La Diosa Mexicana opened in the Circle on Cavill precinct just last week, revealing a contemporary space (sans sombreros) that has been brought to life with living cacti and succulents, white-pebble gardens and a glorious tequila-lined bar equipped with more than a dozen different margarita variations and 30 different types of tequilas and mezcals. While margaritas are the way to everybody’s heart, the true hero here is the ‘al pastor’ tacos – using a traditional style of spit-grilled meat that was introduced to Mexico City by Lebanese immigrants back in the early 1900s. The al pastor meat (also known as ‘shepherd style’) served at La Diosa Mexicana is marinated in spices, fresh lime and pineapple juice, before being slow cooked on a rotating vertical spit (akin to a doner kebab) to create an intense flavour – it’s then used as the centrepiece for its tacos, burritos and quesadillas.
Co-owner and chef Dany Azzi has developed a menu that highlights the early Lebanese influences in Mexican cuisine – with more than 20 years as a chef under his belt and a proud Lebanese heritage, you can rest assured your tacos, nachos, tostadas and ensaladas are in very good hands. For botanas (snacks) there’s everything from street-style corn with coriander crema, to albondigas (meatballs) with house beans and queso fresco. After that, it’s time to move on to the two-per-serve tacos filled with the likes of al pastor-style chicken or pork, fried cauliflower with eggplant jam, and Corona-battered salmon with pico de galo. As for the platos fuertes (main course), you’ll be choosing from a giant nacho platter loaded with al pastor meats, a mezcal-aged hanger steak with chilli potatoes, mushroom abodo, whole grilled shallots and chimichurri, as well as sizzling fajitas. The flaming cacti is a must-try sweet finisher – a cacti-shaped sweet-corn and caramel ice-cream bombe Alaska that’s doused in mezcal and set alight at the table. Salud!
La Diosa Mexicana is now open! For details, opening hours and location, head to our Stumble Guide.
