrived at about 530 and the place wasn't too busy. It would eventually fill up with families.

The service was very warm and friendly and we could watch the women making tortillas, salsas, and guac.

Well, of course we were going to get Birria de Chivo; we got a small order and the Missus wanted to try the Quesadillas and got one each of the Huitlacoche, Champinones, and Flor de Calabasa.

Loved the salsas. The salsa rojo to the left was super smoky and spicy! 

And the beans were lovely; earthy - nutty, with just the right amount of salt.

Nice a creamy as well.

The Quesadillas were fine. The huitlacoche (corn smut) was fabulous, mushroomy-earthy-sweet, with a touch of "truffleishisness".

After tasting that, the mushroom version seemed quite weak, though the flor de calabasa (squash blossom) had a mild earthy-nutty-sweetness. The cheese was so stringy and paired well with the huitlacoche adding a mild milkiness.

And of course the Birria de Chivo.

    What to say about this? The meat was on the toothsome side, but the goat was oh so gamy; flavor of the pasture indeed. There was a nice goaty-smokiness to the broth which had a lightly rich tongue feel without being greasy at all. For some reason, those pickled onions were just amazing with this. The freshly made tortillas were hardy and up to the task. By far the best birria de chivo we've ever had.

We really enjoyed our meal here.

Funny thing, when I got back to the office, I spoke to one of the managers of another group who asked me where we travelled to. I told him CDMX, Guadalajara, and Tequila. He told me his family is from Guadalajara and I should have asked him for some recommendations. He said there's a birria place they always go to when visiting family....guess where it  was? Yep, Las 9 Esquinas! I guess we made a good choice!

Birriería Las 9 Esquinas
Calle Colón 384
Zona Centro, 44100 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

It was still pretty darn hot as we walked back to the hotel. I went and got my phone out and took a look at the temperature. Sheesh!

Still, having that birria de chivo made it worth dealing with the heat!

Thanks for stopping by!

Guadalajara - A Food Tour of Barrio Santa Tere

There were so many iconic dishes from Jalisco, that doing a food tour, which we'd done with great success in Oaxaca and even CDMX, seemed like a no brainer. So, I went ahead and booked the small group Gastronomic Tour of Santa Tere. It seemed like it would tick all the boxes, we'd learn so much about barbacoa, birria, tortas ahogadas, stuff that had become quite popular in San Diego over the last few years.

The area, Santa Tere (Santa Teresita) is still known as being "working class", yet is but a 30 minute walk away from where we were staying. We were looking forward to tales and history of the items we'd be trying. Unfortunately, the tour guide was a very nice young lady, whose basic duty was just leading us to various eating establishments and ordering food for us.

Still, it was an interesting introduction to local places in the city.

We met a block away from the Mercado and were led into the market.

And this stand; Fonda Mariquita which was super busy.

We were told that it's all about the quesadillas with green sauce here. So, we asked for the version with nopales con huevo. Very tangy salsa verde.

The tortilla was thick and quite crisp, almost like an empanada. The milky queso helped to quell the puckery and tangy salsa verde.

Fonda Mariquita (In Mercado Santa Tere)
Calle Andrés Terán 523
Santa Teresita, 44200 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then stepped out of the Mercado and across the street to this place.

I was quite thrilled; after all Jalisco is the home of Birria and of course, I love birria de chivo.

The folks here were so friendly, our guide ordered us birria de chivo which was quite good; gamey, nice spice, the broth was rich and flavorful, nice smokiness. 

This might have been the best we'd had....but there was a place we headed to for dinner that was even better!

Still, birria de chivo, better than anything I've ever had in San Diego.

And the service was wonderful!

Birriería La Victoria
Calle Manuel Acuña 1511
Villaseñor, 44200 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then headed back around the Mercado.

And we were brought to this storefront.

Which cracked us up. That whole modern looking area is just seating. Everything really happens here.

To the left of the "dining area" is where the tacos for Tacos Juan are put together.

Of course, being on this tour meant we'd just have a seat......

Man, those caramelized onions and charred peppers were so good.

The actual grilled queso and tortillas for the barbacoa tacos dorados were fabulous.

It actually outshone the barbacoa....which almost seemed like an accessory. That texture; the corn and cheesiness.

