Cetli
Complimentary Appetizer – Fresh Cheese Spread, Cheese with Beets, Salsa, House Bread, Empanada, Refritos, Oranges with Chile
Chile en Nogada – Poblano Pepper stuffed with Pork & Beef, Prunes, Raisins, Pineapple, Cinnamon, Walnut, Cheese, Sherry, Pomegranate, Parsley
Metztli – Chicken Breast, Plantains, Black Mole, Sour Cream, Sesame
Seasoned Rice
Cetli – Sweet Corn Cake, Chocolate Kahlua Sauce, Fruit, Cream
De la Rosa Original
Acting in stark contrast to the likes of Hartwood, ARCA and NÜ it is perhaps one kilometer from Avenida Tulum that diners will find Restaurante Cetli, a humble space built of adobe where Chef Claudia Perez Rivas prepares historic Mexican fine dining plates in an open kitchen almost entirely by herself.
A native of Puebla, her home state represented across Cetli’s multi-page menu, it was just past noon Saturday that doors were found open, the Chef and a single assistant seating guests amongst folk art as overhead fans spun to abate heat and humidity.
Open early for Breakfast and cash-only, with the whole menu starting at 11:00am, it is while debating choices that a young man acting as server + busser + dishwasher + host + translator + sous gathers Water and place settings, everything decidedly rustic right down to hand-painted stone plates.
Happy to accept recommendations, many dishes seasonal including Cetli’s now-signature, it is while waiting that diners are gifted a complimentary Appetizer, seasoned Beans and Cheese each memorable while flaming hot Salsa pairs well to a tiny Empanada and Bread ready to be slathered in Herb Butter.
Approximately thirty minutes between ordering and eating with only one other table occupied, the love and labor involved in each recipe evident as Chef Perez Rivas works quietly, fans of Mole will be fascinated by an intense version served around rolled Chicken with Bananas and Chaya while classic Chile en Nogada dances across the palate, morphing from unctuous meat to dried Fruits beneath smooth and nutty Sauce.
Best compared to eating at the home of a talented and eccentric Abuela, hearty portions justifying prices ranging 200 to 400 pesos, Dessert poses a whole ‘nother set of tough choices, though Cetli’s eponymous Corn Cake with Chocolate Kahlua Sauce is undeniably delicious, rich, complex and large enough to share.
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