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In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Poleo Holistic Kitchen and Maria Bonita Terrace Bar

Oaxaca, Mexico

Currency Exchange

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

Oaxaca City, Mexico holds lots of delights and surprises. We especially enjoy the Centro where there are walking streets, activities, markets, live music and a variety of restaurants to go and have a meal.

About a block from our hotel room was this lovely sandwich shop with a separate restaurant on the roof.

They were distinctly different and we found out that it was a Father-Daughter joint venture.

The daughter's place offered items that were focused on one's health and spirituality. With names like Krishna, Laksmi, Ganesha, Shiva, Ying, Yang, and Guru one had the idea that we should be "Om-ing" while we chewed our sprouts.

Nonetheless, her food was fresh, delicious and with unique combinations like brie, pear, tahini, nuts and honey. She also had a great turkey breast sandwich.

She was open in the mornings, and her father's place upstairs was open from 1pm to late evening.

Paleo Restaurant, Oaxaca City, Mexco

Paleo Restaurant

Paleo's was bright, clean and sun-filled. The kitchen is to the front left out of the photo, and at the side of the bar to the left, is the stairway up to Maria Bonita Rooftop Bar.

Oaxaca is the home of Mezcal, and lined up at the bar are several styles of both tequila (Mexico's National Drink) and Mezcal.

The small triangle against the wall you see is of the Virgin Mary, adorned in jeweled velvet. She sits on a shelf above the sign for Convite, a very popular style of Mezcal. Here, you see two types of spirituality mixed: the Catholic (Virgin Mary) and Mezcal. In the olden days, only the spiritual elite drank Mezcal to commune with the gods.

Whether this pairing was by accident or on purpose, it's still an interesting juxtaposition!

And... the restaurant upstairs is named Maria Bonita, so maybe there is something there. Or perhaps his wife's name is Maria.

A mystery to be solved at another time!

 

 

 

 

Grilled roast beef sandwich, Paleo Restaurant, Oaxaca City, Mexico

Paleo roast beef sandwich named Mani

 As I mentioned previously, the names of Paleo's offerings were all from sources of Hindu spirituality.

Om mani padme hum is a chant of compassion that is very well-known all over the world. It has even entered Chinese Buddhism and Chinese Taoism.

But hey, it's just a roast beef sandwich!

Roast beef, grilled onions, gouda cheese and fresh sliced tomatoes.

Our bill at Paleo's Restaurant, Oaxaca, Mexico

Our bill

Our bill for 2 sandwiches (mine was Nam, a turkey breast), an agua fresca and 2 lager beers was $14USD before tip.

Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City, Mexico

Maria Bonita Terrace Bar

We had a chat with the Father one afternoon before we went upstairs to his rooftop terrace.

Papa was explaining that the downstairs, Paleo, was his daughter's endeavor, focused on health food.

HIS restaurant, by contrast, was focused on living life! Traditional food, Mezcal, and the company of friends, he said with a hearty laugh.

Tasajo with grilled tortilla, Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City, Mexico

Tasajo over crisp tortilla

Tasajo is thinly sliced grilled flank steak that's pounded super thin and then cured in salt before being grilled up. In Oaxaca, tortillas are grilled on a comala until they are crisp, for added texture. Inside the tortilla here is more shredded tasajo. Served with mild grilled chile, radish, herbs and green seed pods from local trees.

Cochinita pibil sandwich, Maria Bonita Terrace Bar Oaxaca City, Mexico

Cochinita pibil sandwich

Cochinita pibil is a slow roasted pork with a paste made from achiote seed to make it red. Served with pickled onions.

Tasajo tacos Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City, Mexico

Tasajo tacos with accompaniments

These tacos are made with the same beef jerky except shredded. Bowls of additional items to dress the tacos are displayed in front of the customer. There are raw onions, sliced lime, avocado sauce, red sauce, fresh cilantro and more.  

Quesadillas with quesillo, Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City,  Mexico

Quesadillas with quesillo

These quesadillas have crumbled quesillo on top. Quesillo is a fresh cheese that only takes 2-3 hours to make and is very popular in Mexican dishes. Topped with spicy avocado sauce.

Chapulines ceviche tacos, Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City, Mexico

Chapulines ceviche tacos 

  Ok guys, get ready for it.

In Oaxaca, chapulines or grasshoppers, are a very common food item. The indigenous have used this insect as a source of protein for centuries, and it's part of local cuisine.

There's no point in being in Oaxaca and not trying a local dish or two, so we ordered these chapulines ceviche tacos.

And yes, they were delicious!

 

 

 

 

Friends enjoying some Oaxaca mezcal at Maria Bonita, Oaxaca, Mexico

Friends enjoying some after dinner drinks at Maria Bonita/Poleo

Sometime towards the end of our meal upstairs, it began to drizzle. The Father mentioned that we could have a nightcap downstairs (in the Poleo Restaurant) and take our time.

Here is a photo of us finishing off the evening at Maria Bonita Terrace Bar... except downstairs at Poleo Restaurant instead.

Sitting next to Billy in the black shirt and hat is Dale Knight, another world traveler (as everyone at the table is as well). Take a look at his interviews and photos of his travels here. His experiences of travel during Covid were also informative.

Our bill for Maria Bonita Terrace Bar, Oaxaca City, Mexico

our bill at Maria Bonita

Our bill for 5 people, with drinks and before tip was about $74USD.

Would we go back?

Yes!

To both of these restaurants and for completely different reasons.

Maria Bonita Terrace Bar and Poleo Restaurant

Calle Macedonio Alcala 706 B Esquina Humboldt

Oaxaca 68000 Mexico

Tele: +52 951 516 7233

For Maria Bonita Menu and more Click Here

For Poleo Restaurant Menu and more, Click Here

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About the Authors

 
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli are recognized retirement experts and internationally published authors on topics of finance, medical tourism and world travel. With the wealth of information they share on their award winning website RetireEarlyLifestyle.com, they have been helping people achieve their own retirement dreams since 1991. They wrote the popular books, The Adventurer’s Guide to Early Retirement and Your Retirement Dream IS Possible available on their website bookstore or on Amazon.com.

 

contact Billy and Akaisha at theguide@retireearlylifestyle.com

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