Tacos Juan Santa Teresita
Calle José Clemente Orozco 465
Santa Teresita, 44600 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then headed back thru the Mercado.

And made a stop for agua frecas....sorry, was having too much fun and didn't take a photo.

Our last stop was for something I'd been wanting to try in Jalisco.

Tortas Ahogadas are a way of life here. And this shop...again, the food is prepped outdoors and there is indoor seating, seemed like just what we wanted.

The line made it seem so promising. Here's where having to just find a table and not order made things easy for us.

Man ,these guys work hard!

So, when we were asked how spicy, we told the young lady that we love spicy, we've had some pretty spicy tortas ahogadas here is San Diego. 

But, I think they went easy on us. The Birote (bread) was outstanding, yeasty, almost like a good sourdough, the meat tender, the sauce had a nice level of acidity, but was not very spicy.

I think they might have gone easy on us.

Tortas Ahogadas El Profe Jimenez
Calle Andrés Terán 841
Villaseñor, 44600 Guadalajara, Jal., Mexico

In the end, while I wish the "tour" was more than someone taking us to places and ordering....I really can't recommend this, it was nice to have the variety and exposure to dishes we'd had many times in the past.

Guadalajara - Dinner at Restaurante Allium and Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)

Our flight from Mexico City to Guadalajara International Airport was right on time. Our driver was on time and the drive to our hotel; the Hotel Portobelo took about 30 minutes and was uneventful. The hotel is large, modern, and close to Zona Centro and all the historical sights. It is also right across the street from Parque Revolucion, which I found out is more commonly known as Parque Rojo, the Red Park to locals. Our flight had arrived at 1130 and it was just after noon when we arrived at the hotel. Check-in time was 3pm, so we decided to stow our luggage and go for a stroll. Lucky for us; there's a huge flea market, called Tianguis del Parque Rojo that occurs on Saturday.

And we spent a good amount of time exploring.

There was just about everything under the sun available here.

Something we soon noticed. Folks were quite friendly here, people would smile at us, wave us forward, we were the only Asians in sight, so I'm sure we stood out.

Soon we came across a food stall named Antojitos Sanchez. Folks seemed to be enjoying their meal, so we decided to give it a try.

One of the young men eating spoke perfect English and told us to sit next to him....folks actually moved over for us, in case we needed some help. Like I said, great people.

The Missus got a coconut agua fresca, which She loved so much and chugged down in like a minute! We ordered a second one!

We ordered tacos. The chicharron....the young man was surprised we ordered that, was so tender and full of flavor.

The fatty portions and meat basically melted in your mouth! Such porky goodness, we didn't want to spoil the flavors by adding anything....we just wanted to "pig out" if you know what I mean.

We got the quesabirria tacos. The tortillas were very good and the cheese had been expertly melted and were so crisp!

The birria was fairly mild in flavor, though quite tender. For us, this was mostly about the wonderful texture.

The folks working were just plain wonderful; as was the young man who volunteered to help us! This was such a nice start to our visit here!

Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)
Americana, 44160 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Market on Saturdays

We headed back across the street to the hotel. It was getting pretty hot and we thought we'd just wait in the air conditioned lobby of the hotel. Luckily, our room was ready early and we settled in.

As for dinner; well, it was going to be the total opposite of lunch. I had made reservations at Restaurante Allium which I had read about being a champion of local products and possibly the best restaurant in the city. To make things interesting, the restaurant was 5 kilometers (like 3 miles) away from Hotel Portobelo and we decided to walk, which was quite interesting.

Anyway, we made it to the location, which seemed to be an upscale business district with many high rises.

The restaurant is set-up in a modern, somewhat minimalistic style, with a visible kitchen. The service is warm and professional, it seems to be the place where the business elites come to eat.

Things started with an amuse sort of a aguachile bite, which was nice and refreshing.

There's only three wines by the glass, none of it from Mx, but the Missus though it fine.

And various salsas and butter are kindly provided.

We ended up ordering two appetizers and two entrees.

First to arrive was the Octopus Carpaccio.

As we would find with the other dishes, there's a lot going on here. From "tomato overload", both fresh and sun dried tomatoes, to an interesting flavor that seemed like dashi, which I later found was Katsuobushi, there was nice acidity, the avocado was nice and buttery, and the octopus very tender. The sourdough bread was a bit over-toasted, but still retained a nice balance.

