The second story terrace setting is spectacular, especially after the teacher encampment was…read moreremoved by the army. (A few tents remain, but the Zócalo looks and smells much better now.) What with the views of the locals and turistas strolling below, and the notes from the marimba, trios, or pan flute musicians on the street, and the colorful craft stands. The service is also excellent. A reliable and stable, well-trained crew of mostly waitresses are attentive, without being annoying. They're even willing and quite capable to operate a smart phone to take well-composed group pictures. The drinks were adequate, with my mother's Manhattan a tad sweet. The mezcal I ordered was an Alipús that was reliably good, though I was hoping for something less civilized. The food, however, leaves much to be desired, especially at a place that charges this much! Oysters were among the appetizer options, but they were cooked. I asked whether it would be possible to have them just with lime and hot source. The waitress said that this was an option, which turned out to be true, except that I never expected them to be canned!!! Yes, though the coast is but a few minutes flight from Oaxaca, what I got were piles of 4-5 minuscule, gray, lumps of protein in the middle of scrubbed oyster shells!!! The main courses were no better. My "calf chest" was a stringy, overly fatty, tasteless piece of beef, with no semblance of the crispy, tasty layer I was expecting. Bland mashed potatoes accompanied the protein. The least offensive component were rajas (poblano chiles strips) with onions and cream. My son's octopus was smothered in paprika, and tasteless as well. My mother's lamb ribs looked boiled, not "broiled" as the menu claimed--no, not a typo; the menu was in Spanish. All in all, my family and I had a lovely time, though I wish the food had been up to the level of the prices.
