Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
A small bread roll deep fried until the crust turns brittle, split and filled with refried beans, shredded beef, lettuce and cream. The contrast between hot bread and cold crema is the point.
The pelona is the most Pueblan sandwich after the cemita and the least exported. The roll goes into hot fat whole, which turns the crust brittle and slightly greasy in a way that would be a fault anywhere else and is the whole appeal here. It is then split, spread with refried beans, filled with shredded beef or chicken, and finished with lettuce, salsa and a heavy spoon of crema. Antojitos Acapulco on 5 Poniente fries them to order for around thirty pesos, and Comal on 16 de Septiembre serves a tidier version at about forty-nine.
4 editor picks for Pelonas in Puebla, ranked by editorial score. All Puebla signature dishes · Pelonas across every city.
Comal looks straight at Puebla cathedral from 16 de Septiembre, cooking blue-corn chilaquiles, chanclas, pelonas and mole poblano from breakfast to midnight.
OrderBlue-corn chilaquiles at breakfast, chanclas in guajillo salsa after dark.
TipThe upstairs tables look straight at the cathedral, and they are the first to go on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Antojitos Tomy on 5 Poniente is where Puebla eats cemita poblana, chanclas and chalupas at one counter, from nine in the morning until nine at night.
OrderOne cemita poblana and one order of chanclas, split between two people.
TipChanclas here run about 55 pesos and are milder than the version at Comal, which drowns them in more guajillo.
Antojitos Acapulco is a narrow 5 Poniente counter in Puebla frying molotes and pelonas, plus tacos de canasta, from mid-morning until eleven at night.
OrderMolotes with tinga, and a pelona while you wait for them to fry.
TipPelonas here cost around 30 pesos and are fried to order, so expect a short wait at the counter rather than a rack of them.
Antojitos Mellos is the weekend mole and pipian stop in Barrio de los Remedios, Puebla, with pozole and mole de panza on the board the rest of the week.
OrderMole poblano or pipián, but only at the weekend when both are cooked.
TipPozole and mole de panza cover the weekdays; the mole and pipián are Saturday and Sunday only, from one in the afternoon.
Pelonas makes more sense with someone from Puebla explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
Guided tour · 1 hour
Embark on a once-in-a-lifetime experience on your visit to Puebla with a morning hot air balloon ride followed by a wine toast and breakfast.
Guided tour · 12 hours
High Mountain, hiking through pine and oak forests, connection with Nature
Guided tour · 10 hours
Explore the trails that connected the Aztec empire and walk between Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl, feel the power of the earth under your feet, and see an active volcano.