Contramar

Contramar
The restaurant's wordmark mixing its name with a shape that resembles a fish.
The entry behind multiple parked cars. The restaurant's entrance in 2025
Restaurant information
Established	14 August 1998 (1998-08-14)
Owner	Gabriela Cámara
Food type	Seafood
Rating	Bib Gourmand (Michelin Guide, 2024)
Location	Durango 200, Roma Norte, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City, 06700, Mexico
Coordinates
Reservations	Recommended
Other information	Nearest station: Mexico City Metrobús Line 1 Durango bus station
Website	contramar.com.mx/

Contramar is a seafood restaurant in Roma Norte, Mexico City, Mexico, near Fuente de Cibeles. It is owned by the restaurateur Gabriela Cámara, who opened it in 1998 on Durango Avenue, with the premise of creating a space that recreated the experience of dining in a palapa at a beachside restaurant.

The establishment serves à la carte dishes and has received critical acclaim particularly for its tuna tostada. Its signature red-and-green pescado a la talla has been widely imitated by other restaurants worldwide. Contramar has attracted celebrities and foreign customers, has received multiple culinary distinctions, and it was the subject of A Tale of Two Kitchens, a 2019 Netflix documentary. In 2025, the diner received a Bib Gourmand recommendation in the first Michelin Guide covering restaurants in Mexico.

Description

Contramar serves à la carte seafood. The restaurant created a supply platform that allows patrons verify the traceability of the fish. For example, Francisco de Anda of El Economista mentions that clams and unspecified fish are sourced from Puerto Libertad, Sonora, on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The oldest plate on Contramar's menu is pescado zarandeado, served since its opening. Other items served include Mexican-style seafood dishes as well as international dishes, like chowder or Tiradito. Two signature dishes at Contramar are the pescado a la talla and the tuna tostada. The first dish is a Northern red snapper fillet split in half, with one side topped with a parsley-based sauce and the other in adobo sauce.

A fish fillet split in half, with one side topped with a parsley-based sauce and the other side covered in marinade.

The fish dish pescado a la talla was popularized by Contramar

The tostada is prepared with thin slices of raw tuna, leek and avocado slices, and chipotle mayonnaise, served on maize toasted tortillas. At its core, the dish is tuna tartare on a crisp base. The recipe for pescado a la talla, which is accompanied by black beans and tortillas, allowing it to be eaten as a taco, has been adapted by restaurants worldwide due to the versatility of red and green sauces. For instance, at Kalaya in Philadelphia, chef Nok Suntaranon prepares the dish with mackerel fish, jalapeño and chive to recreate the green sauce and a reddish coconut sauce mixed with ingredients from southern Thailand. Other adaptations have replaced the fish with chicken, or incorporated variations like tomatoes or ginger sauces.

Contramar has an open kitchen and a high ceiling. The restaurant's interior design resembles a palapa. Nils Bernstein mentioned that in the middle of the room in 2016 there was large hand-carved dining table, adorned with Casablanca lilies whose fragrance blended with the mesquite from the barrel grills. There is a Poemario (anthology of poems), a blackboard that has featured sea-related poems written by Carlos Pellicer Cámara, Rosario Castellanos, José Emilio Pacheco, Juana Inés de la Cruz, among others.

Contramar is located near the Durango bus station and the Fuente de Cibeles. Food critics recommend reservations, as they describe the place as usually full during lunch, especially on Fridays. The sister diner Entremar, in the city's Polanco neighborhood, was opened to reduce customers' wait times.

History

Gabriela Cámara studied art history at university. Around 1996, while vacationing with a former boyfriend in Zihuatanejo, she conceived the idea of opening a restaurant in Mexico City that evoked the experience of dining in a beachside palapa. Her goal was to offer city residents a way to enjoy that atmosphere if they were unable to travel to a coast.

Cámara and her associates acquired an inexpensive former refrigeration parts store in the emerging Colonia Roma, where they covered the ceiling with straw mats and Carlos Pellicer López (nephew of Pellicer Cámara) painted fish skeletons on the walls. The floor was tiled and had ceiling fans. She recalled that when she began her career, the food industry was dominated by molecular gastronomy, French and Italian restaurants, and male chefs.

Contramar opened on 14 August 1998 on Durango Street. In the early days, she invited passersby to eat, assuring them that if they disliked the food, they would not have to pay. The restaurant initially employed only male waiters, several of whom had previous legal troubles. Contramar has drawn a celebrity clientele that includes artists, politicians, and musicians, as well as international visitors.

Reception

File:Atun tostadas (43015501031).jpg

The tuna tostada served at Contramar received praise from food critics

Julia Moskin of The New York Times said that the dishes are known for their simplicity and refinement. She described the space as representative of a family dining experience on a beach vacation, with guests eating under a "leafy palapa", enjoying "freshly caught fish" with the promise of a relaxing siesta afterward. Michael Parker Stainback, writing for Afar, praised the food and service at Contramar, noting that the restaurant is often full. Similarly, Mariana Camacho from The Infatuation, adding that due to its popularity, reservations are often made months in advance.

Ana Paula Tovar of El País recommended both seafood and non-seafood options (like sopes with beans), as well as meringue with strawberries or fig tart for dessert. A reviewer for Condé Nast Traveler compared the experience to eating at The River Cafe in London, but dressed in a Tulum attire. While writing for Bon Appétit, Scarlett Lindeman described the menu as a healthy dining option in the city.

Critics have praised the tuna tostadas, describing them as "well-executed", "stellar", "legendary", "iconic", "delicate", the city's cha siu bao, and a "must-try" dish.

Contramar and Cala in San Francisco, both owned by Cámara, are the subject of the 2019 Netflix documentary A Tale of Two Kitchens. Regarding the experience of opening a sister restaurant in the United States, she said: "Opening a Mexican restaurant in the United States is a paradox no matter how you look at it [...] there is a lot of curiosity and respect for authentic Mexican food. On the other hand, there is a larger culture that despises Mexicans".

Contramar received in 2019 the Best Dining Room Service award from the México Gastronómico guide and Best Service in Mexico from Travel + Leisure magazine. In 2023, Contramar was voted the tenth best international restaurant by Food & Wine magazine readers. It also received a Bib Gourmand rating from the Michelin Guide in 2024, meaning "exceptionally good food at moderate prices". Inspectors described the spot as enchanting and recommended the polbo á feira.

See also

• List of Mexican restaurants
• List of seafood restaurants

External links

• Official website