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San Miguel de Allende is known for its fantastic food scene. It’s one of the things we were most looking forward to when we spent three weeks here in 2023. Although you can find excellent international cuisine from all over the world, let’s be honest, we were here for Mexican food. In fact, in 2010 UNESCO added Mexican cuisine to its list of the world’s “intangible cultural heritage.” There are markets, food carts, restaurants and rooftop bars offering dishes from all over Mexico, so the first order of business was getting familiar with the local culinary offerings. A great way to do this is through food tours and we did several right away. Two San Miguel de Allende food tours stood above the rest; we recommend them highly and I’ll detail them here.

Please note: Individual food tours can differ from tour to tour due to restaurant or dish availability. Operators typically work with a variety of restaurants for this reason.

Why Take a Food Tour?

There are several reasons why you want to take a food tour instead of just trying different places:

  • Local Sights
  • As you walk from place to place, the guide will point out the local landmarks and explain a little about their history and culture.
  • Interesting History
  • To understand a culture and its food, you need to understand the context in which it evolved.
  • Delicious Food
  • The local guide is the expert – he knows where to go and what to eat. The best things have been curated for you already. A bonus: recommendations for future meals!
  • Good Company
  • We’ve done over 40 food tours around the world, and we always meet the nicest people, foodies like us. They could come from anywhere in the world, but they love travel and exploring a new place through its food.

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Our Two Favorite San Miguel de Allende Food Tours

These tours were completely different but equally enjoyable, and they really enhanced our understanding and enjoyment of the foods and drinks they featured. We thought we knew a lot about Mexican food, tequila and mezcal, but we still learned so much. Plus, we had a fun afternoon and met some really nice people!

TOUR 1: Tacos and Tequila

Taste of San Miguel

This was a group food tour offered by Taste of San Miguel. Their promise: “While strolling Centro you will sample an amazing variety of authentic regional tacos as well as some delicious cocktails. Full portion samples, enough for a satisfying dinner, and five cocktails are included in the ticket price.” Duration: 3.5 hours

We met our guide Oscar and a few other participants at 4 pm on the rooftop of a local taco restaurant. We sipped margaritas on the rocks while we admired the view and got to know each other. Oscar was friendly and eager to share the local cuisine with us. We were equally eager, and a few moments later, our first taco arrived. It was a Baja-style fish taco, warm with a lightly-breaded filet of fish, wrapped in a thin corn tortilla and garnished with fresh tomatoes, cabbage slaw and crema. Delicious!

Baja-style fish taco in San Miguel de Allende
Baja-style fish taco in San Miguel de Allende

Our next stop was right across the street: one of the oldest cantinas in San Miguel. It was a tiny dive-like joint, with a few old-timers already bellied up to the bar. Currency bills from all over the world adorned the ceiling. Fun fact: the bar features a trough in the floor beneath the bar where dudes could relieve themselves without the fear of losing their place at the bar I guess. Charming! Here we were presented with a full-sized tequila shot known as a caballito. It was seriously smooth and not harsh like shots of really cheap tequila. Rather than putting salt on our hands, Oscar salted the limes, then we bit into one before tossing the drink back. It was lovely.

oldest bar in San Miguel de Allende

Eventually we left and headed up the street to our third location, a cool, funky place that was absolutely enchanting. We were treated to some enchiladas, accompanied by refried beans, rice, and a tiny cup of mezcal to be savored with orange slices and tajín. Really nice!

Our fourth stop had to be changed at the last minute due to a local power outage, so we dropped into Café La Parroquia to sample their enmolladas – similar to enchiladas but without the filling – and covered with a thick, rich mole, a traditional Mexican sauce. We washed this deliciousness down with a paloma, a cocktail which typically consists of tequila, lime juice, and grapefruit soda. Very refreshing.

