Jorge Vallejo's Polanco restaurant takes its name from an edible weed — quintonil, or amaranth greens — and that choice tells you everything about the philosophy: Mexican terroir elevated through technique, the market dictating the menu, and wild or foraged ingredients treated with the same seriousness as luxury products. The cooking is lighter and more vegetal than Pujol's, with a focus on the day's best produce transformed through classical technique and contemporary imagination. The dining room is bright, the service warm rather than ceremonial, and the tasting menu reads like a seasonal map of what grows in central Mexico.
Location
Polanco, Mexico City
Insider Intel
The tasting menu shifts with the market but look for the hoja santa courses, the mole variations, and anything featuring chapulines (grasshoppers) or escamoles (ant larvae) — these pre-Hispanic ingredients are handled with precision here. The a la carte option at lunch allows selective exploration. The beverage pairing integrates Mexican wines from Valle de Guadalupe alongside traditional ferments.
Weekday lunch for the a la carte menu and a more relaxed pace. Dinner service is tasting-menu only and requires booking 3-4 weeks ahead. The dining room catches afternoon light beautifully, making lunch the more photogenic meal.
Located on Newton in Polanco, a few blocks from Pujol — eating at both in the same trip is the CDMX fine-dining pilgrimage. The tasting menu is approximately 3,000-4,500 MXN per person before pairings. The a la carte lunch menu (when available) runs 800-1,500 MXN per person and is the more accessible entry point. The wine list includes Mexican producers that are difficult to find outside the country. Reservations through the website. Smart casual dress. Card accepted.