The other appetizer we ordered was the Seabass Ceviche.

There was a bit too much going on here, though the texture of the fish was wonderful, it was overshadowed by all the acidity in the dish.

The Missus ordered the Lamb as Her main.

My goodness, those asparagus tips were amazing, so sweet and tender. The lamb shoulder was fine, a bit tough, we wished it was a bit more gamey, the dish gravitated to the sweeter end of the flavor spectrum.

I got the Pork Belly.

Once again, the produce was so good, those green beans had a nice, slightly sweet-chlrophyllic flavor. The frisee added a much needed balance to the sweet sauce. The pork belly was tender, but I wish there was more porcine flavor and less sweetness to the dish.

In the end, this was an interesting dining experience, the staff were so professional, yet warm and friendly.

Restaurante Allium
Avenida Providencia 2411, Plaza Leben Providencia
Guadalajara, Jalisco, México

We decided to catch an Uber back to the hotel. It had been an interesting day. Such diversity between our first two meals in the city. And yet there was one thing that seemed universal; the kindness and smiles of the folks here!

Thanks for stopping by!

Mexico City - Mora Mora (La Condesa) and a Journey thru La Merced

After spending a busy day exploring and eating in Centro Historico we spent some time exploring La Condesa. This is the area in which we've stayed in since our very first trip back in 2019. And this was our fifth time visiting since then! We've noticed quite a few changes since that first visit. The one biggest thing, which I noted during our previous visit was the large number of ex-pats. And there seemed to be even more this time around.

On Avenida Amsterdam we passed this interesting shop.

It looked like a natural foods/vegan/vegetarian shop, with a coffee bar and restaurant. It seemed quite popular.

The Missus was particularly interested in the Mushroom Coffee, something which She buys on occasion back home.

They even have funky "swings" to eat and drink on in the dining area.

Mora Mora
Ámsterdam 171
Colonia Condesa, Cuauhtémoc, 06100 Ciudad de México, Mexico

The next day, we had a nice, light breakfast at Red Tree House, we both knew that we'd be eating a bit during the day because I'd booked a small group tour of Mercado la Merced. I had read that the market, the largest in CDMX is large, vast, and confusing, thus I booked a small group tour. Our "small group" consisted of one other couple, who both claimed Mexican ancestry and were from El Paso. Our guide was Yimnah, who is a former chef. 

After introductions we were off. First thing we noticed was how crowded things were.

Traffic here was crazy and to be frank, kinda scary. Yimnah actually used the assistance of one of the guys who help folks cross the street, for a tip of course.

We passed the flower market on the way in.

Once in the sprawling and confusing market, Yimnah directed us past all of the booths to this one.

Hmmm.....that logo seems familiar? This is Tacos McTeo. You gotta love it.

And the specialty tacos have....well, you guessed it, papas fritas on them. We got a very delici-yoso taco with cesina. Them "golden arches" ain't got nothin' on this place.

Though I'm wondering if a "cease and desist" might be around the corner.....

During our next pause Yimnah expounded on the glories of what she described as a specialty of CDMX; the fried tamal. We got a nopales-queso version. We weren't sure what to expect, but this was super good.

The earthy, maizey-lishceousness of the masa, along with slightly mucilaginous, sweet-green beanish flavor of the nopales, the milky queso, all wrapped in a crisp, slightly crunchy exterior was masterful. I gotta see if there's a version here in SD.

This was washed down with some atole.

From this stand.

There were just so many stands here, it would have been crazy to attempt to explore ourselves.

Next up were tacos, from this busy stand.

We got the suardero and tripas.

Which were fine, if not as god as what we'd had the previous day.

The couple that was with us were surprised that we had tripas....according to them, non-Hispanic folks where they hail from won't touch the stuff. I explained that most Asians will try anything and that statement would prove to be especially true later on.

Our next stop was to be for some quesadillas, but the place was packed and busy. 

So Yimnah placed our orders and took us through a tour of various fruits.

Where we got to sample several varieties of avocado and other fruits.

We then headed back to the quesadilla stand. Yimnah explained that in Mexico City, most of the traditional stands will use blue corn quesadillas, the use of blue corn dates back to prehispanic times.

Cooked on the comal, it seemed like blue corn was a bit softer and more tender than other versions.

