HOUReview

photo credit: Liz Silva

Xochi image
6.5

Xochi

MexicanOaxacan

Downtown

$$$$Perfect For:Eating At The BarDessert
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Upscale without ever trying too hard, Xochi is a Oaxacan restaurant on the ground floor of the Mariott Marquis downtown from the team behind Hugo’s. It’s still a hotel restaurant, but maybe a little bit more chic and modern, with a breezy, sophisticated interior reminiscent of a fancy beach home. It’s all very promising, but what you end up with is often underwhelming, with inconsistencies that overshadow the memorable parts of the meal. 

There are glimmers of brilliance at Xochi, but the peaks are few and far in between. The food looks lovely—dishes are all dotted and swirled with mole and sauces. But sometimes, the beef cheeks aren’t as tender as they could be, or the mussels that accompany the scallops don't taste all that fresh. Even in dishes where the mole is the star, there’s rarely enough on the plate. It’s like the exciting meal you were promised stood you up. These inconsistencies bleed into the service, too. With any luck you’ll get a veteran server who makes dining a breeze, but you could just as likely get a server who’ll send all of the courses out at the same time. 

If you find yourself downtown and craving Oaxacan food on a cellular level, head to Xochi, sit at the bar, and have one, maybe two dishes and a margarita. But if you’re looking for Mexican food that will make you excited to go back, give Cuchara, Maderas, or Tatemó a shot. And for a more interesting, bougie dinner downtown, we suggest Pappas Bros. Steakhouse. Or, if you really want to keep it in the same restaurant family, there’s always the classic Mexican restaurant Hugo’s in Montrose.

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Xochi image
Xochi image
Xochi image
Xochi image

Food Rundown

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Molotes de Xoxocotlan

You didn’t eat at Xochi if the molotes didn’t make it to your table. These puffed masa cakes are stuffed with potato and chorizo, topped with a silky crema and a couple of crackling chapulines.

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Tlayuda De Res

A classic Oaxacan dish, chunks of grilled steak sit on top of a crispy tlayuda. There’s a small bit of spice that comes from the mole, but this dish is pretty boring otherwise. Feel free to skip this one.

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Cachetes de Res en Mole Pasilla

Coated in a spicy mole pasilla, sometimes the beef cheeks can come out pretty chewy, but other times they’re tender and fall apart the second you touch them with your fork.

Xochi image

photo credit: Liz Silva

Cacao

Almost too pretty to eat, this chocolate dessert is molded to look like a cacao pod, with different types and textures of chocolate, including chocolate “dirt” at the base of the pod.

FOOD RUNDOWN

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