Where to Eat and Stay in Tequila, Jalisco: Food, Market and Hotels
Hola Tequila Tour •
For food in Tequila town, the easiest option is the Cleofas Mota food market next to the main square, where local cooks serve birria, carne en su jugo, tortas ahogadas and pozole at affordable prices. To stay overnight, the two best-known options are Matices Hotel de Barricas, with barrel-shaped rooms in the middle of an agave field, and Hotel Solar de las Ánimas in the historic center. In high season and during the National Tequila Fair, book ahead.
Here are the details. If you are still planning the trip, start with the complete guide to Tequila town.
What to eat in Tequila
Tequila's food is Jalisco food, with a few dishes you should not miss:
- Birria: goat or beef marinated in dried chiles and spices, slow-cooked and served in its broth.
- Carne en su jugo: beef in broth with beans and bacon, topped with onion, cilantro and lime.
- Torta ahogada: a crusty roll filled with carnitas and drowned in tomato sauce, with chile to taste.
- Pozole and, on weekends, menudo.
- Dishes cooked with tequila, which some downtown places serve as their house specialty.
Where to eat
- Cleofas Mota food market: right next to the main square. Several local cooks, each with their own tables. It is the cheapest and most authentic way to eat in town.
- Restaurants around the square and on downtown streets, with Jalisco cooking and terraces.
- The restaurant at Hotel Solar de las Ánimas, if you want more refined Mexican cuisine.
Eat before the tastings. They add up faster than you think, and on an empty stomach you will feel them much more.
What to drink besides straight tequila
- Batanga: tequila with cola, lime and salt in a salt-rimmed glass. It was born at La Capilla, a traditional cantina in town, and is still the house drink.
- Cantaritos: Amatitán's specialty, on the way from Guadalajara. We cover them in towns near Tequila.
Where to stay in Tequila
Staying one night lets you see the town lit up, visit distilleries at an easy pace and hike the volcano the next day.
- Matices Hotel de Barricas: a concept hotel next to a tequila distillery, with rooms shaped like giant barrels surrounded by agave. The most photogenic stay in the area.
- Hotel Solar de las Ánimas: in the historic center, with colonial-style architecture, steps from the square and the downtown distilleries.
- Small hotels and guesthouses downtown: cheaper, with everything within walking distance.
On weekends, holiday weekends and during the National Tequila Fair, rooms sell out, so book ahead.
Stay in Tequila or in Guadalajara?
If you only have one day, stay in Guadalajara and make the round trip: it is a little over an hour each way. See the options in how to get to Tequila from Guadalajara. If you have two days or want to see the town at night, sleep in Tequila.
Eating in Tequila on a tour
The tour from Guadalajara you can book here includes free time in the center of the Magic Town, enough to eat at the market or around the square. Food is not included; tastings and cantaritos are. It leaves daily at 11:30 AM and starts at $490 MXN per person. The tour is guided in Spanish. The tour is operated by Guatequi Tours; bookings are handled by Hola Tequila Tour.