CDMX Day 3– 9/21/23

This morning we really took it easy. Another workout for Matt (maybe I should join him one of these days…), and breakfast at the hotel buffet, which was great. We ate way too much then went to meet our guide, David, at the ashkenazi synagogue for a Jewish Mexico City tour. I found him by researching the foremost Jewish authority in the city, Monica Unikel, and stalking her on various social media outlets until she answered me about booking a tour. We walked all around the historic district and he taught us about how Jews ended up her (some fleeing persecution in Spain, some fleeing the holocaust and some just looking for a bit of a better life). The earliest Jews from Spain were mostly eradicated as the inquisition followed with the conquistadores, but many Jewish customs persist in Mexican cultures without be them really realizing it, like lighting a candle on Friday nights. Many Jews converted for public purposes but continued to practice Judaism in secret, they were/are called CryptoJudeos. Another SUPER interesting factoid was about the Sephardic/Spanish speaking Jews vs the Ashkenazis. First of all, the Spanish speaking Jews (which includes not only the Jews from Spanish speaking countries, but also those from middle eastern counties like Turkey and Syria, because they really only spoke ladino which was very similar to the Spanish of the time) had a huge leg up in the language department, and also they were mostly merchants. So they came here and it was basically business as usual and they were able to advance their stations much more quickly and easily. The Ashlenazis were totally fishies out of water. They didn’t know the language and they were mostly professionals, so they had to start over, in a country where they didn’t speak the language, in jobs they had no experience in (informal commerce), so it took much longer for them to gain a foothold. Therefore, the Sephardic synagogue was built much earlier than the ashkenazi synagogue. The whole tour was just fascinating, truly. Two hours flew by. I could have spent all day with this dude, while Matt enjoyed it but was ready to move on with his life. (Monica Unikel WhatsApp +52 55 5507 6908)

Next, we walked around the Zocalo for literally an hour trying to find the Diego Rivera murals in the National Museum, only to learn it was closed for the day. We were very hot and tired, and definitely did not get into a fight… then we stopped for some AC and an n/a bev on our way to lunch at Lardo.

Ooooh Lardo. Another amazing culinary experience. I’m really into these restaurants. They’re literally all sooo good. And the service!! The food comes fast and furious, so don’t order all at once. They will keep your water and wine filled at all times and you’ll go through 3-5 forks a meal. I just love it. We had taggiasca olives (my fave), a green salad with citrus and pear, a shaved cucumber salad with lemon and dried shrimp (very umami), pan con tomate with Serrano ham, seafood fried rice (seems to be a very popular dish, on lots of menus, was 💣), and a duck breast with curry sauce, eggplant and romanesco. I’d go back here in a heartbeat. Didn’t even scratch the surface of the menu. Also, good a Italian natural white and Matt had sake (on the appertivo list! It was actually a great pairing!!). (https://instagram.com/lardomexico?igshid=MzRlOD…)

By then, we’d surpassed our 10k steps and Matt forced me back to the room for a little siesta, which only one of us took. I was happy to relax and read my book for a bit but then the schpilkes hit so we headed back out. We went to Polanco, which is the fanciest of the neighborhoods. We did go into some luxury stores, but somehow they felt kind of depressing. Polanco itself though, is beautiful. We got churros at Churrerìa el Moro (https://elmoro.mx) and sat in a park to get our sugar buzz going. We then went to the W for a drink (why? Idk.), and one more at a random cigar bar, which was nonsmoking on the ground floor and was playing American football so Matt was quite pleased. They did have an espresso machine, and made me a perfect espresso martini which, for me, is actually just espresso and vodka. Quick trip back to the hotel and it was off to dinner. (Never skip a meal!)

Tonight we went to Sartoria (https://sartoria.mx), which is a more traditional but still modern italian situation. Another great meal with amazing service. One funny thing about this place is that the ceiling is curved so you’re almost in a tunnel, and you can hear the people across the restaurant like they’re sitting next to you, talking in your ear. I kept saying to Matt, “what? What?” And he was like, “I’m not saying anything!” Then I realized it was a gringo across the way. Dishes ordered included: pecorino with honey, eggplant parm (basically eggplant chips with sauce and mozzarella, delish), pea risotto, tagliolini with truffle and spaghetti with tomato pesto with broad beans and castlevetrano olives. It was just great! Again, no energy or need for dessert, and here we are, in bed. About 90 min door-to-door tonight. Lol like I said, the food comes fast!!Read more