Editor’s note: We regret to report that Spice Everywhere has closed.
It didn’t take long after arriving from Chicago a decade ago for Juliet Lambert to figure out what was the gaping hole in Mexico City’s otherwise rich culinary scene: an American-style brunch spot. The chef went on to start Spice, a catering company, but earlier this year was able to come up with the answer to the brunch problem when she launched Spice Everywhere, a roving pop-up that is bringing hashbrowns and waffles to the land of the tortilla.
Spice Everywhere had humble beginnings, first popping up in the converted living room of one of Lambert’s friends. The lack of space and cramped kitchen did not deter the feisty owner, however, who quickly built up her customer base. Seven months and three locations later, Spice Everywhere has landed on the ground floor of Hostel 333, a small hostel/hotel in Colonia Roma, the pop-up’s most expansive and beautiful location to date. Exposed brick walls, hardwoods, soft lighting and rustic dining tables and chairs that can seat more than 40 hungry diners at any given time all help to give the space a warm, comfortable feel. A pool table near the entrance even allows customers to have a little fun while they wait for their orders.
On a recent Sunday the place hummed with energy and was packed with customers who were tended to by the restaurant’s small group of Mexican and American staff members. Bubbly mimosas and Spice Everywhere’s signature spicy Bloody Marys and Bloody Marias (made with tequila instead of vodka) left the long bar at a steady pace. Waiters in crisp black uniform jackets bustled about the dining area, taking orders, serving food and refilling mugs with freshly brewed coffee. In the kitchen, Lambert flipped crispy hashbrowns for popular dishes like the Cowboy Breakfast, a generous serving of homemade biscuits covered in a rich sausage gravy, or the Buffalo 66, a tofu scramble of peppers, mushrooms, garlic and onions served with salsa and sour cream. For the sweet tooth, there was La Condesa, a pair of homemade waffles topped with fresh berries, dollops of whipped cream, sides of crunchy bacon and, a rare commodity in Mexico’s culinary scene, real maple syrup. (The waffles also made an appearance in a savory dish, topped with crispy fried chicken.) Huge, homemade cinnamon rolls thickly pasted with Juliet’s special “goo” icing were gobbled up both pre- and post-meal.
The single-page menu offers the range of American brunch classics and more, and the kitchen, despite its size, seems to be almost miraculously turning out memorable meals for diners. As Lambert herself puts it, “I wanted to create something unique and special. To create a sort of international feeling place, where people from all over could come and have a great time and a great meal. And the business keeps right on growing!”
As with all new businesses, Spice Everywhere has gone through plenty of growing pains in the past year. Everything from staffing problems to a previous location’s constant power outages have been tossed in Spice’s way, but its dedicated founder has perservered. Filling Mexico City’s brunch hole is tough work, but someone had to do it.
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