Mexico City, Mexico: Taste Your Way Through the Past and Present of This Global Food Capital

Oneika Raymond is hungry. And, luckily, she’s headed to Mexico City, one of the most exciting culinary destinations in the world. There, she visits three eating and drinking spots that connect her to the layered flavors and history that give Mexico City its particular sabor (or flavor) and deepen her
understanding of the dynamic capital.

Oneika starts her day off early with a sunrise float through Xochimilco, an historic and active canal system perhaps best known for its weekend parties on the water. But at this early hour, Oneika’s guide, Anais Martinez, the founder of Devoured Food Tours, is here to show Oneika the quieter side of
Xochimilco: its farms, or chinampas. Oneika and Anais tour a working chinampa, where Oneika picks fresh produce for a farm-to-table breakfast. Over the meal, Anais shares how Xochimilco once nourished most of Mexico City — and how its role continues to evolve as a vital piece of the culinary scene.

Then, Oneika heads to the beating heart of Mexico City’s food scene: its bustling streets. She meets up with Natalia de la Rosa, a local food and travel journalist at Tacos de Mixiote Castelán — one of Natalia’s go-to street food stands in her neighborhood of Juárez. Natalia shows Oneika how to order and dress up mixiote tacos — a type of taco you’ll be hard-pressed to find outside of Mexico. Then, they sit down to discuss the importance of street food culture to the fabric of daily life in Mexico City.

After a full day of eats, Oneika ends her tasting tour back at her hotel, the JW Marriott Mexico City Polanco, for a digestif. She takes part in a private mezcal tasting at the hotel’s Tahona Room, the first-ever mezcal tasting room in the city. Oneika’s guide, Julie Wharton, Tahona’s bar manager, explains how the different regions and families of mezcal producers in Mexico infuse each spirit with a unique flavor and story, which deepens Oneika’s appreciation for the eating and drinking traditions of Mexico City — and leaves her hungry for more.