Mexico’s vast gastronomic journey begins with creamy guacamole and fiery salsa. The country’s abundance of coastal flavours, exotic fruits and spice blends combines with the rich cultural influences to offer a plethora of culinary delights. Oaxaca should be a gourmand’s foremost choice to sample the region’s best-produced cheeses, chocolates, mezcals, tamales wrapped in banana leaves and chapulines (grasshoppers) sprinkled with chilli, salt and lime. The avant-garde textures and flavours of Oaxaca are beautifully cooked at Los Danzantes, serving snail tamales, shrimp tlayuda and chilhuacle pepper ice cream with chicatana ant crumble.
While talking about the gourmets of Mexico, you cannot miss touring the vibrant food stands of San Juan Market in Mexico City and a private night tour at the Tequila Museum followed by the tastings of tequilas and mezcals at the rooftop restaurant. The fine dining experience in Mexico City must include the delicious tasting of mole madre at Pujol, crisp skin trout with clams at Maximo Bistrot and cactus sorbet at Quintonil.
The piquant of coastal Mexico is wonderfully presented at Bajau in Cozumel whipping Caribbean dishes like fresh raw ceviche with chilli and tiger milk and spicy habanero salmon. Chambao Fashion Grillhouse in Los Cabos competes with its extraordinary delicacies featuring roasted octopus ceviche, Caribbean lobster tail and tiger shrimp. While Cancun’s gastronomic tour must include Taboo restaurant’s cold appetizers of ora king salmon tostada and royal oysters with black sauce, the southern stretch of Riviera Maya also emerges as Mexico’s best fine dining destination. The michelada-style beer mixed with sauces and decorated with shrimp at Los Aguachiles in Playa del Carmen, spit-roasted pork in corn tortillas at La Parrilla in Yaxchilan and popular agua frescas at La Zebra in Tulum are some quintessential finds of Riviera Maya.