Fonda Margarita

Fonda Margarita is one of the most loved breakfast spots in Mexico City, a simple fonda on Calle Adolfo Prieto in Tlacoquemécatl del Valle. Its story began with Margarita Lugo de Castillo, who sold food from a charcoal brazier under a tree in the neighbourhood, feeding construction workers in the area. In 1956 she moved into the current premises, and after her death her children María de Jesús, Joel and Ricardo took over, later joined by other relatives. The late Anthony Bourdain described it as one of the best places in the world to eat breakfast.

The food is cooked over charcoal in large clay and metal pots, with seasoning kept to onion, garlic and tomato. The house speciality is scrambled eggs with beans, and other daily dishes include chicharrón in green salsa and chilaquiles, with or without egg. Specials rotate through the week, such as espinazo al guajillo on Tuesdays, milanesas on Fridays and pancita on Saturdays. Most breakfasts come with orange juice and café de olla.

The fonda serves breakfast only. According to Chilango, it opens from 6:30 until noon, Tuesday to Sunday, and is closed on Mondays, but the most popular dishes often sell out by around 11:00, so the earlier you arrive the better. Because the dishes are prepared in batches in big pots over charcoal, once a pot is finished that dish is gone for the day, which is why late arrivals find a shorter choice. Seating is at long shared tables that are almost always full, so be ready to sit with strangers and to wait a short while for a place. Prices are modest: Chilango puts the average spend at around 150 pesos a head.

It suits early risers, budget travellers and anyone who wants to see how a working Mexico City breakfast fonda runs. The fonda's beginnings as a stall feeding construction workers still show in its simple, filling food and its early start. Allow 45 minutes to an hour.

Fonda Margarita has been included by Culinaria Mexicana in its #Los250mx list of Mexican places to eat. There is no website, so the opening times above come from Chilango's 2024 report and are worth confirming locally before an early start.