Mexico City: What I Learned

My trip to Mexico City was partly for fun (to see my bro-in-law play; to visit with an old friend) and partly for work (will be writing a story about the Mercado de la Merced for a food magazine). But in the end, it was a learning experience that opened my eyes to the complicated, multi-faceted and curious culinary nature of this packed city.

I had a perfect meal at Pujol, a relatively fancy restaurant located in the Polanco district (called the "Beverly Hills" of Mexico City by some ex-pats). My meal consisted of a hamachi ceviche dotted with tiny dollops of fresh guacamole, a spiced lamb loin with a creamy potato puree and a cheese plate with three gorgeous and delicious marmalades (carrot, beet, tomatillo - what colors!). I didn't want to disrupt the serene atmosphere of the place by shoving my big camera in all my dishes, but you can see some photos on Rebecca's blog (she has a small camera - easy to hide!).

At the mercado, I feasted on real churros - perfectly light, crispy and not a hint of oil. I also split a huarache with my sister. The large, shoe-sole-like tortilla topped with a spicy red sauce, shredded lettuce and melted cheese was the ultimate Mexican street food: messy, sloppy, drippy and delicious. I also sampled some fresh made cheese, a lime skin stuffed with sweet coconut (think key lime pie without the graham cracker element) and a bite of zucchini blossom-stuffed tortilla.

I also had one of the better French meals I've had at Au Pied de Cochon, a restaurant in the Intercontinental Hotel. Between the eight of us, we sampled escargot, beef carpaccio, French onion soup, a chicken dish similar to coq au vin, crusty bread with rich, French butter, an amazing cheese platter, a beautiful steak and a couple of bottles of fabulous rich red wine - all after midnight. The place is open 24 hours; you'd be hard pressed to find that kind of food at that hour anywhere here in Los Angeles.

We dug into a big plate of guacamole with thick strips of chicharrones - known to you and me as pork rinds - at a casual Mexican eatery that featured live birds in cages all over the restaurant. The pork rinds were freshly fried, thick and crunchy and full of fatty goodness. With that I had a tart salmon ceviche with lots of pickled white onions. It just doesn't get any better.

Whether it was 5-star foodie fare or sloppy street food, what is evident is the passion and the love behind the food here. Watching the women roll masa in their hands to make fresh tortillas and slap them down on a super hot griddle and come up with something absolutely amazing was truly a sight to see; witnessing the perfect plating of paper-thin beef carpaccio by the studied chef was equally impressive.