Man, we had eaten quite a bit at this point, so it was time to do a bit more exploring. We were guided thru the chili stands, with Yimnah pointing out various species, many of which, like the habanero I'm quite familiar with; though there were some, like the mirasol, that I wasn't too familiar with, until Yimnah explained that these are the chilies that are dried to make guajillo chilies, which I usually have stocked at home.

We next moved on to a stand that even I had heard of. The famous Moles Dona Balbi which stocks what seems like a hundred different moles.

We ended up getting some mole pinole.

And then after touring a few more stands we came across this one.

And an amazing tasting of everything from Chapulines, gusanos, cocopaches, to acocil. That wrapped thingy on the right in the photo above is a fermented fish, which was full of umami flavor.

This was the protein source for many in prehispanic times. There was one thing that caught my eye, it's on the left of the gentleman in this photo.

Looking like a pile of tubular pasta, we could actually smell it from where we were standing. We asked Yimnah what it was and were told "fermented chicken intestines". These have been cooked. We asked if we could taste some. Yimnah said most folks are kinda scared of it....we wanted to try it. So Yimnah had them get us a sample; that couple from Texas, who had been so proud of their heritage backed off. Actually, it was chewy, very strong poultry flavor, quite savory, and we're glad we tried it.

We were glad to have taken this tour. There's no way we'd have been exposed to, nor have tried so many dishes and had learned so much about the cuisine, which is a big part of history and culture. There was so much we learned on this tour.

We had a coffee before Yimnah led us to the best area to catch our Uber and we headed back to La Condesa and the Red Tree House where Romeo was "waiting".

Lest you think Romeo didn't know what was going on. Everytime we'd see this wonderful pooch we'd give him a nice rub and scratch and his tail would go a wagging'. On the next morning as we checked out, Romeo was lying near the front door. We gave him an enthusiastic last rub, whereupon he lifted his head and then with one paw closed the door so we couldn't leave! "Oh Romeo!"

Such is what CDMX is to us! We can't wait to return.

But Guadalajara was waiting.....

Thanks for stopping by!

Mexico City - Exploring Centro Historico, Xaachila Comida Oaxaquena, Taquería El Torito (Calle de Mesones 48 location), and Quesadillas Bolivar

**** So, this one is kinda long. I've condensed things a bit to make it more readable. Please let me know if you have any questions!

We had two full days in CDMX before heading to Jalisco. Even though we'd been to CDMX four times previously, we knew there was so much we hadn't seen yet. And yes, we'd been to Centro Historico several times (remember the colors of Frida?), but there just seemed to be so much. I thought we'd enjoy a private tour of Centro Historico. We had enjoyed our private tour of Museo Nacional de Antropologia on a previous trip, so I contacted Mexico a Pie tours, inquiring about downtown tour options. Ana quickly returned my email and after mentioning we enjoyed the cuisine as well, she proposed the private Tortilla and History tour.

Which is how we ended up "Ubering" to the Zocalo to meet up with our guide, the wonderful and enthusiastic Daniela.

After introductions, we swung on over to Templo Mayor, where we were treated to the history of Tenochtitlan, thought to be founded in the 14th century, home of the Mexica people, and the center of the Aztec Empire. Tenochtitlan was built on the shores of Lake Texcoco, which was eventually mostly drained. It is in this basin that Mexico City now exists.

This temple was dedicated to Huītzilōpōchtli (God of the sun) and Tlaloc which Andres had gone over with us during our tour of the Museo Nacional de Antropologia. Daniela seemed quite pleased that knew a bit about Tlaloc....she got a kick when we remembered the identifying features of Tlaloc; the round eyes and fangs.

We noticed many serpents and was told that these are symbols of fertility and rebirth.

One of the most famous items excavated here is the Coyolxauhqui Stone.

The next stop was just around the corner.

This is the Colegio de San Ildefonso, formerly a college established by the Jesuits, it is now a museum and performance venue.

Though it has some impressive murals and such, we found the elegant little touches to be impressive.

We were taken to the former Colegio de San Gregorio, now known as Universidad Obrera “Vicente Lombardo Toledano” - the "Worker's University", which bears the name of one of the most famous labor leaders in  Mexico.

It was here when we discovered how flexible Daniela was. We noticed this dome from the courtyard of the University.

