Our directory lists 29 Spanish restaurants in Mexico, and every one of them is in Mexico City. That makes this less a country guide than a neighbourhood map. The listings include a Basque-led kitchen with grilled meat and fish, a restaurant focused on Galician dishes, a Madrid-style tavern, a Spanish pastry shop and a handful of small groups with several branches. Below, the listings are grouped by area, with what each restaurant's own record says about it.
If you only have a weekend, our Mexico City Spanish weekend crawl picks a route. This guide covers all 29 current listings.
Polanco: the densest cluster
Polanco has more Spanish listings than any other part of the city, with three of them on Avenida Emilio Castelar alone.
- Restaurante Emilio (Emilio Castelar 107) is led by Spanish executive chef César de la Parra. The record describes Basque-inspired cooking mixed with Mexican and French recipes, with Iberian ham croquettes and sea bass with prawns and saffron among the dishes. It lists opening at 07:00 every day.
- Jaleo Bar de Tapas Polanco (Emilio Castelar 121) is a tapas bar drawing on several Spanish regions under executive chef Alberto Flórez: croquettes, Spanish omelette, grilled squid with ropa vieja, mushrooms stuffed with piquillo peppers.
- La Mallorquina Polanco (Emilio Castelar 65) has head chef Carlos Arrieta cooking Spanish home-style food from several regions: jamón ibérico, grilled octopus, fabada, sirloin in wine and suckling pig. A second branch, La Mallorquina Bosques, is in Bosques de las Lomas.
- Ekilore (Aristóteles 239A) is run by Basque chef Pablo San Román, with grilled meat, fish and seasonal seafood.
- El Sella (Torcuato Tasso 315) lists chamorro, chorizo in cider, Galician octopus and sella cheese, in the atmosphere of a traditional Mexican cantina.
- Catorze (Presidente Masaryk 61) serves Spanish and fusion dishes by Spanish chef Álvaro Crespo.
- Bulla Polanco (Homero 418) is one of three Bulla branches in the directory. The group describes informal Spanish cooking from several regions, including paella, cocido madrileño, Iberian ham and pan con tomate, and a large terrace.
- Centro Torre de Castilla (Esopo 31) belongs to Grupo Castellano.
Lomas de Chapultepec and Bosques
West of Polanco, the Lomas listings lean towards fish and long lunches.
- Zeru Lomas (Monte Everest 635) is chef Israel Aretxiga's product-focused kitchen, with national and imported fish cooked in traditional ways. Most of the restaurant is a terrace that the record says evokes the dining rooms of the Basque coast.
- Ajoblanco (Pedregal 45) takes its name from the cold almond soup. Chef Pablo San Román developed the concept with Mexican chef Manuel Victoria, and the specialities are fish, rice dishes, shellfish, gazpachos and house-made bread.
- Zagala (Monte Athos 185) is inspired by the landscapes of the Pyrenees, cooking traditional recipes with a modern twist.
- Mallorca Explanada is one of two branches of Mallorca, a restaurant and pastry shop open since 2016. We wrote about it in our Mallorca spotlight.
Condesa, Cuauhtémoc and Reforma
- Restaurante Castizo (Chilpancingo 46, Condesa) serves tapas such as Iberian ham and other cold meats, salmorejo and Manchego cheese. The record says more than 70% of its wine list is Spanish.
- La Cocina del Bizco (Ometusco 1, Hipódromo) focuses on Madrid and Castile: ensaladilla rusa, tortilla and callos madrileños, plus vermouth.
- Bulla Condesa (Avenida Mazatlán 20C) and Bulla Reforma (Río Elba 52) are the other two Bulla branches.
- Mallorca Reforma (Paseo de la Reforma 365) is the second Mallorca branch, serving breakfasts, lunches, dinners and pastries.
- Gaudir Taverna (Bahía Guantánamo 83, Verónica Anzures) was set up by Gaby and Cesc around good wine, food in the middle of the table and company.
- Chabela Bocadería & Ultramarinos (General Juan Cano 59, San Miguel Chapultepec) is a tavern with bocatas, pinchos and tapas at the bar, plus wine and vermouth.
Centro, Doctores, Del Valle and Narvarte
- Centro Castellano Histórico (República de Uruguay 18) is a Grupo Castellano restaurant in the historic centre with an artisan wood oven in the style of a Spanish asador.
- Bar El Sella Doctores (Dr. Balmis 210) lists over 73 years of history. Galician octopus, scallops and chorizo in cider share the menu with what the record calls its highlight, pork knuckle served with Mexican-influenced sauces. Listed hours are Monday to Saturday, 12:00 to 19:00.
- Restaurante Lar Gallego (Insurgentes Sur 628, Del Valle) cooks traditional Spanish food with a focus on Galician dishes. It received Mercurio Awards from the city's Chamber of Commerce in 1999, 2000 and 2001.
- Socarrat (Heriberto Frías 573, Narvarte Poniente) serves bravas, marinated dogfish, Catalan meatballs, croquetas and mixed and black paella. See our Socarrat spotlight.
- Puerto Getaria (Dakota 159, Nápoles) is led by Spanish chef Iñigo Aramburu: charcoal-grilled huachinango (red snapper) Getaria-style, cuttlefish in ink sauce, grilled steak with piquillo peppers and a brothy saffron rice.
San Ángel and the south
- Zeru San Ángel (Avenida Revolución 1547) has served Iberian cooking with Basque roots in San Ángel since 2009, also under chef Israel Aretxiga.
- Vega (Avenida Revolución 1465, Campestre) is part of Grupo Castellano. Dishes include clams in albariño, arroz del señorito and Asturian fabada, with more than 80 Spanish wines and spirits and a terrace with a 200-year-old olive tree.
- Terraza Alaia (Tizapán San Ángel) cooks Spanish Mediterranean food, using fire and stone for several dishes.
- Restaurante Guria serves contemporary Basque cooking and tapas such as ham, anchovies, croquetas and tortilla. Its listing gives a Santa Fe address but its description mentions Polanco, so confirm the location before you go.
Planning around the hours
The listed hours show a clear pattern. Several kitchens, including Ekilore, Ajoblanco, Puerto Getaria, Zagala and Terraza Alaia, list Sunday hours ending at 18:00, and Ekilore, Ajoblanco, Puerto Getaria and Zagala also list Monday hours ending at 18:00. Socarrat and La Cocina del Bizco list no Monday hours. Zeru San Ángel opens at 09:00 on Sundays, and the two Mallorca branches open for breakfast. If you want a late Spanish dinner on a Sunday or Monday, check the listing first; a long comida is the safer plan.
For more cities, see our guide to Spanish restaurants in Washington DC or browse the full directory.
