El Tendajon — Restaurant in Oaxaca

Let me start by admitting that not every meal I have had here has been spot on. However, my best meal in Oaxaca so far was here. The ensalada temporal was big-- fresh mixed lettuces, apple, starfruit and bits of strawberries sprinkled with excellent candied walnuts and a light grating of a dry cheese is very good. My octopus taco could have had more octopus, but it had great herbs/greenery and was good. I like the salsa quemada best, but both table salsas were good. The dessert of creme brulee was amazing-- made from goat milk with a perfectly crispy toasted sugar top and decorated with fresh fruit bits...but wait!...there was more! On the side was a scoop of homemade ice cream on a pile of cookie crumbles also surrounded by more bits of fresh fig, blueberry raspberry and flower petals Like getting two desserts. Delish! I kept reliving that meal for days...Oh! And the pulque was fresh and sweet-- yum! The server has little personality, but then he is the only one and with only half the tables full, he is kept hopping! He is efficient, but comes off as unfriendly. I have eaten there often over a short time, sit in the same place, tip generously and am very distinctive in looks, but he never indicates he remembers me. Minus one star for that and the hit and miss quality of a...

I was recommended by the boyfriend of the chef here; the boyfriend, Leyver, works for the Oaxaking food tours, and Omar (Oaxaking himself) in turn wrote the Eater 32 list (which is why you’re probably going). Omar was featured on some Netflix shows. I wanted to like the food here; I love the concept of using fresh and seasonal ingredients and the menu is reasonably priced for the Eater 32 list (as in, prices weren’t jacked up higher)

But the food was…either flavorless or incredibly salty or bitter. There was nothing in between with complexity of flavors. I got the “creamy rice” dish with mushrooms and greens. There were pockets in here which had a ton of salt, but other pockets with none. The veggies and mushrooms were very bitter so there was no balance to flavor. They gave some tortilla chips to eat with this, which further neutralized the flavors.

I got the catch of the day which was Mahi. The quinoa (orange) was completely tasteless. Two of vegetables were over salted while the green beans got no salt, and the fish was dry.

Overall I loved the concept and price point but execution was inconsistent or lacking. I mentioned to the server when she asked how I was doing the food was off and she just left lol. Nice patio...

This is one of my must-dos here. I have eaten nearly the entire menu and there is always something wonderful to eat.

Lately they had a special mushroom menu since they’re in season and the dishes were inventive and delicious. The level of cooking is very high, yet the prices are reasonable. And the place feels cute and comfortable without being too fashionable (which happens to be my sweet spot).

Cocktails are good here. Beer and mezcal selections are wonderful.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner are all great. Breakfast: waffles breakfast with their savory waffles. Or the waffles with the berries. Or the egg dishes.

Also special mentions: Andi the chef is talented. The service is always high and sometimes simply...