The anniversary of our Canadian wedding is actually on the Mexican independence day, so the occasion of our visit happened to fall on the huge bicentennial celebrations. I have always looked up to Arzak, one of the great restaurants in Spain, so when I found out that there were ex-Arzak chefs at Biko, the choice was easy. Biko is definitely what you would classify as a "modern cuisine" restaurant, which makes it all the more interesting that they are so close to Michel Bras on the San Pellegrino list. I think it shows that the judges must be very open minded since despite stylistic differences, both restaurants are an experience to remember.
Considering the bicentennial excitement going on in Mexico at the time, the atmosphere in Biko was calm and refined. No screaming coming from the semi-open kitchen, just professionals in both front and back of house. As per our usual, we went for the tasting menu with wine pairings and were soon brought an amuse-bouche which contained a miniature take on an empanada and a wild mushroom soup. A note on the soup: it was interesting that coming from the west coast of Canada, if you order a wild mushroom soup, no matter how well or poorly executed, you unconsciously expect a certain range of flavour that's regional to us - for example, hints of chantrelle, pine or trumpet mushrooms. Of course, in Mexico city the regional mushrooms will be different, and the soup was a pleasant representation of that - I suspect some of the earthiness came from huitlacoche (a mushroom that grows on corn - the "Mexican truffle"), but it's difficult to nail down the rest.
The foie gras was paired with pistachios and a real number: a cube of hibiscus espuma that stood its ground, yet was infinitely airy and soft. The tangy hibiscus definitely a local, yet perfectly suited pair up with the richness of the foie. One dish had squid with a squid ink fondant potato caramelized onion and a squid ink sauce. A difficult one to photograph, but worthy of note, the squid was beyond perfectly cooked and how often do caramelized onions make you stop and say "holy crap! these are amazing!" Moving into dessert courses, there was a play on words with a plantain dish "plata-no oro" roughly translated to "not silver - gold" and the delicious plantain "bar" was hidden underneath a crispy gold shield. In addition to the tasting desserts, we just had to try a couple others, and gladly so. The "cheesecake" was encased in tuile tubes and was topped off with a Manchego cheese cotton candy - "you can take the Spaniard out of Spain, but ..." - amazing. We also had "soil" - a plate of a mixture of cake and cookie crumbs looking like dirt, rocks and pebbles complete with weeds and a flower. Not only did it look the part to a "T", it was a worthy dessert, delicious and stimulating to the imagination - textbook modernity.
Maybe an advantage to being separated by the European world of restaurants, this meal came surprisingly into budget considering the expertise involved. All the staff was friendly and courteous - Chef Bruno came out a few times to check on us - and even waited outside with us to make sure we got our cab home alright. If you happen to be in Mexico city, take the time and treat yourself at Biko, you won't forget it.
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