Article by Christina Mueller | Photos by Christina Mueller and Augustina | Published March 13, 2025
Guerrero, the Pacific-facing Mexican province southwest of Puebla and the State of Mexico and north of Oaxaca, is said to be the source of Mexico’s best seafood. Acapulco and Zihuantanejo are just two of the region’s fishing villages where approximately 500 km (311 mi) of coastline provide ample opportunity for fishing boats to secure the main ingredient of what may be Mexico’s most famous dish: tostada de atún. Tuna tostada, tostada de atún – whatever you call it, it is a typical Mexican dish, a dish found in seafood shacks, on the family table, and at fine dining restaurants in the capital city. It’s Mexico’s hamburger.
A Taste of Guerrero at Angustina Mezcal and Cocina
Literal steps from the Pacific and its many boat docks is downtown Zihuatanejo, a small town with big ambitions as a hub of local Guerrerense cuisine. Step up off the cobblestone street and under the glimmering lights of the patio at Angustina Mezcal and Cocina to begin a culinary experience dedicated to the flavors of Guerrero. Run by brothers Antonio and chef Felipe Meneses, the mezcal bar and restaurant is open to the street, colorful, and inviting. Chef Meneses begins an exploration of Guerrerense cuisine with his tuna tostada.
Layered on a tiny, crisp tortilla, tuna glistens pink, its flesh touched to a hot pan just enough to firm its edges. Though Chef laughs at how many foods are called “criollo,” the term helps define the Guerrerense chile that sharpens the dish’s plantain mole. “It’s similar to serrano but with a spicier flavor,” Meneses tells me. Harvested just outside town, the yellowish-red chile ferments with salt for six days. Whole Dominican plantain is cooked directly on embers, a process known as tatemar or tlatemar, a Nahuatl term for putting something on or in the fire. “You burn certain parts,” Meneses says, “but not completely.” The result? Perfectly cooked plantain that, when mixed with the fermented chile, house made pineapple vinegar, and piloncillo lifts the tuna out of the sea and into Guerrero.
Digging deeper into the Guerrerense food shed, Meneses serves a local cheese similar to cottage cheese as a dip with a salsa amped with mezcal, lemon, and hoja santa, perfect for scooping up with purple potato chips. It’s a cantina-style riff on a popular regional breakfast food. Pulled from local waters by divers, octopus is seared and lacquered with mezcal, piloncillo, and vanilla. The vanilla orchid, native to Vera Cruz on the Gulf of Mexico, is found in smaller amounts in Guerrero. Meneses likes it as a foil to chile’s heat. The inimitable fragrance wafts up from the plate and adds an unmistakable sweetness to the dish.
Photos: Angustina
While local beer and cocktails are available, pairing the food with one of Antonio’s housemade mezcals is a must. The restaurant started as a mezcalería, the menu of small plates purposefully designed to pair with this taste of Guerrero. The locally brewed spirit is served in ceramic cups painted with the Cheshire-like grin of the region’s jaguars.
Ola! Beach Club and the Tradition of Zarandeado
About 15 km (9.3 miles) south along Playa Blanca, Ola! Beach Club’s open-air, beachfront restaurant is sought out by locals for Chef Daniel Ramírez Zúñiga’s zarandeado, or fish a la talla. Popular along Guerrero’s coast, whole fish pulled from the water hours before is seasoned with herbs, garlic, and a talla of guajillo and árbol chiles, butter, and mayonnaise. Grilled whole, then served with Mexican-style rice and refried black beans, the dish reflects the importance of Guerrero’s eat-local movement and is a favorite with locals. “It is our most representative regional dish,” says Ramírez Zúñiga.
Perhaps Guerrero’s most exported dish, Pozole is typically reserved for special occasions. Pozole restaurants in Zihuantanejo, such as Pozolería Santa Prisca, are only open once or twice a week. At Ola!, “we cook pozole for the celebration of Mexico's Independence on September 15, or for the Day of the Dead celebration in Mexico on November 2,” says Ramírez Zúñiga. His preferred style? “Guerrero style,” of course. It starts with pipián, one of Mexico’s seven “mother sauces.” A green mole made with pumpkin seeds, cilantro, epazote, and green chili, pipián is cooked with Cacahuazintle corn, a varietal used only for pozole. Chicken or pork may be added, then served with plentiful toppings such as green chili, lime, pork cracklings, and onions. A taza of mezcal is the perfect Guerrerense accompaniment.