Daniela smiled and said, "let's go". And we were guided to and entered Nuestra Señora de Loreto Church - Church of Our Lady of Loreto.

The interior is quite stunning, though it does look a bit worn.

We notice all the bracing in the interior and was told because of the different types of stone used in the construction, the entire church is starting to tilt to one side.

And then it was time for our first "food stop". At a shop named Xaachila Comida Oaxaquena.

Having been to Oaxaca the year before, the Missus was interested in trying a tamal.

The Missus was interested in trying the Tamal Chepil.

Which She enjoyed with a nice refreshing cup of Horchata! Good smoky flavors, nice maize tones. Would it make us forget Oaxaca? Heck no, but this was a nice little brunchy start to things.

And the Missus chugged that Horchata like there was no tomorrow!

Xaachila Comida Oaxaquena
De La Santísima 17-22
Cuauhtémoc, 06060 Ciudad de México, Mexico

We then headed back to the Cathedral. But because of services going on, Daniela would not be able to guide us thru the cathedral. She did provide us with some interesting things to see though.

We were told to look for the arm of what was supposed to be the wax figure of Saint Felicitas. Yes, there are human bones there!

Which had become quite a story.

The next stop was a place we didn't know about, the Gran Hotel Ciudad de México.

According to what I've read, this structure dates back to 1526!!!! It then became a shopping center in 1895 and then an hotel.

The Tiffany glass ceiling dates back to 1899.

Personally, I loved the elevator.

The grandness of the hotel looks like it came out of a book from another time.

Our next stop was a favorite of mine.

This interesting, well adorned building is the site of one of the oldest pharmacies in the Americas.

Originally a Augustine Monastery, in 1944 this became Farmacias Paris.

And it is still an operating pharmacy, with different areas to this day.

We were told that the most popular area deals with Homeopathy.

And it's still very busy......

This was quite interesting.

We were then told that it was "taco time" and led to this unassuming shop around the corner on Calle de Mesones.

We had told Daniela that we "eat everything" and she took us here. I was told that there are three "El Toritos" on the street, apparently there's an interesting story about a family taqueria and a falling out between them.

I will say, these were our favorite tacos of the trip. We started with the Suadero, a mix of cuts and the Tripa.

My goodness, the crisp intestine was amazing! We got a second Tacos de Tripa!

It's hard to explain; there's some nice deep, offaly goodness, with a wonderful crispness. I'll just leave it at that.

Taquería El Torito
Calle de Mesones 48
Cuauhtémoc, 06080 Centro, Mexico

From here, we made a couple of more stops like the Biblioteca Miguel Lerdo de Tejada, which had some interesting murals.

We were then headed down Republica de el Salvador.

And then to 16 de Septiembre for our last food stop. This place had me fooled as the sign looked like it was some kind of cell phone shop. But the customers were all having eats and drinks.

In spite of the sign, this is Quesadillas Bolivar.

We enjoyed the Quesadillas de Nopales and Flor de Calabazas.

The blue corn tortillas was so full of maize goodness.

Quesadillas Bolivar
16 de Septiembre,
Pasaje Savoy 6-Local #3
Cuauhtémoc, 06000 Centro, Mexico

As we walked to our final destination, the Palacio Postal, the Central Post Office, we asked Daniela how she finds all these places to eat. She told us that she's out trying places every week, to see if it is worth taking folks on the tour to and which customers would fit with what place. 

We ended at the beautiful "Postal Palace", the Central Post Office, which was built in 1907.

We had visited before, but it's no less amazing.......

And as we ended our day, Daniela took us to the best spot for an Uber pick-up.

It was indeed another fun, educational, and delicious day in CDMX.

And of course we had Romeo (kinda) greet us when we returned to the Red Tree House.

Mexico City - Staying at the Red Tree House and Revisiting Pasillo de Humo (yet again)

Yes, I'm way behind on my travel posts and need to catch up. We visited both CDMX and Jalisco last summer.

As for CDMX, well, this was our fifth visit to this lovely destination. We have fallen into a routine of sorts, we stay in La Condesa, our first meal is usually at Pasillo de Humo, we enjoy grabbing a coffee at Cafe Toscano, and the Missus shops for chocolate at Tout Chocolat.

