This article almost didn’t happen. We had some reservations because it was difficult to find an authentic cantina that was open and some local friends said it would be filled with old drunk men and could be dangerous. But it was our last night in Mexico City and life is short.
After some extensive googling, we hopped in the uber and were on our way to La Coyoacana.
The first thing we noticed was the atmosphere. It was early Sunday evening and a light drizzle surrounded us. However, as we got closer to our destination, the lights and sounds from the cantina flooded our senses. We managed to secure a table within 10 minutes even with a line outside.
It may have been grim outside, but inside was as festive and energized as ever. Classic mariachi music along with loud conversations and laughter radiated throughout the traditionally decorated interior. The menus were pretty vast as seen below.
Now might be a good time to explain what is a cantina is.
Depending on the location, a cantina is just another word for a bar in a spanish-speaking country that typically will serve a full menu’s worth of food. However, in Mexico City traditionally, it would be the type of bar frequented by males to consume alcohol and appetizers. While a lot of cantinas have renovated and tried to appeal to more modern audiences, La Coyoacana still is one of the few in Mexico City that holds the traditional essence of a cantina.
Now back to the story.
We started off with ordering some beers and absinth as far as drinks went. Serge had some in the Netherlands in the past and hallucinated, so Fred was ready. Food ordering came when the drinks arrived, and we decided on some arrachera (skirt steak) and traditional Cochinita Pibil (marinated pulled pork shoulder that’s great for taco meat).
The drinks and food did not take long to arrive and the portions were decent.
The star of the show was definitely the absinth for me. At only around a shot glass’ worth, man was it strong! I don’t even want to think about taking a shot of it in one go… It kind of tastes like a combination of strong gin, rum, and vodka with a hint of floral notes. The beer was standard with nothing too noteworthy to report.
As someone began celebrating a birthday (mariachi started serenading to a girl), we just casually sipped on our drinks and ate food while we soaked in the environment. If you’re not a fan of loud environments surrounded by drunk folks, a cantina is probably not the place for you. All in all, we spent probably around 2.5 hrs at that location before heading out.
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