Traditional Mexican cuisine CDMX / Tetetlán — restaurant, café, shop, bookstore, and yoga space.
A restaurant that serves deeply traditional Mexican dishes made with natural ingredients and also functions as a cultural center.
Por Alejandro Pohlenz
The Cuicuilcas lived in the Valley of Mexico a thousand years before Christ (that is, more than 3,000 years ago). They built a pyramid that now sits next to what used to be the Loreto y Peña Pobre Paper Factory. It has a fascinating circular shape. In another Food Police piece, I once mentioned that the Cuicuilcas fled in terror to Teotihuacán during one of the eruptions of the Xitle volcano (the last one happened 2,000 years ago). The lava from Xitle spread across a vast territory in the southern part of the city of palaces.
Now, how does the Xitle eruption connect with Luis Ramiro Barragán Morfín (1902–1988), one of the most notable architects in the modern history of our country? He was the one who came up with the idea of creating a residential development in the south of the city called El Pedregal. They say that in that territory, full of volcanic rock, there were only snakes and thieves back in 1944, when the project began. In 1947, Luis Barragán designed and built the “Casa Prieto-López.”
The original setting
The restaurant (café, bookstore, cultural center, etc.) we’re talking about today, Tetetlán, is located in the stables of that very house. The walls are made of hardened lava, and there is a glass floor so you can see the volcanic stones beneath. The architecture and furniture are admirable and unique.
One of the shining stars in Tetetlán’s gastronomic universe (the name comes from Náhuatl and means “flint”) is the tlayuda alfonsina (I have no clue what King Alfonso VII has to do with a supercharged tortilla). This tlayuda comes with chapulines, tasajo, beans, and red onion. I must confess that eating insects is a challenge for me (though chapulines not as much — they’re crunchy). What’s truly hard for me are escamoles. They actually recommend the Tetetlán tacos with escamoles, but I can’t vouch for that. I do highlight the baby corn with mayo, the Yucatecan taco (with fish and achiote), and the black fideo. I’ll also mention the free-range turkey sandwich (I wonder…).
The events
The café offers some remarkable sweet breads. Tetetlán also hosts different activities (besides food, drinks, and coffee), such as Vinyl Nights (the one on April 17 featured Barry White, Sade, and Bill Withers) and a surprising activity called pinta y brinda. Besides painting (I’m terrible at it), you get art supplies, a glass of wine, mezcal, beer, and four dinner options to choose from — though maybe painting shouldn’t be done hungry (or after a couple of mezcals).
- What we love and you must try: the tlayuda alfonsina
- What we don’t love as much: I personally don’t like the grilled octopus.
- Address: Avenida de las Fuentes 180-B, Jardines del Pedregal, CDMX.
- Hours: Restaurant — Sun to Wed, 7:00 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; Thu to Sat, 7:00 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.
Café opens at 6:45 a.m. - Ideal for: eating, reading, coffee, painting, yoga.
- Payment: cash and cards.
- Accessibility: yes.
- Phone: 55 5668 5335
- Reservations: no.
- Nearby public transport: San Jerónimo bus stop on Periférico.
- Pet friendly: yes.
- Kid-friendly: yes.
- Vegan options: yes.
