oaxaca, mexico - food

the food in oaxaca blew me away. my meals at restaurants ranged from $4, at the low end, to $35ish, at the high end, and while every single meal wasn't great, they were all pretty good. street food, as usual, was what i often ate for lunch and snacks throughout the day because there are such great tortas, tacos and quesadillos being made by little ladies and cheap cafeterias all over the city. for less than $1, i would get a quesadilla the size of my face filled with quesillo (local oaxaqueno cheese), chicken, zucchini blossoms and chile sauce.

here are some of the highlights of my gorging in oaxaca:

1. micheladas (think bloody mary, except with beer instead of vodka) in the zocalo with spiced peanuts with lime. this was a daily ritual around 5pm. you know, something to take the edge off of my rough and stressful day.

2. cafe alex restaurante (diaz ordaz 218 - at the corner of diaz ordaz and trujano). after no time at all, these guys knew me and my order - breakfast combo no. 4: chilaquiles in salsa verde with tasajo (thin cut of steak) and beans, also including tortillas, coffee, juice and a sweet roll, all for the low low price of $4.50. unbelievably good. best chilaquiles i've ever had.  EVER!  they were spicy.  really spicy, which is highly respectable in my book given that i'm talking about breakfast food.  just thinking about it makes my mouth water.  for some stupid reason, i never made it there for dinner but you shouldn't make that mistake if you go to oaxaca.  given how they season their breakfast foods, i'm pretty sure the other dishes they serve would be darn good, too.  if this place were anywhere near me in new york, i'd be obese.

3. ceviche man in the 20 de Noviembre market. ceviche made to order with shrimp or fish or octopus (or any desired combo of the foregoing), onions, tomatoes, chiles, cilantro, tomato sauce and lime. yes, i would eat raw fish from a mexican market and i did. it was sublime and it was $3.  so there.  this market has lots of food stalls with good snacks and foods to bring back home, like mole, chocolates, jamaica tea, etc. the mole i bought in the market lasts for up to 6 months in the fridge and i've been really enjoying cooking with it at home. it's flavors are so complex and rich and savory. word of caution: i never had any hassles anywhere in oaxaca but i met a fellow traveler who got pick-pocketed at this market, so be careful with your wallet if you ever go there.

4. casa oaxaca (not sure about the address but if you turn right at the top of cinco de mayo you'll see it on your right, opposite santo domingo).  my friend eva, who lives in mexico city, said this was THE restaurant that i had to go to in oaxaca.  i'm glad i took her advice.  despite my love of street food and eating on the cheap, i also really like to have a fancy meal at a place like casa oaxaca where the service an

d the surroundings are wonderful.   also, the food was not only delicious, it was artful (check out the four cheeses which come out with bread at the start of the meal).  my first meal there was also memorable because it was the first time i ate bugs (intentionally).  i had heard that mexicans like chapulines (grasshoppers) but was a little surprised to see them on the menu of this fancy restaurant.  i thought of them as something akin to a beer snack, like corn nuts.  in fact, they are used in many different ways - yes, fried with spices and eaten like corn nuts as a snack but also ground up into a spice and used to flavor dishes and sauces, which is how they were used at casa oaxaca in the taquitos de jicama rellenos de chapulines cuitlacoche y quesillo, servidos sobre salsa de miltomate.  when i first ordered the taquitos (yes, i only ordered it because it had grasshoppers), i had no idea that my taquito wasn't going to be filled with chapulines as the name suggested, so i ate it hesitantly, expecting a gross-out moment with every bite.   but bite after bite consisted of delicious jicama, guacamole, tomatillo, quesillo and even pomegranate but no icky crunchy grasshoppers.  i guess my constant inspection of the food and slow eating caused my waiter

 to think i didn't like it because soon enough, he came over to ask if everything was alright.  i said it was delicious but i was confused because i couldn't find any grasshoppers in the taquitos.  he kinda laughed at me but explained that the grasshoppers are ground finely into a powder and used in the tortilla flour to flavor the tortillas, not whole.  ohhhhhh....  the nicest thing was that after i finished my taquitos, my waiter brought me a whole plate of whole grasshoppers so i could try them.  how kind.  who doesn't want a whole plate of whole grasshoppers to snack on as a palate refresher?!  you know what, they're not bad at all.  all you taste is the seasoning. 

5. restaurant biznaga (garcia vigil 512, near carranza).  if this place were in new york, it would be such an annoying scene because it's so damn cool.  the restaurant is in an open-air courtyard surrounded by chic boutiques.  there's really great photography and art on the walls and good music playing.  the vibe is actually really san francisco, more specifically, very soma.  and even the food reminded me of cali.  biznaga has a huge selection of salads, soups and fish in addition to the meat dishes, which isn't typical.  instead of bread or tortillas, they serve sticks of jicama, carrots and watermelon sprinkled with lime juice and chile to nibble on while you wait for your meal.  this place must be in some hipster travel guide because, unlike the every other restaurant in oaxaca i ate at, biznaga was full of trendy hipsters wearing designer jeans, uber-big sunglasses, distressed logo t-shirts and pumas or addidas.  where did these people come from in oaxaca?  despite the hipster brigade, the food is outstanding a

nd worth trying. 

6. restaurante hipocampos (ave. hidalgo 507, near tinoco y palacios).  SUPERcheap cafeteria.  this was my go-to spot for tortas to go or peasant dinner. 

7. los danzantes (macedonio alcala 403, right across from santo domingo).  overall, the food here is good but not outstanding.

although, i liked the octopus and melon salad so muc

h i went there just to eat that when i wanted a light lunch.  this place is a winner in terms of ambience.  when you walk in, you feel a little transported but i'm not sure to where.  it's a really nice architectural space with canopies of cloth and vines.  there's a shallow pool reflecting the light and loungey spaces in addition to the tables.  great place for drinks.