Iconic Places in Mexico City / Pastelería Ideal, Sweet Bread, and Bulk Cookies in the Historic Center

By: Youyi Mayora Eng

Photos courtesy of: Pastelería Ideal website

Long live Christ the King! shout the people of San Julián, Jalisco. It's 1927, and the Cristero War has begun. In a post-revolutionary Mexico struggling for political and social stability, Ideal Bakery (its original name) opens its doors, never to close them again. Today, 197 years after its founding, its aromas of sweetness, happiness, and history remain a symbol of identity in a Mexico City reluctant to abandon coffee with bread.

The arches, columns, and stone walls inside Pastelería Ideal remind us that we are in a historic site. Endless aisles filled with trays of sweet bread flood our minds. The variety of colors is infinite. Lost cherries atop pastries, chocolates painted in a diverse array of sweet bread that overwhelms our indecision. Chocolates (my favorites) shine under the shelter of the tongs with which I grasp them. The sweetness takes over my senses, and I discover there's an entire section of cookies. My tray ends up being defeated by the mountain of pastries, cakes, and cookies with which I've filled it. But here, everyone comes thinking big.

People leave with more than one box. I decide to get another tray because if I think too much, I won't dare leave without a gelatin. A labyrinth of options that transport us to a paradise for lovers of sweets. I choose two individual mosaics, milks, pinks, childish; it reminds me of the past. I've walked through all the aisles. I go to the happiness customs, pay, and they wrap me up in two complete boxes with that characteristic tie. I leave the palace of sweetness, and the clouds and rain do their part to make the Chilango utopia of sweet bread "chopeado" with coffee come true.

• Location: 16 de Septiembre 18, Colonia Centro Histórico
• Service hours: Monday to Sunday 06:30 am to 09:00 pm
• Ideal for: all-day indulgence in cakes, sweet bread, cookies, pastries
• Type of Food: bakery and pastry
• Payment: cash and cards
• Accessibility: yes
• Parking: no
• Reservations: not applicable
• Contact info: 5551302970
• Nearby Public Transport: Metro Bellas Artes
• Pet-friendly: no
• Suitable for Children: yes
• Vegan Options: no