Oa studio — Restaurant in Oaxaca

Only a faint echo of its former self, Oa is the home in exile of the Origen restaurant from just off the Zocalo, removed to the 300 block of Benito de Juarez. Google has identified it as a hotel instead of a restaurant, but that might just have been a tongue in cheek jab at their service for we might well still be there were we to have waited for our entrees. My wife and I brought guests to enjoy this meal. We started with drinks. The mixed drinks were fine, but my friend's Corona must have sat out too long in the heat and was "skunky". A tasty amuse bouche wad served, including a single piece made specially for our vegetarian friend. Two diners ordered appetizers, and they were very good: fried plantain, roasted potato, tomato salad. My friend and I decided to split our entrees, one pork, the other fish. At the one hour mark, no entree. The waitress asked if I would like another beer. I had only had a mixed drink. At the 1.5 hour mark, still no entrees, we noticed that diners around us who had arrived later were finishing their meals. We asked for the check. It came promptly and included the two entrees and a mineral water that was never served. When we called the hostess over to complain, she went to the kitchen and came back to tell us our food would be right out. It was clear to us that our meals had never been fired. Couldn't really blame the kitchen if they never got the order, but we never figured out where the breakdown was. Origen was one of the 3 or 4 best restaurants in Centro. Hopefully they will finish their renovation and get their groove back. But for now, I can not recommend this...

Oaxaca #3 (Cafe/bakery #1, brunch #1): this is a review for OA's food/restaurant and not their hotel.

OA came highly recommended to us by our Airbnb host.

If you order one thing: Pan Frances con Tocino :)

We ordered: cappuccino $60, espresso doble $40, pan Frances tocino!!* $200, and spicy chicken sando $215.

The space if gorgeous and we were early enough to have it all to ourselves. Service was very friendly but a bit slow and a bit sparse (considering how empty it was). The food and the coffee were very, very good.

Likely the best French toast of my life (ironically the other one I loved was also in Mexico; Queretaro). The brioche was thick as. Coffees were great and served with (delicious) cookies (and in gorgeous ceramics).

The spicy chicken sando was good (and I really enjoyed the pickles), but honestly the absolute star was the French toast. It was one of my favorite dishes/bites I had in Oaxaca. The maple, bacon, and peaches paired so well, and, really, the brioche was the absolute showstopper. Incredible custardy on the inside while crisp on...

We stumbled upon this brunch and coffee haven that's so heavenly, it's like brunch and caffeine had a lovechild. Their dirty chai is the kind of magical concoction that's just as irresistible hot as it is chillin' cold—talk about chai versatility! And the breakfast? You'll be contemplating a breakfast-themed reincarnation after sinking your teeth into their mouthwatering options. Oh, and can we take a minute to talk about their interior design game? It's like your dream Pinterest board exploded into reality! And don't even get us started on their backyard, it's like the VIP section for butts. Yup, you heard me right!

This place is the shining star in Oaxaca's coffee, breakfast, and brunch galaxy—so good, even the rain can't rain on its parade! We've been there so many times, we practically have our own reserved spot, whether it's sunrise breakfasting or afternoon...