LogoMilpa
E César Chávez · Austin, TX

Milpa

Ancestral corn. Three-day mole.
Mezcal from clay.

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The Milpa

Before the plate,
the field.

Every heirloom variety we use has a name, a farmer, and a hillside. We source directly — no distributors, no middlemen — because the corn remembers where it was grown.

Older Mexican farmer in straw hat standing in corn field at dawn with golden light behind him
Bolita Negra

Don Aurelio Méndez

Valle de Etla, Oaxaca

Fifth-generation milpa farmer. His family has grown bolita negra on the same hillside for 140 years — the kernel that makes our masa.

Mexican woman in traditional embroidered blouse holding dried red chiles in a sunlit field
Olotillo Rojo

Lucía Vargas Ruiz

San Marcos Tlapazola

She grows the olotillo rojo dried chiles that go into our mole negro. The smoke from her comal finds its way into every plate.

Three Mexican men standing in agave field at sunrise with mountains in background
Espadín Agave

Hermanos Castillo

Miahuatlán de Porfirio Díaz

Three brothers palenqueros who distill the mezcal we pour in clay copitas. Single-village, wood-fired, nothing added.

Heirloom corn stalks at golden hour, rows extending to the horizon in Oaxacan valley

"The milpa is not a crop.
It is a conversation."

— Don Aurelio, Valle de Etla
Chef mid-motion in professional kitchen, hands working masa on volcanic stone metate, steam rising from copper pot
The Kitchen

Chef Valentina Cruz
doesn't plate for the camera.

Trained under two Oaxacan grandmothers before culinary school. The volcanic stone metate runs six days a week. The mole pot never fully empties.

Tasting Menu · 4 Courses

What the milpa
sends to the table.

Menu changes with the harvest and the season. Dietary accommodations available — note in your reservation.

I

Tlayuda de Elote

Street elote reimagined on a thin-crisped bolita tortilla, epazote crema, chile negro oil.

The dish that kept the regulars.

II

Sopa de Lima

Yucatán-rooted broth with hand-pulled pollo de rancho, lime leaf, chile xcatic.

Served in a clay bowl still warm from the comal shelf.

III

Mole Negro

Seventy-two hours. Thirty-one ingredients. Served over duck confit and heirloom black beans.

Starts on Wednesday. Ready by Saturday.

IV

Nixtamal Sorbet

Corn-milk sorbet, piloncillo caramel, smoked salt from Colima.

The masa finds you at the end too.

Reserve the Tasting Menu

$95 per person · wine pairing +$55 · mezcal pairing +$45

Intimate candlelit dining room with clay-plastered walls, rough-hewn mesquite tables, and warm amber light
The Dining Room

Clay walls.
Candlelight.
No clocks.

Twenty-two seats. A courtyard table for six. The room smells like copal and fresh tortillas before you sit down.

The Neighborhood

We are on E César Chávez,
two blocks from the mercado.

The mural on the adjacent wall was painted by Rosalinda Fuentes in 2019. The mercado two blocks east is where we buy our herbs on Saturday mornings. The wooden gate is always unlocked from 5:30 pm. Knock anyway — someone will come.

Tues–Sun5:30–10:30 pm2847 E César Chávez
Rustic wooden courtyard gate with hanging dried chile ristras and warm evening lightClose-up of hands pouring mezcal into clay copita on rough-hewn wooden tableStreet-level view of colorful neighborhood mural on adobe wall in East AustinFinished plate of mole negro over duck with scattered dried flower petals on mesquite table
Dimly lit mezcal bar with rows of clay copitas and amber bottles backlit by candles
Mezcal Bar

Poured from clay.
Distilled by hand.

Thirty-one labels, all single-village. The Castillo brothers' espadín is poured by the copita. Ask for the papalometl — we only have six bottles left.

Mezcal Tasting · $38
Reservations

Come hungry.
Come curious.

We seat twenty-two inside and six in the courtyard. Reservations hold for fifteen minutes. Walk-ins welcome at the bar.

Tuesday – Sunday
5:30 pm – 10:30 pm
2847 E César Chávez at Waller, Austin
+1 (512) 555-0142

Pre-select Tasting Menu

4 courses · $95pp · pairings available

No card required. We hold your table for 15 minutes.

El Mercado

Take the kitchen
home with you.

House-made salsas, dried chiles from Lucía's farm, the Castillo brothers' mezcal, and a weekly tortilla subscription. Local Austin delivery.

Dark salsa in glass jar with dried chiles and garlic on rustic wooden surface
Bestseller

Salsa Negra de Chile Pasilla

$14

8 oz jar

Slow-charred pasilla negro, roasted tomato, garlic smoke. The base of the mole, jarred.

Bundle of dried mulato, ancho and pasilla negro chiles tied with twine on parchment paper
From Lucía

Dried Chile Bundle

$22

Three-chile set

Mulato, ancho, and pasilla negro sourced from Lucía Vargas. Enough for two batches of mole.

Artisan mezcal bottle with handwritten label next to clay copita on wooden surface
Limited

Mezcal Castillo Espadín

$68

375 ml

Single-village espadín from Miahuatlán. Wood-fired. 46% ABV. Nothing added.

Stack of hand-pressed corn tortillas on cloth-lined basket with steam rising
Subscribe

Tortilla Club

$28

per week

Weekly delivery of 24 hand-pressed bolita tortillas, still warm from the comal. Local Austin only.

Dark brown mole paste in small ceramic jar with chile seeds visible on wooden board
Chef Pick

Mole Negro Paste

$32

4 oz jar

Three-day mole, reduced to a paste. Add stock, heat slowly, serve over anything worth serving.

Small tin of smoked sea salt with copal resin chunks beside it on stone surface
New

Copal-Smoked Sea Salt

$12

2 oz tin

Colima sea salt cold-smoked over copal resin. Use on the elote. Use on everything.

Private Dining

Bring us
your celebration.

We close the courtyard on Mondays for private events — up to thirty guests, a custom menu, and the full mezcal library. Rehearsal dinners, anniversaries, milestone birthdays. Tell us the occasion.

Inquire About Private Dining