40 mid-range places in Oaxaca, editor-picked. the comfortable everyday-good restaurants in Oaxaca, with real cooking and no surprise on the bill. All Oaxaca food.
Cafe Brujula ★ 4.8
centro-historico · Macedonio Alcala 104, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Cafe Brujula is Oaxaca's specialty-coffee anchor on the Andador, roasting small lots from Sierra Norte and Pluma in-house at the Garcia Vigil sister branch.
Tlayudas Libres ★ 4.7
centro-historico · C. de Los Libres 212, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Tlayudas Libres on Calle de Los Libres opens at 21:00 and runs to 03:00 with wood-fire tlayudas, tasajo and quesillo, the canonical Oaxaca late-night stop.
Muss Cafe ★ 4.6
centro-historico · Miguel Hidalgo 911, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Muss Cafe on Miguel Hidalgo sources organic Finca Las Nieves beans from the Pacific-brushed Sierra Sur farms above 1850 metres, roasting on-premises since.
Lechoncito de Oro ★ 4.6
centro-historico · C. de Los Libres S/N, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Lechoncito de Oro on Calle de Los Libres runs 20:00-03:00 with suckling-pig tacos, tostadas and tortas, the most famous late-night lechon in town.
La Teca ★ 4.6
reforma · Violetas 200-A, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Teca in Reforma is Deyanira Aquino's home-kitchen Istmo room with five tables, no sign and 30 years of garnachas-on-banana-leaf cooking unchanged.
Tip: Book by phone the day before (951 515 0563); lunch only, 14:00-16:30.
Boulenc ★ 4.6
centro-historico · Calle Porfirio Diaz 207, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Boulenc on Porfirio Diaz is Oaxaca's all-day breakfast headliner, a courtyard with sourdough toast, mushroom banh mi and vegan-marked plates from 08:00 daily.
Itanoni ★ 4.6
reforma · Av Belisario Dominguez 513, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Itanoni in Reforma serves the Oaxacan breakfast canon from 07:00 daily: memelas with frijol, tetelas with hierba santa and a chocolate or atole de granillo.
La Teca ★ 4.5
reforma · Violetas 200-A, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Teca in Reforma is Deyanira Aquino Pineda's 30-year Istmo institution, a five-table room where garnachas and tamales arrive on banana leaves.
La Teca ★ 4.5
reforma · Violetas 200-A, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Teca in Reforma is Deyanira Aquino Pineda's 30-year Istmo institution, a five-table room where banana-leaf tamales and garnachas arrive on enamel plates.
Boulenc Coffee ★ 4.5
centro-historico · Calle Porfirio Diaz 207, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Boulenc's coffee program ships Oaxacan single-origin beans through espresso and filter brews paired with the in-house masa-madre sourdough toast platters.
Selva ★ 4.5
centro-historico · Macedonio Alcala 403 int. 6, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Selva on Macedonio Alcala stays open 16:00-01:00 Mon-Sat, a 50-Best-Discovery bar with hoja santa and Oaxacan-cheese cocktails on the late-night list.
Ancestral Cocina Tradicional ★ 4.5
xochimilco · C. Jose Lopez Alavez 1347, Barrio de Xochimilco, 68040 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Ancestral in Xochimilco is the thatched-roof grove on Lopez Alavez, well away from Centro tourist flow, with the seven-moles tasting platter as the headline.
Tip: Take a taxi (the Lopez Alavez block is a steep climb); book the moles tasting for two.
Muss Cafe ★ 4.5
centro-historico · Miguel Hidalgo 911, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Muss Cafe on Miguel Hidalgo is the Centro brunch spot with single-origin pour-overs, shakshuka, sourdough toast and the in-house bakery's cardamom buns.
Yu Ne Nisa ★ 4.4
reforma · Amapolas 1425, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Yu Ne Nisa (Land and Water in Zapotec) on Amapolas runs Ofelia Jimenez's Istmo cooking in a quiet Reforma residential strip, with cocina de autor.
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.
Zandunga Sabor Istmeno ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Calle de Manuel Garcia Vigil 512-E, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Zandunga on Garcia Vigil runs Tehuantepec-isthmus food in a corner-room courtyard, with garnachas and banana-leaf tamales since 2002 on the Andador strip.
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.
Tlayudas Las Animas ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Mariano Matamoros 203, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Tlayudas Las Animas on Mariano Matamoros 203 runs Thursday-Saturday 18:00-23:30 near Carmen Alto, quieter than the Libres stand just blocks away.
Cuish Mezcaleria ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Diaz Ordaz 712, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Cuish on Diaz Ordaz runs Tuesday to Saturday 17:00-03:00 with wild-agave mezcals downstairs and live music and art shows in the upstairs hall after dark.
Sabina Sabe ★ 4.4
centro-historico · 5 de Mayo 209, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Sabina Sabe on Cinco de Mayo 209 runs until midnight most nights as a 50-Best-Discovery cocktail bar named for Maria Sabina, with multiple drinking rooms.
