La Teca

These are the authentic spots where you really feel the true texture, flavor, and color of what is Oaxaca." When she's craving a more formal affair, Coon hits up dependable classics including La Teca, where mole and tamales reign supreme; Itanoni, a tortilleria and antojeria that chef Alice Waters once called her favorite restaurant in the city; and Los Danzantes, an artsy space featuring rustic fare and extensive pours of mezcal. Finally, at Criollo she enjoys tasting menus that are equal parts pre-Hispanic cuisine and modern fusion.

La Teca has been around for over 30 years under the dedicated care of Deyanira Aquino Pineda (also known as La Teca), and the reason is simple: They’re pumping out traditional dishes from el Istmo de Tehuantepec, a narrow region between Oaxaca and Veracruz, that are as rich as they are hefty. Hone in on the garnachas, fried corn disks topped with shredded meat, and pickled cabbage that cut through the rich flavors. Or the molotes de plátano, soft and fluffy plantain croquettes accompanied by sour cream and creamy-salty costeño cheese.

Occasionally it's nice to sit at a proper table for a meal, which is where the city's excellent restaurants come in La Teca offers the best home-style cooking in town, served on the ground floor and patio of the owner's home. The restaurant specializes in the tasty flavors of the state's Isthmus region. Be sure to start with the famous garnachas, mini disks of fried masa topped with shredded meat and cabbage.

Oaxaca City is full of great options for “valley style” cuisine, but for under-the-radar flavors that highlight the diversity of food around the state, particularly from the south east region of Tehuantepec, head to La Teca, a small restaurant situated inside the owner’s house. Dishes combine sweet and sour flavors and show off tropical ingredients like plantains with dry cheese and sour cream. There’s an exuberant ceremonial mole, corn cake, the most delicious baked mashed potatoes and amazing bite size garnachas (fried tortillas topped with stewed meat).

Recipes from the distant Isthmus of Tehuantepec vary from those native to Oaxaca City in many ways—and this restaurant is one of the few places in the city itself to find them. There’s no better representation of the cuisine’s penchant for dairy than a dish of sweet griddled plantains bathed in cream and buried in powdery cheese. The estofado, brisket in tomato-based sauce flavored with raisins and sesame, is also worth a visit to the homey restaurant.

La Teca a small, family-owned restaurant featuring cuisine from Istmo, one of the eight regions in Oaxaca, is a down-to-earth, no frills place to eat lunch or dinner. It’s about as close as you can get to having dinner at abuela’s. Of all the places we tried on the list, La Teca was hands down our favorite restaurant for its garnachas, platanos fritos, rich mole sauces, and welcoming staff.

The ambiance and food of La Teca can easily be summed up with one word: comfort. The mole, whether it's the cocoa smoky chicken or red and tangy stewed pork, is as fulfilling and soothing as your grandmother's hugs, while the fried plantains—crispy on the outside, melt-in-your-mouth soft on the inside—are as sweet as her kisses. The soulful menu is full of items made out of love.

La Teca serves traditional Istmeña food like mole amarillo, garnachas, and estofado, a celebration stew of beef, fruits and vegetables. Try something you’ve never had before, you won’t be disappointed. Go for lunch to avoid crowds; it’s just a twenty-minute taxi from centro.

Among the many great restaurants, La Teca offers traditional Oaxacan cuisine while La Biznaga focuses on traditional food with a modern twist. Always go for the mole; try all seven of them while you’re here – it’s a specialty in the state.

Set within the home of owner Señora Deyanira Aquino on the outskirts of the city center, La Teca is one of Oaxaca’s best options for traditional Istmeño food like garnachas, quesadillas, tamales, and moles.

El servicio de los meseros muy lento se les olvida las cosas la verdad en atención cero espero la mejoren