Jack Stewart is a chef recognized for his participation in the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition and for his commitment to social responsibility in cuisine. He has undertaken stages at notable restaurants...
We came here because of the reputation: supposedly one of the top restaurants in Mexico City, two Michelin stars, and at one point ranked around #3 in the world. With credentials like that, expectations were obviously pretty high.
Don't get me wrong—the food was good. Very good, actually. But maybe my palate just isn't sophisticated enough to understand the difference between one Michelin star and two. 😄
We did the wine pairing and chose the Mexican wines vs. wines from around the world, which was interesting and well done. The sommelier was a little over the top with the presentation, but hey, you're at a two-star Michelin restaurant—you almost expect a little theater. The rest of the staff was genuinely warm, friendly, and welcoming.
The food was what I would call "Michelinized" Mexican cuisine—traditional and local flavors transformed into beautiful, sophisticated little creations. Everything was technically excellent and beautifully presented.
Where they lost me a little was with some of the exotic ingredients: ants, grasshoppers, and a few other things. I've eaten grasshoppers before and tried plenty of unusual ingredients, so the shock value wasn't really there for me. Afterward, they even brought some of the ingredients out in a glass display case for us to inspect.
That part was… kinda weird.
Instead of making me appreciate the meal more, it made the whole exotic-ingredient thing feel slightly gimmicky. Maybe that's part of what helped earn the restaurant its reputation, but personally, ants under glass aren't going to convince me I just ate one of the world's greatest meals.
Again, it was good. The wines were good. The service was good. The flavors were good. We enjoyed ourselves.
But one of the very best restaurants in Mexico City, two Michelin stars, and once among the top restaurants in the world?
Maybe I just don't have a two-Michelin-star palate. 😂
Honestly, if you want to save your money, skip this place. The two Michelin stars feel like just a formality at this point, pretty disappointing overall.
First, the food was pretty mediocre. I was expecting something great, but what I got was mediocre dishes. Don't get me wrong, they all looked nice, the presentation was really good, but taste wise, it just didn't deliver. The entrée, which was a fish dish, was salty and honestly just fish and rice. If the chef is reading this, I could make this at home with 10 ingredients. I don't know who gave you two Michelin stars. I know for a fact I don't have a bad palate, but the food was mediocre. It seems like Michelin just hands stars out to anyone at this point. One of the desserts, some kind of eggnog dish, tasted really bad too.
My wife got the mole they highly encouraged her to get, dude it was a sauce on a plate, that's it. I will be putting pictures. Don't worry, we looked at the pictures, apparently people who are not pescatarian or vegetarian were getting it with duck, so I'm like wow, I'm paying the same amount of money and my replacement is nothing special. Absolutely nothing.
Second, it's incredibly loud in there. I'm paying $1,000, it should be a little quieter and more comfortable. My wife asked me is there something good I can say about this place, and my answer is for $1000 they didn't do shit, there's nothing good I can tell them. Yes they folded the napkins really well, and one of the waiters/busser was very attentive. He knew we were talking and he came to explain the dish. And the waiter tried his best to explain but there were multiple times where a different waiter told our waiter to shush.
The cappuccino here was pretty mediocre too. And if the cappuccino or coffee is mediocre, that basically tells me this place is meh!
I went to Rosetta earlier this trip, and it was a way better restaurant than this. There's also a place called Contramar, better fish, better service, and honestly I had a lot more fun there.
5
Quintonil (Tasting Menu + Wine Pairing) – 4.3/5 ⭐
Quintonil is definitely an experience rather than just a meal. The service was polished, the pacing was excellent, and every course showcased Mexican ingredients in creative ways. I appreciated that the menu balanced traditional flavors with modern techniques, and the wine pairing was surprisingly well curated.
The meal started with four snacks. The tuna was fresh and crispy, and the puff pastry bite was delicious, while the tortilla soup and mole bite didn’t quite work for my palate.
The standout dishes for me were the dry-aged kampachi with oyster and chilled sour broth—fresh, smoky, and incredibly refreshing—and the cactus lime ice cream with charcoal salt, which was one of the most memorable palate cleansers I’ve ever had. The duck was perfectly cooked, although I found the sauce a little sweeter than expected.
The wine pairing was a highlight. Each pour complemented the food well, but the final mead (honey wine) completely stole the show. It was unique, beautifully balanced, and easily my favorite drink of the evening.
Desserts were enjoyable but not quite as memorable as the savory courses. The honey yogurt ice cream and corn bread with custard were my favorites, while the chocolates and fruit petits fours felt more like a pleasant finish than a grand finale.
Overall, Quintonil isn’t a restaurant where every bite is designed to be overwhelmingly delicious. Instead, it’s about exploring Mexican ingredients, techniques, and flavors in thoughtful and creative ways. Some dishes were outstanding, others were more experimental than enjoyable for me, but the experience as a whole was excellent.
If you’re looking for one of Mexico City’s most innovative fine dining experiences, Quintonil is absolutely worth visiting—especially with the wine pairing.
Overall: 87/100
5
Truly the best and most memorable restaurant experiences we’ve ever had.
1) The service was absolutely phenomenal. Every server was paying attention to every detail, and this made the experience over the top.
2) Food could not have been better. So much flavor, so many different textures, innovative ideas, and excellent presentation. I didn’t want the experience to end!
3) The others in my party did the Mexican wine pairing which was enchanting - best wine of their lives! But it is a lot of wine! Cocktails are not necessary if you’re getting the wine tasting.
4) Non-alcoholic wine pairing was nice - unique ferments, sparkling teas, and homemade sodas. But a tiny bit too sweet for my taste to go with food (though I loved the smoky pairing).
5) We celebrated a birthday, and the staff made it feel extra special.
The only problem was that it was SO good, everything else in our trip paled in comparison!✨
Thank you Viktor, Thomas, Aaron, David, and Anna for creating such a memorable night!
4
I was hesitant about how to write this review, but I guess I'll just be 100% transparent.
We had tried to visit this 2 Michelin star restaurant for a while but it was either fully booked or we had to reschedule for business trips that we got and so. Finally, when our reservation approached, I got sick (stomach infection) just one night before the reservation and of course rescheduling was not an option anymore. We reached out to the restaurant first thing the next morning and they told us they would contact people from the waiting list to take our reservation and get our pre-payment refunded. Not sure how hard they tried, but of course no one accepted to use our reservation the very same day that they were communicated about it. So... Yes, we were forced to go (to avoid loosing our 6K pre-payment) with me dying slowly. I was really mad about that, but I least I got to see my wife enjoying the totally worth 2-Michelin star menu and I can confirm that their bathrooms are really comfortable and sound proofing (they also gave us the table closest to the bathrooms, so... I guess, thank you?). On the other hand, I can tell that the staff was really kind asking me about how I was feeling and they offered me an alternate single dish menu (rice, some vegetables, rib eye mini steak) which was pretty good (at least the 30 min it stayed in my stomach).
At the end, they also mentioned they made some sort of exception with us by using the pre-payment when they should have not because I did not eat the tasting menu... I mean, really?
So I don't know... From a business perspective I understand why they did not allow us to reschedule our reservation, but from a customer perspective I would have preferred the outstanding reschedule than the good attention they gave me during our almost 4-hour stay. I don't think that would have hurt so much their financials.
