Food & Drink

On Thursdays, dozens of courtyards in Chilapa de Álvarez transform into makeshift restaurants. On this day, only one dish rules the town: pozole, the hearty stew of corn and meat.

Typical of the region is pozole verde, green pozole. It's cooked with tomatillos, epazote, and toasted pumpkin seeds, which give the broth its color and an earthy flavor. Chilapa is considered Guerrero's unofficial capital of this dish, boasting more pozolerías than any other type of business.

The custom of sharing pozole together on Thursdays and Sundays traces back to harvest time. Neighbors once shared whatever the fields yielded on a fixed day of the week. That habit turned into a ritual that still fills the streets of Chilapa today.

Alongside the pozole on the table, a bottle of local mezcal often appears, poured into small glasses or served from the jícara. Where meat, chile, and corn from the region come together, the herbal, earthy character of the wild Papalote agave holds its own, without overpowering the broth's spice.

Celebration in Guerrero doesn't stop at the dinner table. At village festivals in the sierra, music, dance, and a shared sip of mezcal go hand in hand, often poured straight from the palenque next door. Here, you rarely drink alone, and never in a hurry.

In many homes, grandmothers still cook by tradition, without scales or clocks, guided only by scent and experience. That's exactly what makes every pot in Chilapa a little different, even though they all carry the same name.