Myth #1: Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s Independence Day. (That would be in September, with its own patriotic food traditions.)
Myth #2: Cinco de Mayo is an important holiday in Mexico. While it marks a famous 1862 battle — where Mexican troops miraculously repelled better-armed French invaders — outside of the city of Puebla where the battle was fought, the fifth of May is like any other day of the month.
Still, in the U.S., Cinco de Mayo is a genuine cause for celebration. Scholars pinpoint the start of its observance to the American Civil War, when Latinos in California cheered on the French defeat in Puebla and raised their hopes for the Union Army in the U.S. at the same time.
The distinctly Mexican-American holiday became a day for celebrating that community’s culture, and with the help of beer marketers in more recent years, something the whole country could get behind.
Below are seven spots across the country with some of the MICHELIN Guide’s best odes to Mexico and Mexican American cuisine.
Pascual
Washington, D.C.
Pascual in Washington, D.C., is a cool, boundary-pushing kind of Mexican cuisine from Chefs Isabel Coss and Matt Conroy, a husband-wife team. Coss, from Mexico City, is a pastry star with experience in the world of pioneering Mexican Chef Enrique Olvera of Pujol. Conroy rose through kitchens across the Northeast, with stops atop Mexican heavy hitters like Brooklyn’s Oxomoco. Both of their backgrounds shine through in dishes like a lamb neck barbacoa that’s woodfired and smoked under agave, and grilled napa cabbage with a savory masa crumble.
Lamb neck barbacoa and seafood tostada. © Deb Lindsey | © Kelsey Shoemaker/Pascual
Sol de México
Chicago, Illinois
Chef/owner Juan Carlos Tello of Chicago’s Sol de México grew up by a market in the central Mexican state of Michoacán and moved to Chicago without a word of English. His successful progression through the restaurant scene is a testament to his skills in the kitchen and the city’s mighty Mexican community, second only in size to Los Angeles. Tello’s three-course menu changes every few months and features flavors from across Mexico, with an emphasis on deeply rich sauces and moles and fine dining dishes far outside the traditional Mexican playbook.
Tacos and margaritas are the perfect match for Cinco de Mayo. © Noncreative/Sol de Mexico
Suerte
Austin, Texas
The list of Mexican distillates runs nearly 10 pages at Suerte in Austin, with unique bottles of tequila and mezcal joined by spirits like raicilla, an herby agave drink made by the Pacific, and sotol, a super smokey borderland liquor, that are hard to find outside of Mexico. Excellent classic and spicy margaritas are on offer from the bar, but the Don Dario is the house pick for a limey cocktail, made with sarsaparilla, tamarind and slightly sweet reposado tequila. Everything pairs well with Chef Fermin Nunez’s menu, filled with favorites from his native Mexico like melty Wagyu brisket suadero tacos.
Don Dario cocktail and taco feast. © Andrew Reiner/Suerte
Superica
Atlanta, Georgia
Tex-Mex is a go-to on Cinco de Mayo, with all the cheesy nostalgia you want on this cross-border holiday. In that cuisine, Chef Ford Fry’s Superica reigns supreme. Homemade flour tortillas, salsas mixed up fresh daily and a stellar selection of margaritas are the baseline in this Atlanta spot, with other locations across the Southeast. Bubbling skillet queso studded with chorizo and cheffy fajitas — the pork belly carnitas come with a guava glaze — take it next-level.
Bubbling queso and steak nachos. © Rocket Farm Restaurants/Superica
Taqueria El Chato
New York, New York
The mega trompo of pastor meat swirling on a spit at Taqueria El Chato in Brooklyn is a glistening green flag. Like in the taquerías of Mexico City, where the taco de pastor is the king of the menu, a massive trompo is a sign of a place that knows what they’re doing. El Chato makes theirs with marinated pork belly and flank steak, and carves it onto a homemade corn tortilla. To eat like a real chilango (or Mexico City resident) order it with everything: onions, cilantro, red and green salsa and a slice of pineapple on top.
Marinated pork belly and flank steak tacos on homemade corn tortillas. © Adam Friedlander/Taqueria El Chato
Taquiza
Miami, Florida
Steps from the water in Miami Beach, Taquiza is a neighborhood spot that knows how to throw a good party. On Cinco de Mayo, they’re opening with a menu of special dishes, like a spicy shrimp cocktail, plus deals on beer and tequila. But this place is no cheap thrill: Chef Steve Santana nixtamalizes in house, treating corn he sources from small producers with an alkaline solution and grinding it into masa, the precursor dough to many Mexican staples. Tacos, like the shrimp gobernador, with roasted peppers and gooey Oaxacan cheese, look as good as they taste on the chewy blue homemade tortillas.
Mahi taco and Tecate beer-braised chicken tacos on homemade blue corn tortillas. © Anthony Nader/Taquiza
Villa’s Tacos
Los Angeles, California
Villa’s Tacos has a lot to celebrate this year. In February, in his Latin-mania halftime show, Bad Bunny sauntered up to Chef/owner Victor Villa, who cameoed for a few seconds dancing behind a taco stand. Villa, a first generation Mexican American, started his beloved taquería in the yard of his grandmother’s house before moving to a brick-and-mortar location where lines are the norm. The signature here is the queso taco, with refried beans, onion, cilantro, guacamole, cotija cheese, crema and melted Monterrey Jack stacked on a blue corn tortilla.
Queso taco, with refried beans, onion, cilantro, guacamole, cotija cheese, crema and melted Monterrey Jack stacked on a blue corn tortilla. © Memo Torres/Villa’s Tacos
Hero Image: Chile relleno and margarita. © Noncreative /Sol de Mexico
Thumb Image: Marinated pork belly taco. © Adam Friedlander/Taqueria El Chato
Written by
David Shortell
David Shortell is a contributing writer for The MICHELIN Guide, based in Mexico City. His news and travel reporting has appeared in publications including The New York Times, CNN, and Travel+Leisure.
