Oaxaca: Taste Mole & Authentic Mexican Flavors
Explore Oaxaca’s colorful streets and markets! Taste a variety of local dishes, from handmade tlayudas to rich black mole, while learning the stories and flavors behin...
Mole verde is the green herb-and-tomatillo mole of the seven, thickened with masa and bright with hierba santa, epazote, parsley and pumpkin seeds.
Mole verde is the fresh-herb mole, the lightest and quickest of the seven, with no chocolate and no dried chiles. Tomatillos, hierba santa, epazote, parsley and toasted pumpkin seeds make the base; masa thickens it. The dish anchors Sunday family lunches across Oaxaca and is the brightest mole on the menu at Las Quince Letras, Los Pacos and Restaurante Catedral.
5 editor picks for Mole verde in Oaxaca, ranked by editorial score. All Oaxaca signature dishes · Mole verde across every city.
Tierra del Sol ★ 4.8
centro-historico · Reforma 411, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Tierra del Sol on Reforma is Olga Cabrera's three-floor Oaxaca room, named Mexico's Restaurant of the Year for 2026, with a rooftop comal of tetelas.
Las Quince Letras ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Mariano Abasolo 300, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Las Quince Letras on Abasolo near Santo Domingo is Celia Florian's women-owned mole room since 1992, where the mole negro runs more than thirty ingredients.
Ancestral Cocina Tradicional ★ 4.4
xochimilco · C. Jose Lopez Alavez 1347, Barrio de Xochimilco, 68040 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Ancestral Cocina Tradicional in Xochimilco is a thatched-roof grove on Lopez Alavez, the seven-moles tasting platter room since 2017 in the weaving district.
Los Pacos ★ 4.2
centro-historico · Abasolo 121, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Los Pacos on Abasolo with a rooftop terrace runs seven moles on one tasting board (negro, coloradito, amarillo, verde, chichilo, manchamanteles, rojo).
Restaurante Catedral ★ 4.2
centro-historico · Calle de Manuel Garcia Vigil 105, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Restaurante Catedral one block from the cathedral runs a generous courtyard with live music and a seven-moles platter (negro, chichilo, amarillo).
Learn to cook it, or eat it with a guide
Mole verde makes more sense with someone from Oaxaca explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
Taste Mole verde with a local in Oaxaca
Oaxaca: Oaxacan Mole Workshop with a Traditional Cook
Explore traditional Oaxacan mole with local touches. Begin with an exciting market tour to gather essential ingredients.
Oaxaca: Traditional Mole Cooking Class with Market Visit
Learn how to prepare authentic Oaxacan mole with a traditional cook. Visit a local market, cook together, and enjoy the meal before returning to your lodging.