Yu Ne Nisa ★ 4.4
reforma · Amapolas 1425, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Yu Ne Nisa in Reforma is the under-the-radar Istmeno-Zapotec room on Amapolas, with totopos istmenos and chile rellenos de marlin in a quiet street.
Tip: Take a taxi, the address is hard to spot from the corner of Amapolas and Coniraya.
Mercado Sanchez Pascuas ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Calle Porfirio Diaz 719, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Mercado Sanchez Pascuas on Porfirio Diaz is Centro's locals-only morning market, with tejate, tamales and comedor counters from 06:00 in three small halls.
Tip: Arrive 07:00-08:30 for the freshest tamales; the comedor counters (Yolis, Lupita) close around 15:00.
Empanadas de amarillo (Plaza Llano) ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Plaza Llano, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
The empanadas-de-amarillo grandmas at Plaza Llano cook only Friday to Sunday afternoons, folding thin masa around mole amarillo and quesillo on the comal.
Tip: Friday-Sunday from 16:00; expect to share a bench, the bench at the corner of Plaza Llano is the centre.
Marito y Moglie Cafe ★ 4.4
centro-historico · Miguel Hidalgo 1204, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Marito y Moglie on Pino Suarez is the brunch room famous for Turkish eggs, ciabatta sandwiches and pastries baked in the in-house oven, with pour-over coffee.
La Olla ★ 4.3
centro-historico · Reforma 402, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Olla on Reforma is Pilar Cabrera's twenty-year converted-house room two blocks from Santo Domingo, kitchen behind the Casa de los Sabores school.
Mezcalogia (kitchen) ★ 4.3
centro-historico · C. de Manuel Garcia Vigil 509, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Mezcalogia on Garcia Vigil is the Casa Cortes family's El Jolgorio mezcaleria with a strong kitchen of Oaxacan plates and a 200-bottle mezcal cocktail bar.
Yu Ne Nisa ★ 4.3
reforma · Amapolas 1425, Colonia Reforma, 68050 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Yu Ne Nisa (Land and Water in Zapotec) on Amapolas runs Istmo cooking in a quiet Reforma residential strip, with cocina de autor takes on Tehuano classics.
La Olla ★ 4.3
centro-historico · Reforma 402, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Olla on Reforma is Pilar Cabrera's twenty-year converted-house room two blocks from Santo Domingo, the kitchen that built the Casa de los Sabores school.
Mezcalogia (kitchen) ★ 4.3
centro-historico · C. de Manuel Garcia Vigil 509, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Mezcalogia on Garcia Vigil is the Casa Cortes family's El Jolgorio mezcaleria with a strong kitchen of Oaxacan plates and a 200-bottle mezcal cocktail bar.
Cafebre ★ 4.3
centro-historico · C. de Manuel Bravo 108, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Cafebre on Manuel Bravo is Centro Oaxaca's freshest-roast option, with small-batch coffee from the Mixteca Alta and Sierra Norte and a new Reforma sister.
Mezcalogia ★ 4.3
centro-historico · C. de Manuel Garcia Vigil 509, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Mezcalogia on Garcia Vigil stays open Tuesday to Saturday until 00:30, with the Casa Cortes family's El Jolgorio mezcaleria and the kitchen on Oaxacan plates.
Tlayudas Las Animas ★ 4.3
centro-historico · Mariano Matamoros 203, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Tlayudas Las Animas on Mariano Matamoros 203 is the Thursday-to-Saturday night-grill stand near Carmen Alto, quieter than Libres just blocks away.
Tip: Lighter crowd than Tlayudas Libres; order the tlayuda with tasajo and quesillo for the canonical bite.
Santa Hierba ★ 4.3
jalatlaco · 5 de Mayo 505, Barrio de Jalatlaco, 68080 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Santa Hierba in Jalatlaco runs a plant-based brunch on Cinco de Mayo 505: vegan chilaquiles, sourdough tartines and herbal teas in a rooftop courtyard.
La Olla ★ 4.3
centro-historico · Reforma 402, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
La Olla on Reforma serves the long Oaxacan breakfast (huevos divorciados, chilaquiles verdes, mole-and-egg plates) in the converted-house dining rooms.
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).
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).
Cabuche ★ 4.2
centro-historico · Miguel Hidalgo 1017, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Cabuche near the Zocalo is an inviting Oaxacan room with a deep pulque, mezcal and craft-beer list and a 100-peso two-course lunch that locals book daily.
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 nightly and a seven-moles platter on the standard menu.
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 and rojo).
Cabuche ★ 4.2
centro-historico · Miguel Hidalgo 1017, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
Cabuche near the Zocalo is an inviting Oaxacan room with a deep pulque, mezcal and craft-beer list and a 100-peso two-course comida corrida lunch daily.