Michelin arrived in Mexico recently enough that the guide still surprises people, and the thing it confirmed is what anyone who eats in this city already knew: several of the best restaurants in the Americas are within a few streets of each other in Roma Norte. This is who holds stars, which of them you can walk to, and how far ahead each one needs booking.
How many Michelin-starred restaurants are there in Mexico City?
The 2026 MICHELIN Guide Mexico, announced in May 2026, awarded stars to 29 restaurants across the country, and Mexico City holds the largest share of them. Two restaurants in the city hold two stars: Pujol and Quintonil, both in the Miguel Hidalgo borough. The rest of the city’s starred restaurants hold one star each.
One thing to hold on to: this list moves. El Califa de León, the taquería that made headlines when it was starred, lost its star between the 2025 and 2026 guides. The selection is announced annually, so check guide.michelin.com against any list you read, including this one.
Which starred restaurants are in Roma Norte?
Three one-star restaurants sit inside Roma Norte itself, within walking distance of each other and of Casa Goliana. That concentration is the practical argument for staying in this neighbourhood rather than in a hotel district: the best table in the city is a walk, not a car.
| Restaurant | Stars (2026) | Where | Booking |
| Rosetta | One | Colima 166, Roma Norte | Book well ahead, especially at weekends |
| Máximo Bistrot | One | Avenida Álvaro Obregón, Roma Norte | Book ahead |
| Expendio de Maíz Sin Nombre | One | Avenida Yucatán 84, corner of Tonalá, Roma Norte | No reservations. Four tables, no written menu. You queue |
| Masala y Maíz | One | Colonia Juárez, a short ride or a long walk north | Book ahead |
| Pujol · Quintonil | Two each | Miguel Hidalgo, in and around Polanco | One to two months |
| Sud 777 | One | Álvaro Obregón borough, in the south | Book ahead; allow travel time |
Others in the 2026 selection, including Em, Esquina Común and La Once Mil, sit elsewhere in the city. We have not confirmed their street addresses ourselves, so we are not going to print one; the guide’s own listing is the place to check before you book.
The one that takes no reservations
Expendio de Maíz Sin Nombre is the anomaly and, for many visitors, the best story of the trip. It has four tables, no written menu and no reservations. Jesús Tornés and his team cook whatever they have that day, built around masa, and they tell you what it is as they bring it. It holds a Michelin star and it is on Avenida Yucatán, in Roma Norte, a short walk from Casa Goliana.
The practical version: go early, expect to wait, and do not go with a group or on a schedule. It is the opposite of a booked tasting menu and it is a reminder that the interesting end of Mexico City eating was never only in the dining rooms.
How far ahead do you need to book?
One to two months for the two-star restaurants; weeks rather than days for the one-star rooms in Roma Norte. Pujol and Quintonil release their books on a rolling basis and fill within days of opening a new window, which is why the standard advice for a trip built around one dinner is to book the restaurant first and the flights afterwards.
A workable order:
- Two months out. Try for a two-star restaurant if that is the trip you want.
- Three to six weeks out. Book the Roma Norte one-star restaurants, especially for a Friday or Saturday.
- The week before. Everything else. Roma Norte has enough excellent unstarred restaurants that you will never be stuck; our guide to the neighbourhood’s restaurants is the fullest thing we have written.
- On the day. Expendio de Maíz, and the queue.
What does a tasting menu cost?
Typical 2026 market rates for a high-end tasting menu in Mexico City run in the region of 1,200 to 2,500 pesos per person before wine pairings. That is a range across the category, not any one restaurant’s price; each publishes its own and they change. Wine pairings frequently add as much again.
Put against the rest of the city, that spread is worth understanding. A dinner in a good, unstarred Roma Norte restaurant typically runs around 300 to 500 pesos a head, and street tacos are in the region of 15 to 20 pesos each. The distance between the top and the bottom of the Mexico City food market is enormous, and both ends are genuinely good. Our guide to what a trip costs sets out the whole range, along with how much to tip.
Is the starred food actually the best food in Mexico City?
Not necessarily, and it is worth saying so. The guide rewards a particular kind of restaurant, and Mexico City’s strongest eating is spread far wider than a list of nine or ten restaurants. A visitor who eats only at starred restaurants will have a very good week and will miss most of what makes the city interesting.
The trip we would actually build: one starred dinner, one long lunch at a good neighbourhood restaurant, one night of tacos and street food, one morning in a market, and the rest improvised within a few streets. For the drinking half of that, see bars and nightlife in Roma Norte and, for the mornings, the neighbourhood’s cafés.
Where to stay if the food is the reason you are coming
Roma Norte, and preferably on a residential street inside it. Three starred restaurants, the densest concentration of good unstarred ones, and the ability to walk home after a four-hour dinner instead of finding a car at midnight. Casa Goliana is an eight-room house on Guanajuato 199, in the middle of it, with breakfast included, which matters more than it sounds on the morning after a tasting menu.
If you are weighing neighbourhoods, Roma Norte vs Condesa covers the comparison. If the trip is an anniversary or a honeymoon, our guide for couples deals with how to build the days around one big dinner rather than the other way round.
Frequently asked questions
How many Michelin-starred restaurants are there in Mexico City?
The 2026 MICHELIN Guide Mexico, announced in May 2026, starred 29 restaurants nationally, with Mexico City holding the largest share. Pujol and Quintonil hold two stars each; the city’s other starred restaurants hold one.
Are there Michelin-starred restaurants in Roma Norte?
Yes, three: Rosetta on Colima 166, Máximo Bistrot on Avenida Álvaro Obregón and Expendio de Maíz Sin Nombre on Avenida Yucatán 84. All hold one star and all are within walking distance of each other.
How far ahead do you need to book?
One to two months for the two-star restaurants, which fill within days of opening a booking window. Three to six weeks for the one-star rooms in Roma Norte, particularly for a weekend dinner.
Can you eat at a starred restaurant without a reservation?
At Expendio de Maíz Sin Nombre, yes. It has four tables, no written menu and takes no bookings, so you queue. Everywhere else with a star expects a reservation.
How much does a tasting menu cost in Mexico City?
Typical 2026 rates run in the region of 1,200 to 2,500 pesos per person before wine pairings. Each restaurant publishes its own price and they change, so confirm when you book.
Which is better, Pujol or Quintonil?
Both hold two stars in the 2026 guide and both are in the Miguel Hidalgo borough rather than Roma Norte, so either involves a car. If you can only get one table, take the one you can get: the difference between them is a matter of taste, and the difference between having a reservation and not having one is the whole evening.
Written by Jose Gaspard, travel editor at Casa Goliana, an eight-room boutique hotel in a restored early twentieth-century mansion at Guanajuato 199, Colonia Roma Norte, Mexico City. See experiences or ask us about securing a table.
Star list checked: 1 September 2026, against the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Mexico selection announced in May 2026. The guide is revised annually and restaurants gain and lose stars, so confirm the current list at guide.michelin.com before you book. Prices are typical market ranges, not any single restaurant’s published price.
Related: Best restaurants in Roma Norte · Tacos and street food · Bars and nightlife · What a trip costs · Our rooms
