La Fonda del Recuerdo

La Fonda del Recuerdo se encuentra en la periferia de Polanco, lejos de las partes más bulliciosas y turísticas de Polanco. Se trata de lo mexicano probado y verdadero que puede obtener un restaurante.

El restaurante está muy bien decorado con una enorme pintura de un joven mexicano dando una serenata a una chica del calendario mexicano, que adorna una pared, y colorido papel picado esparcido por la habitación en líneas que van de viga a viga. El menú colorido imita la pintura del punto focal en la sala principal.

And yes, of course, mariachis were singing Mexican classic folk-music.

I was recently at La Fonda del Recuerdo for lunch. Started the meal with classic tamales de elote. The corn masa tamal was slightly sweeter than typical. No filling. Just the taste of delicious sweet cornmeal accompanied by a few batons of a slightly pungent, creamy white cheese.

For the main course, I had the pork mole. Although pork is typically overcooked in Mexico City, this pork was perfect. A slightly crisp edge, with buttery soft pork beneath, all covered in a complex and rich smoked-poblano mole. The menu indicates it’s made with twenty-eight different ingredients. But I only detected twenty-seven.

Service was very good and the lead singer for the group of mariachis never missed a note either.

Despite being a bit off the beaten track, the prices were about the same as the more favorably located Villa Maria that we recently reviewed.

Still a good showing. Good enough to place La Fonda del Recuerdo in our list of the top-10 restaurants in Mexico City offering traditional Mexican cuisine.