Our last stop was at a nearby food cart. Very popular with locals, this is your go-to for late night tacos, as they don’t open until 8 pm. While they serve a variety of different tacos, you’re here for one thing: the al pastor taco, the best in town and perhaps one of the best anywhere. And it was exceptional… hot, juicy, spiced, marinated pork on a spit, sliced up and served on a corn tortilla with cilantro, onion, and chunks of pineapple. When you see the line, you’ll know you’re in the right place.


TOUR 2: Mezcal and Mole with a Certified Sommelier

airbnb Experience

This tour was located in a tasting room in one of San Miguel de Allende’s oldest neighborhoods. Our host Sergio, a certified sommelier, greeted us upon our arrival with a mezcalita – a margarita cocktail made with mezcal and ringed with salt – and it was delicious. We’re off to a good start!

This tour was less a classic food tour and more a sophisticated tasting – a pairing, if you will – of seven different artisanal mezcals (each one from a different agave plant) and seven different moles. I grew up with Mexican food (ok, Tex-Mex, whatever) and as I grew older and traveled more, and as the foodie scene in Texas resulted in more authentic Mexican restaurants, I’ve expanded my knowledge of regional Mexican cuisines. But I had a mole blind spot for some reason.

What is a mole? It’s a traditional sauce used in Mexican cooking, primarily in the Puebla and Oaxaca regions, characterized by a complex, layered flavor derived from intricate blends of fruits, nuts, chili peppers, spices like cumin and cinnamon, and even chocolate. Moles have dozens of ingredients, some as many as a hundred. They are an integral part of Mexican cuisine – every abuela probably has her own special recipe, and everyone has their favorite for sure.

When I previously thought of mole, I imagined a thick dark brown chocolatey sauce, but in fact they come in a vast array of colors and flavors.

mezcal and mole tasting on San Miguel de Allende food tours
Seven mezcals paired with seven moles

OK, so that’s mole.

What is a certified mezcal sommelier? This is a professional who has been certified by the Agave Spirits Institute to be educated in the history, tradition, and sensory tasting of agave spirits, as well as its production.

This experience taught us a lot about mezcal – where it comes from, how it differs from tequila, and whether or not there should be a worm in the bottle or even if it should be smoky. Hearing about its history and production from a professional with specific training and experience was fascinating.

During the tasting, we first tried a mezcal. Then we tried its paired mole, then (and here’s where the magic happens) we tried them together. Often both flavors changed into something even better, and these got even more delicious as we progressed through the tasting. In short, it was a revelation. Now I am really eager to get out there and try mole dishes in restaurants just like a Mexicana.

san-miguel-de-allende-food-tours

Other Food Tours

We did a third food tour in addition to these two. The Downtown San Miguel Food Tour, also by Taste of San Miguel, was okay. I have to believe we must have caught them on a weird day; we only went to two restaurants plus a couple of stands, instead of the six locations in the description, and it just felt a little improvised. We wished we had tried their An Evening in San Miguel Food Tour instead. Overall the tour seemed long on history and short on food.

Bonus: My Favorite Mezcal Cocktail in San Miguel de Allende

Tequila and mezcal cocktails are available at pretty much any restaurant here, but they are not all the same. I’ve tried my share of mezcal cocktails here, and one was my all-time favorite. We had dinner at a place called Tostévere (which we highly recommend!) The cocktail menu was hand-written on a card on the table, and the last one said simply “Smokey Mezcal.” I bit, and boy was I glad I did. It contained mezcal and pineapple juice, and it was topped with a thick homemade coconut cream, then garnished with a spicy tajín rim and a torched and still smoking sprig of rosemary. Riquísimo!

Smoky Mezcal Cocktail at Tostévere in San Miguel de Allende
Smoky Mezcal Cocktail at Tostévere in San Miguel de Allende

Conclusion: These Two San Miguel de Allende Food Tours are a Must

Food tours are a fast way to get yourself reliably integrated into the local culinary scene. This is critical if you only have a few days. If you have more time here, then I recommend you hit the tours early in your trip. That was you can try the best places PLUS get recommendations for the rest of the trip.


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