16 Philly chefs and restaurateurs who are powering Puebladelphia

One can argue that the 35,000-plus Mexican people who have immigrated to Philadelphia represent one of the city’s most important and transformative food stories of the past quarter century.

Rare is the restaurant of any style in Philly now that does not rely on a core of Mexican workers behind the scenes. But after a couple of decades of paying their dues, a generation of talented Mexican-born chefs and restaurateurs have emerged to lead their own kitchens. Many happen to originate from the state of Puebla, and in particular San Mateo Ozolco, a tiny town of less than 3,000 residents on the side of an active volcano. Among them is Dionicio Jiménez, the chef-owner of Cantina La Martina in Kensington, a James Beard finalist for Best Chef Mid-Atlantic, who recently journeyed back to his hometown with me and Inquirer photographer Jessica Griffin.

Jiménez’s success story is a reflection of a much wider movement that is shaping Philadelphia’s restaurant landscape. Here are 16 other chefs and restaurateurs from San Mateo Ozolco (or other nearby Puebla towns) that you should also know.

Carlos Aparicio, the longtime Tredici and Zavino chef and former Parc baker from San Mateo Ozolco, finally opened his own restaurant in November after 23 years in Philly kitchens. This charming all-day cafe and Mexican bakery near East Passyunk is one of my favorite new openings of the year, focused on crusty cemita rolls for fantastic renditions of Puebla’s signature sandwich, Nutella-stuffed concha rolls and outstanding al pastor, Árabes and arrachera spinning on the trompo vertical spit. El Chingón 1524 S. 10th St., 267-239-2131; elchingonphilly.com

Eladio Soto, formerly the chef at Tequila’s, is another San Mateo Ozolco native who launched his first solo restaurant in the past year, an agave spirit-fueled cantina revitalizing Point Breeze with a menu built on bright aguachiles, massive molcajetes, the La Montada huarache piled high with steak, and seafood cooked in a wood-fired oven. Mexican pizzas are also a specialty. El Mezcal Cantina, 1260 Point Breeze Ave., 215-782-0251; elmezcalcantina.us

This polished, modern Mexican restaurant near Rittenhouse Square is owned by the non-Mexican team behind Suraya and Pizzeria Beddia, and Alberto Sandoval was not interested in working there if it was going to be an Americanized concept. Instead, the San Mateo Ozolco native and veteran of fine-dining kitchens such as Lacroix, Striped Bass, and Volvér, has channeled family wisdom to replicate his mother’s nixtamalized heirloom corn masa and father’s salsa taquera salsa made with three peppers, tomatillos, and lots of Puebla pride: “The fact I get to make these recipes I grew up with in Mexico now in the U.S.,” he said, “blows my mind.” Condesa, 1830 Ludlow St., 267-930-5600; condesaphilly.com

This native of San Lucas, Puebla, carries on the handcrafted excellence of recipes passed down from her mother and grandmother at one of South Philly’s tiniest, best, and most overlooked taquerias on Oregon Avenue, where her char-kissed al pastor, chile rellenos, chicken mole, enchiladas verdes, and meticulous combo platters are served with velvety hand-pressed tortillas. San Miguelito, 2654 S. Sixth St., 267-773-8440; places.singleplatform.com

This San Mateo Ozolco native has been a community leader responsible for organizing Philly’s annual Carnaval de Puebla (this year’s is April 30). The restaurant he co-owns with sister Estela Piña and their spouses is also the source of thousands of weekend tamales. It remains one of the most reliable kitchens for Puebla-style mole, hand-pressed huaraches, crispy gorditas, pambazo sandwiches, and perhaps my favorite pozole in Philly. He is a cousin of Dionicio Jiménez. Tamalex, 1163 S. Seventh St., 215-465-1665; facebook.com/TamalexPhilly

Aside from being another of Dionicio Jiménez’s cousins, Aaron del Rosario and his wife, Margarita Jeronimo, have helped pioneer the popularity of South Philly-style Mexican pizzas topped with everything from al pastor to mole tor birria beef. They recently opened a suburban location in Cheltenham. Rosario’s Pizzeria in South Philadelphia, 1256 S. 15th St.; 215-755-4555; and Cheltenham, 576 Township Line Rd., Cheltenham; rosarios-pizzeria-northeast.square.site

The San Mateo Ozolco-born Lorenzo has two excellent spots, the brunch-centric Café y Chocolate run by San Mateo’s Miguel Hernández, and the cocktail-fueled La Llorona, where the polished menu is cooked by Puebla City-born Marco Ronzon, a veteran of Talula’s Garden. Lorenzo’s other restaurant, La Mula Terca, has closed. La Llorona, 1551 W. Passyunk Ave., 215-515-3276; lalloronaphilly.com; and Café y Chocolate, 1532 Snyder Ave., 267-639-4506; ordercafeychocolate.com

Israel Nocelo, a Cholula native know primarily as an award-winning mixologist at places like Tredici, Positano Coast and La Llorona, has partnered with pastry chef C.J. Cheyne (of Oui in Old City) for a popup collaboration that has now evolved into a sleek, little takeout taqueria in Point Breeze specializing in al pastor spinning on the trompo spit. Si Taqueria, 1500 Federal St., 267-239-2931; ouisicafe.com/photos

Their endearing story was featured on Season 5 of Queer Eye as the family’s restaurant took shape on South Ninth Street with an assist from the Netflix show. Given that Marcos was one of the first Mexican immigrants to buy a retail shop in the Italian Market 20 years ago, Original Marcos’ Fish & Crab House, it’s no surprise Alma’s specialties draw on the ocean, too, from ceviche to seafood tamales, grilled octopus, and delicious whole fish. Marcos is credited with coining the nickname Puebladelphia to capture the demographic changes in South Philadelphia. Alma del Mar, 1007 S. Ninth St., 215-644-8158, almadelmar.net

These three brothers run what remains one of South Philly’s most well-rounded Mexican restaurants, from its excellent bar serving classic drinks evocative of a beach vacation to the city’s best shrimp cocktail, huitlacoche-stuffed whole fish in creamy poblano sauce, and a host of outstanding fresh masa specialties showcasing the pre-Hispanic blue corn native to their home in San Mateo Ozolco. Try the Fundación Olmeca sampler with tlacoyos, puffy chalupas, and sopecitos, or the vivid blue huarache. Blue Corn Mexican Restaurant & Bar, 940 S. Ninth St., Philadelphia, 215-925-1010; bluecornmexphilly.com

The Ríos brothers launched this homey little taqueria 10 years ago as a home base for their parents, Pedro Ríos and Ines Sandoval, to make some of the best tamales and mole poblano in Philly. The parents returned to Mexico in 2020, but Mole Poblano remains one of the most reliable destinations for classic Poblano home cooking, especially for weekend specials like the tamales (mornings only!) and goat barbacoa. Mole Poblano, 1144 S. Ninth St., 215-465-1616; ordermolepoblano.com