If in the evaluation proccess of a restaurant we took into concideration noise then Pujol would not be in the top 100 restaurants of the world, and specifically in two lists, Pellegrino’s and elite traveler’s. However, it was not the restaurant’s fault but the temperament of the people that it hosts. And Mexicans have Mediterranean temperament. Demonstrative people and always with a smile. I didn’t publish the next photo in order to show the chef and me but in order to show the lady behind me who smiles and poses. If in her place was a European from the north it would be most likely that he wouldn’t even look towards us and even fill a bit annoyed.
The restaurant is located in an area that is considered the “top notch” area of Mexico City. In a city of 23 million people where the contrasts are the dominant element, Pujol and some other classy restaurants could not have been located elsewhere and be able to address the rich Mexicans and tourists. The restaurant is located on the ground floor of a building and if you don’t know it’s exact location it is possible to get lost since it’s presence is very discreet. An enlightened lamp post which hardly differs from the main road marks its existence. Through the lobby you enter in the main room which has 10 tables in all. A small area which becomes even smaller because they have reserved 3 to 4 square metres for a bar and a library.
My impressions start from the water. In mexico the restaurants always bring you flavored water, in some places with lemon, in others with leafs from jamaica, in Pujol it was flavored with mint. I didn’t get to drink any normal water other than the one at the house of our friends who hosted us (bottled water of course). Afterwards they brought us a “margarita” cocktail an inspiration of the chef, which was mediocre.
FOOD
First came a “welcome” dish which was a sorbet with fennel seed, juniper berries and lime. It didn’t have any special taste since it freezed my mouth and I couldn’t taste well.
As an appetizer came baby corn with mayonnaise made from chicatana ants, cofee and chilli costeño. I couldn’t grasp the special taste of the ants because, probably, I had no prior experience. Generally though the dish was very interesting.
Then followed three dishes inspired from the pre-Hispanic cuisine.. Kale (the leaf of a variety of cauliflower) with chicharrón (fried pig skin), aguachile made from chia seeds, avocado and salt from gusano (the worm of mezcal) and finally tostada (tortilla) from blue cornflower with a variety of chili peppers and radish. The first dish was neutral, but the other two were great.
Then came grilled leek with mayonnaise made from bone marrow and escamoles (ant larvae). Larvae are for Mexicans their own caviar. The mayonnaise from bone marrow and the larvae were a great combination (I was fortunate enough to try escamoles the previous day in a typical Mexican restaurant and so I had a way to compare) however, the leek was a bit overburned so it was dominant over the other flavours.
The next dish was a vegetable mix. Cauliflower, asparagus, curly kale and broccoli puree.
Moving on to the first main dish with a selection of 3 creations. I chose the “taco de ceviche de pescado, frijol y hoja santa”. The translated title of the dish is “stuffed taco with fish, beans and the Mexican aromatic plant hoja santa. And indeed, what I ate was taco stuffed with marinated fish (sea bass), bean puree, diferent fragrants and fried fish skin accompanied with green chili sauce. The result was very nice, maybe the best creation of Olvera.
For the second main dish I ordered raw fish accompaniment by “recado negro” which is chili, eggplant paste and lime. Another excellent dish.
Next up “madre mole, mole Nuevo”. A combination of mole (popular Mexican dish, something between sauce and puree) based on cocoa and pepper (chilli) pasilla, the mole has been fermented for 340 days. Clearly an original dish, but not exciting flavour for me.
Finally for the deserts, first was guava with scorched sweet potato
and an amazing desert which was beer foam, cooked wheat, apple and walnut praline.
SERVICE
Friendly, helpful and a lot of waiters. I have nothing to commend on service which is a good thing for a restaurant since you are supposed to focus on the enjoyment of your food.
ENVIRONMENT
To be truthful the room was a bit small. It had a low ceiling and a pillar in the middle of the room. Also the few square metres and the bar with the library made it really small.
BEVERAGES LIST
Few wines (the Mexicans prefer other beverages) a lot of beers, tequilas and mezcal. “Ratebeer” rates Pujol as one of the best pubs in Mexico. And it’s true because the variaty of beers from microbreweries it had were incredible. Unfortunately I couldn’t try them all.
CONCLUSION
In this restaurant I disliked two things and I liked two things.
First, the small room made me feel uneasy and the second, even though I am Greek, was the noise. Believe it or not it did not let me to concentrate on my food.
For the things that pleased me, were firstly the cooking of the chef Enrique Olvera, cooking which was mainly inspired by the pre-Hispanic cuisine, from all parts of Mexico but mainly from Oaxaca which has the oldest tradition in cuisine and secondly the money I paid.
I don’t know if I would rate it in the 100 world’s best, I do not have the proper experience anyway, but if I get the chance I will gladly revisit this restaurant, which I realised, by looking at it’s website, constantly changes it’s menu.
