Alfonsina

You can find Alfonsina on the outskirts of Oaxaca, in the San Juan Bautista la Raya neighborhood that’s just 10 minutes away from the airport. After working at Pujol, one of Mexico City's best fine dining restaurants, the chef returned to Oaxaca to open Alfonsina. His mother is in charge of making the tortillas and the mole, and the mole negro (made with black chile chilhuacle and mexicano) and the coloradito (made with red chile ancho) are only served for lunch. At dinner, the focus is an Oaxacan and vegetable-heavy tasting menu, with dishes like a cauliflower tostada, a mushroom tamal, or a cumin mole with fresh fish from nearby Puerto Angel. It’s one of those restaurants that’s worth going to for both lunch and dinner—maybe even the same day.