Coffee Shops in Mexico City / Minichelista: A Cafe as Unique as Its Name
Discover a hidden gem in Nueva Santa María! Near Parque Revolución, an old house has been converted into a cafe with an eclectic and baroque style, offering a unique atmosphere and intriguing drink options.
By Alejandro Pohlenz
"Minichelista" doesn't exist in the DRAE (Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy). It could refer to a small-sized beer drinker or a musician, also small in stature, who plays the cello. The word was invented by the founders of this knick-knack-filled cafeteria as the antithesis of "minimalist." And that is precisely what they achieved since 2005: filling the walls of the place with a gigantic variety of trinkets; creating furniture with diverse objects, such as bicycles or gears; a showcase with vintage cameras; a patio with a neon cat and a chubby little plane hanging... Anyway, it's like a surrealist-urban museum in Azcapotzalco, full of dreamlike and strange murals. Forgetting the food and drinks, the simple fact of being in that house converted into a cafe is already an experience.
How can the Minichelista cafe be described?
There are many ways in which Minichelista is described on social networks, although it seems to me that it is indefinable: hipster vintage style (?), "a little corner with exciting Studio Ghibli touches" (I don't understand, it is an animation studio in Japan); "the colors scream in bright colors"... wow, the colors scream!
To drink and to eat
Now, once you arrive at this unique place and sit in a barber chair or at a glass table whose base is a bicycle, you have to order, if you are, like me, addicted to sugar, the uber-rich Minichelista coffee, with Kahlúa and sugar. Among the drinks, there are smoothies, hot chocolate with marshmallows (not suitable for diabetics), apple tisane with cinnamon, hibiscus, rosehip (a red fruit), elderberries (like blackberries) and blackcurrant, chamoyada, giraffe (eggnog milkshake) and zebra (vanilla, coconut and chocolate ice cream), and coffees.
As for the food, the salmon catastrophe (with tamarind sauce) stands out; the recommended Minichelista breast, stuffed with quince paste and goat cheese; the sirloin burger, salads, Minichelista spaghetti (with salmon or arrachera); hamburgers, fries, nachos and adobo wings. There are desserts such as blackberry pie, Minichelista donut, brownie and carrot cake, among other Minichelista proposals.
- What we love and you should try: Minichelista coffee
- Address: Guanábana 197, Nueva Santa María, Azcapotzalco, CDMX
- Hours and days of operation: Tuesday to Saturday 3:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Sunday and Monday from 3:00 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Ideal for: coffee and dessert
- Payment: cash and cards.
- Accessibility: yes.
- Parking: no.
- Reservations: no.
- Nearby public transportation: Metro Popotla.
- Pet Friendly: yes.
- Suitable to go with children: yes.
- Vegan options: yes.