Tout Chocolat
Amsterdam 154
6100 Cuauhtémoc, CDMX, Mexico

The one big change for us this time around was that I was able to get us a suite at the Red Tree House. I'd heard and read about the rooms and service, but was never able to get us a room, until this visit. We loved our beautiful suite. And we especially loved the official "greeter", named Romeo.

Of course, we never saw him actually moving around, he was always napping it seems. Though we knew he was ambulatory since he would be in a different locale everytime.

We had the Jacaranda Suite on the first level.

Which had a colorful sitting area.

Which came in handy since there was breakfast served every morning and a "Happy Hour" with free wine during the early evening.

The one big issue being that there is no A/C and it was unusually hot in CDMX during our visit. And while on our previous visits there would be a downpour in the evening which bring some cooler temps, it was strangely absent during our stay. In fact, the folks at RTH mentioned how different the weather was during the current year.

 It was a wonderful stay, if a bit on the "atsui"  side of things.

The Red Tree House
Culiacan 6
06100 Cuauhtémoc, CDMX, Mexico

For dinner, we headed to the familiar confines of a place we'd been to several times over our visits to CDMX; Pasillo de Humo. Over the years, we've determined that, at least for us, ordering small dishes (and some good Mezcal) was the way to go here.

This was an interesting visit. Because of all the detailed posts I've done, over the years, I'm not going into great detail, except to say we ordered our favorite dishes.

What I will say is that other than tripas tacos, things just didn't seem the same. Prices have gone up, but the herbs and veggies were on the "brown" side of things, the memelitas were dry, as was the pork. The hoya santa was turning brown and lacked flavor.......it was just not a good meal. Quite sad as this was place we'd been to so many times.

And the place was completely empty during our entire meal. I don't know what's going on here.

 

Not sure we'll be back during our future trips to CDMX.

Pasillo de Humo
Av Nuevo León 107
06100 Cuauhtémoc, CDMX, Mexico

Where in the World Were We?

Yes, we were on yet another trip. This time for nine days. I realize that I'm waaaay behind on my travel posts, like 5 trips behind! Heck, I haven't even started posting on our last road trip yet. I also realize that I'm kinda mixing and matching travel posts and have gotten two emails from folks saying how confusing it is for them. For this, I apologize. I am trying not to mix trips on consecutive days, so hopefully that helps!

As for this last trip, well, we started in a familiar locale, one of our favorite cities. And wanting to start things off on the "right foot", went to an old standby of ours.

We did stay at different accommodations this time. We loved our "suite", though it was quite hot, and the place had no A/C.

The staff was wonderful, and there was even an official snorer "greeter" on site at all times!

We did two amazing tours here. One was a private historical tour combined with eats. We have been to the historical center of the city several times; but we did learn a lot and visited some places we would never had found on our own.

We also had our favorite tacos of the trip on this tour.

The second was a small group (4 people) tour of the largest market in the city. Our guide was a former chef/caterer who was simply amazing! And we got to try some interesting eats as well!

Our next stop was the city with the third largest metropolitan area in the country. It's also home to some iconic dishes, which of course, we got to try.

We also did a private food tour one day and a fantastic walking tour of the city the next.

We also had our two favorite dinners of the trip here as well.

Our next stop is famous for its namesake agave spirit.

We loved the friendly, laid-back vibe here. Folks were warm and kind....and yes, it was indeed warm with temps in the triple digits when we visited. It was nice to be ensconced in a wonderful five-star hotel in the town.

We did two distillery tours, the first took us to a demonstration garden so we could watch the Jimador in action.

We had booked a VIP tour, so the second half consisted of a wonderful private tasting, followed by a nice three course meal.

The second distillery tour was one with a familiar brand name.

This tour exceeded my expectations and really helped to "fill in the blanks". We also did a private combined distilled beverage and chocolate tasting. 

This was such a beautiful and charming town.

We really took to this "Pueblo Magico". I even found my favorite "breakfast" spot in the "Callejon del Taco".

And the Missus could polish off a liter of Crema de Coco or Coconut water from this cart in a minute.

Yes, we loved our time in this state. The sights, the sounds, the food, the agave spirits! But it was the warm and friendly people that really made an impression on us!

They work so hard, but always seemed to have time for a smile!

We can't wait to return!

Thanks for stopping by, I'll have something for San Diego tomorrow!