Oaxaca: Recs

 

ABOUT

In March 2026 we spent a week in Oaxaca City, Mexico for an impromptu spring break. Oaxaca is absolutely beautiful and home to some of the best food we've ever had. We stayed at Quinta Real Oaxaca, an old converted monastery.

The best time to visit Oaxaca is October through April (the dry season): late October and early November for Day of the Dead, or March like we did for hot, dry days.

If we had more time we would have added Puerto Escondido on the coast and stayed at Casa Yuma.

RestaurantS:

  • Los Danzantes: Michelin star dinner, highly recommend getting the mole tasting, book ahead.

  • Casa Oaxaca: incredible meal, recommend sitting on the balcony to overlook the town square. Get the salsa made tableside, reserve ahead for the terrace.

  • Criollo: sister restaurant to Pujol, which is one of the more famous CDMX restaurants with an aged mole, book ahead.

  • Tacos Roy: casual taco stop where we tried the local delicacy, fried grasshoppers or chapulines.

  • Itanoní: a little outside the city. Order tetelas, triangular corn pockets filled with beans, or a squash blossom quesadilla; the masa is ground in house.

  • Cabuche: tiny spot for pozole that feels like a living room.

  • Levadura de Olla: Michelin star restaurant with traditional Sierra Sur dishes. We couldn’t get in, but if I ever go back to Oaxaca it’s at the top of my list! Book ahead.

Street Food:

  • Tacos del Carmen: late-morning street tacos; bring cash. Try the chorizo tacos or an amarillo empanada filled with chicken and yellow mole.

  • Mercado 20 de Noviembre: in the Pasillo de Humo eat at L’Abulita; bring cash. Pick grilled tasajo, thinly sliced beef, or chorizo in the smoky meat aisle and eat it with tortillas and salsa.

  • Memelas outside Santo Domingo: look for the stands outside the church. Memelas are thick corn rounds topped with beans, cheese and salsa.

  • Tlayudas Libres: late-night tlayuda stop. A tlayuda is a huge crisp tortilla filled with beans, quesillo, cabbage and meat.

  • Chocolate Mayordomo: fresh chocolate prepared for you.

  • Nieves Manolo: ice cream stop, though there is ice cream everywhere.

  • Try a jugo verde anywhere: green juice made with local cactus and citrus.

  • Mercado Sánchez Pascuas: try a memela with beans and cheese or a mole tamal wrapped in a banana leaf.

Coffee & Breakfast:

  • Jalatlaco Café: cute coffee shop to stop at in Jalatlaco.

  • Muss Café: pretty courtyard inside Casa Antonieta. Try the sourdough French toast or shakshuka, eggs in spiced tomato sauce.

  • Bodaega: this bakery mixes Danish and Oaxacan flavors, usually has a long line out front.

  • Sagrado Filemón: great breakfast stop.

  • LIA Café: another coffee stop in Centro (also a shop for local ceramics, textiles and jewelry).

  • Boulenc: courtyard, coffee, shakshuka and toasts. The bakery is known for artisanal bread and house preserves.

Sights & Activities:

  • Templo de Santo Domingo: visit the church and walk the Andador Turístico at night.

  • Hierve el Agua: a day trip for petrified waterfalls and natural pools, there are multiple day tours, we booked ours through the hotel.

  • Tlacolula de Matamoros: the Sunday market outside the city, pair it with Hierve el Agua. Valley producers bring chiles, cacao, handmade tortillas, textiles and pottery to the Sunday tianguis.

  • Jardín Etnobotánico: botanical gardens to visit on a guided tour.

  • Barrio de Jalatlaco: walk the streets around San Matías, Calle Reforma and Calle Aldama.

  • Museo Textil de Oaxaca: a textile museum stop.

  • Rufino Tamayo museum: another museum stop.

  • MACCO: a contemporary art museum.

  • Mitla: another option for a day trip. The Zapotec site is known for intricate geometric stone mosaics and its ceremonial buildings.

Shopping:

Mezcal & Bars:

  • Ruda: a cute green-tile bar around the corner from our hotel.

  • Sabina Sabe: a fun bar with a good vibe. It is known for a deep mezcal selection and cocktails built around Oaxacan ingredients.

  • In Situ: where we did our mezcal tasting.

  • Terraza Los Amantes: for rooftop cocktails. The terrace looks directly toward Santo Domingo church.

  • Mezcaloteca: a mezcal tasting library, reserve ahead. The guided tasting compares three to five mezcals and explains agaves, regions and production methods. Temporarily closed while it moves to a new location.

  • Expendio Tradición: try the espresso and mezcal cocktail.

Other Stays:

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