9 Best Restaurants in Around Mexico City, Mexico

The balcony at this pleasant café has an outstanding view of the plaza and cathedral. If you enjoyed too much tequila the night before, the $4 Mexican breakfast of scrambled eggs and refried beans, called huevos parroquia, is reputed to be the perfect hangover cure. Or come in for a beer as the sun sets over the zócalo.

This smart establishment in the folds of the mountains is surrounded by ponds and bridges. Among the delicious concoctions are chili jaral (ancho chili stuffed with shredded beef and raisins) and lamb in zucchini sauce. You can dine in the pink, high-ceiling dining room overlooking the trees and river or alfresco. A lone guitar player adds to the character weekend lunchtimes.

You'll need to call two or three days in advance to reserve a nice seat—with a view of the pyramid—for the weekend. The rest of the tables at this casual restaurant are centered around a partially open patio. A varied menu includes chicken breast stuffed with huitlacoche, an exquisite inky fungus that grows on corn, and spicy shrimp tacos. There is a place for children to play on weekends.

One of the best restaurants in Mexico is in the sleepy town of Apizaco, in Tlaxcala state, a quick 20 km (12 miles) from the capital city of Tlaxcala. Opened in 2011, Evoka shows that Mexico's gastronomic revolution, which celebrates local ingredients, small producers, and traditional techniques, isn't limited to the big cities. With a simply elegant dining room, impeccable service, and a clientele largely consisting of in-the-know foodies from Puebla and Mexico City, Evoka could be the hottest restaurant anywhere, but could only exist in the Valle de Tlaxcala, from where its ingredients, and chef-owner Francisco Molina, come. The tasting menu is a must, where you might find aged rib eye in a mole sauce of huitlacoche (corn fungus) and amaranth with plantain dumplings, or a salad of tiny wild tomatoes and local cheese with powdered, root-beer-like hoja santa herb shaken table-side over the top.

This intimate place has excellent food and hanging lamps and masks. There are meat and fish dishes, but the favorites are garlic-and-egg soup and the queso adobe, fried cheese on a bed of potato skins, covered with a green tomatillo sauce.

This longtime favorite is the place for a tasty traditional meal. The interior decoration is typical Puebla—complete with tile floors, colorful murals, and a newspaper stand inside—as is the menu. The mole is as traditional as it comes, and the sopa poblana (a cream soup with poblano chilies, mushrooms, and corn) is exceptional. This is also a great place to enjoy grilled meat.

The marvelous view of the Palacio de Cortés helped make this restaurant a big hit among the foreigners in town. The menu mixes Mexican and international foods; you might try the filetón hidalgo (breaded veal stuffed with Serrano ham and manchego cheese) or the tacos con nopales (tacos stuffed with grilled cactus). A jazz band plays on Saturday night.

Reservations are recommended on weekends—request a table on the small balcony for a great view of the Palacio just across the street.

You can eat indoors or out on the poolside terrace where there's a view not only of a Juan O'Gorman mural but also of the stunning Santa Prisca church. The chef prepares international beef and seafood dishes as well as Mexican specialties like cilantro soup and crepes with huitlacoche (corn fungus, a pre-Hispanic delicacy that is actually quite delicious). For breakfast try the home-baked sweet rolls and marmalade from the fruit of nearby trees.

Mexican family-type cooking at its best is served in this simple restaurant a few blocks from the main square. Puebla-style mole, Cornish hen in garlic butter, and enchiladas in green or red chili sauce are among the offerings.