Xochi

Executive chef Hugo Ortega is a Houston culinary powerhouse, and his swanky downtown Oaxacan restaurant on the first floor of the Marriott Marquis Houston represents his greatest hit. The menu focuses on the culinary traditions of Oaxaca, Mexico, and includes a variety of house-made masa and corn dishes, moles, grasshoppers, and other ingredients not often seen on fine dining menus in Houston or the rest of the country. The mole tasting and churros with chocolate are must-orders, though it would be a shame to miss out on the suckling pig, sopa de piedra, and Tamal de Huitlacoche.