An absolutely lovely dining journey offering a local Mexican experience: Restaurant Raíz (29. May 2024)

The Raiz was yet another recommendation I decided to give a try, and I didn’t regret it. Once we had arrived, I went for a nice little cocktail to get started. The “Espinela (raicilla, chili pepper syrup, hibiscus syrup, lime juice, black pepper, chili pepper bitter)” (240 MXN) was actually refreshing and lovely overall. It had a certain sweetness to it and was, hence, quite enjoyable overall.

Given I hadn’t had a tasting menu for a while, I went for the “Menu Degustación (9 tiempos)” (1’700 MXN), which started with a welcome dish of “croquetta de huitlacoche”, which was overall lovely. Huitlacoche is definitely something you need to get used to (especially when you consider what it is), but it is absolutely delicious.

The first dish of the evening was an “ensalada de quelites”, which was rather simple, and somewhat a bit of a downer after the croquetta.

However, the “tostada de callo de hacha” was mouthwatering. The combination of the fish with the crunchiness of the cucumber was just exquisite.

Frankly, I had not necesarily expected asparagus in Mexico, but the “espáragos asados” were amazing! I absolutely loved the flavour of those – especially in combination with the sauce, it turned out to be a more than delicious dish.

Even better was the “panucho de barbacoa de pato” – absolutely outstanding flavour profile and just something, which makes your mouth incredibly watery.

When it was served, it smelled a bit too much like fish for my personal gusto, but the “pescado zarandeado” was actually absolutely delicious. The fish was perfect in terms of flavour and texture, and it also worked well with the crunchiness of the red cabbage. Absolutely a case of a dish being much better than expected after first sight.

The “pulpo maya” was nice too. It wasn’t entirely optimal and perfectly outstanding, but it was definitely great in terms of flavour and in terms of texture.

And given you put the small pieces into tacos, these were great bites!

Then, it was time for the “mole de macadamia”, which was nice. I liked the meat, although the texture is something you definitely need to get used to, but, to me, it was enjoyable. And, while I still find the white cauliflower relatively boring, the yellow and purple cauliflower were actually of a different taste and quite tasty.

Given I wasn’t into the sweets in the tasting menu, I had asked in the beginning if it was possible to replace those with savory dishes. So, I went for the “taco de cecina”, which was absolutely great.

Last but not least, I went for the “taco de pork belly”, which I decided to eat without the tacos, because I was definitely more than sufficiently stuffed already, but the pork belly was absolutely delicious.

All in all, the experience at the Restaurant Raíz was a wonderful one – nice place, exquisite service, a very interesting tasting menu, and all of it for a relatively fair price. So, if you’re into tasting menus and trying a few things, then I would definitely recommend you to try this!

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Raíz

Schiller 331

Polanco, Polanco V Secc, Miguel Hidalgo

11560 Ciudad de México (MX)

Tel.: +52 55 12 47 60 47

Homepage: https://www.restauranteraiz.com

About the Author: Sven

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.