Brad A. Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
    • Food Photography
    • Travel Photography
    • Restaurant Photography
    • Hotel & Resort Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact
Brad A. Johnson

Food & Travel

Brad A Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
    • Food Photography
    • Travel Photography
    • Restaurant Photography
    • Hotel & Resort Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact

Hotel Review: Four Seasons Mexico City

  • October 20, 2018
  • Brad A. Johnson
The Four Seasons Mexico City got a much-needed refresh three years ago by the Parisian design house Gilles & Boissier. Although the hotel had been open only since 1994, the top-to-bottom renovation of this Spanish revival courtyard building felt long overdue.

The 240-room hotel has been dwarfed in recent years by an ever-growing forest of skyscrapers sprouting along Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico’s grandest old boulevard. Chapultepec Park is just one block away, and it’s a quick/cheap Uber ride to the surrounding neighborhoods of Condesa (also walkable), Roma and Polanco.

What really sets Four Seasons apart from every other luxury hotel in Mexico City is truly incredible service in every corner of the property. This is quintessential Four Seasons hospitality. And while that wasn’t always the case here, there’s no looking back now. This feels like an entirely new hotel.

Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Four Seasons Mexico City (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)

The centerpiece of Four Seasons is its tranquil inner courtyard, an absolutely lush oasis framed by some of the best food and drink in the city. The indoor/outdoor Zanaya restaurant opened in conjunction with the remodel and has quickly become one of the city’s top power lunches, serving wood-fired Mexican seafood inspired by rising-star chef Tonatiuh Cuevas’s formative years cooking fish on the beach in Nayarit, near Puerto Vallarta. Dining might very well be the reason you’ve come to Mexico City, and you absolutely do not want to miss the chef’s beach-inspired Zarandeado fish tacos, served as an elaborate family-style spread. You won’t find better tacos at world-famous Pujol, nor on the street. This is not a jab at either of those options, both of which are musts; it is merely a fact of how extraordinary the food can be in this city. (UPDATE: Chef Cuevas has transferred to Four Seasons Los Cabos.)

The hotel’s de facto “other lobby” is Fifty Mils, a living-room style bar and lounge helmed by some of the best bartenders in the Americas (as evidenced by the growing list of awards they keep bringing home from national and international mixology competitions). Must order: spicy Bloody Maria.

The actual lobby spans a long hallway between the entrance and the courtyard and unfolds not as a singular communal space but rather as a series of semi-private salons outfitted with plush contemporary sofas, brutalist wooden chairs and museum-quality oil paintings that must surely date to the revolution. Attention collectors: Art is something this hotel does very, very well. There’s a superb little gallery on-site, too.

There’s an Italian restaurant just off the lobby that attracts the local elite. And an old-fashioned barber shop. Also a charming outdoor pool that’s well-hidden on the backside of the third floor.

Although everything is virtually new, building’s bones do feel quite old, especially in the bathrooms. But you will not lack any creature comforts. My favorite rooms are the premier terrace rooms, except there’s a catch: There are only two of these, which makes them very difficult to book because many of the hotel’s regular customers know about them and keep them fully booked. (They are only bookable via the hotel’s website or by phone.) The private terraces overlook the central courtyard, making room-service breakfast an absolute must — making you the envy of every other guest in the hotel.

Bottom line: This is a genuinely fabulous hotel — and a fairly incredible bargain for what you get in return.

Rates from $290.  Paseo de la Reforma 500, Colonia Juarez, Mexico City, 52 (55) 5230-1808, fourseasons.com/mexico

For more travel inspiration and photos, I invite you to follow me and join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

More from Mexico City
    • Travel: Culinary
    • Travel: Mexico
10-Second Review: El Tizoncito, Mexico City
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • October 5, 2019
    • Travel: Culinary
    • Travel: Mexico
10-Second Review: Chetito, Mexico City
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • October 1, 2019
    • Travel: Culinary
    • Travel: Mexico
Where to Eat in Mexico City, part 2
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • September 6, 2019
    • Travel: Mexico
Quick Look: Biblioteca Vasconcelos, Mexico City
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • September 5, 2019
    • Travel: Mexico
Hotel Review: Pug Seal Allan Poe, Mexico City
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • September 4, 2019
    • Travel: Culinary
    • Travel: Mexico
Quick Look: Taqueria Orinoco, Mexico City
  • Brad A. Johnson
  • February 23, 2019
Share
Tweet
Brad A. Johnson

Brad A. Johnson is a writer and photographer specializing in food and travel. His work has been honored by the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, James Beard Awards, World Food Media Awards, Food Photographer of the Year Awards, Society of Features Journalism Awards and others. Based in Southern California, Brad currently serves as Editorial Director of the new luxury consumer travel magazine of the Global Travel Collection (launching Spring 2023).

Previous Article

Hotel Review: The St. Regis, Mexico City

  • October 19, 2018
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post
Next Article

Dish of the Week: Yellowtail Ceviche at Central, Laguna Beach

  • October 24, 2018
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post
You May Also Like
View Post
  • Travel: Mexico

Update – Review: Acre, Farm-to-Table in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • June 27, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Culinary
  • Travel: Mexico

Where to Eat in Los Cabos, Mexico: The Restaurants Redefining Baja Cuisine

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • June 13, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Mexico

Hotel Review: Nobu, Los Cabos, Mexico

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • June 6, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Culinary
  • Travel: Mexico

How to Make the Red Snapper a la Talla from Tamarindos Los Cabos

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • June 5, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Culinary
  • Travel: Mexico

Hotel Review: The Cape, Los Cabos, Mexico

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • May 31, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Mexico

Photo of the Week: Los Cabos, Mexico

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • May 21, 2021
View Post
  • California Hotels
  • Travel: Culinary
  • Travel: Mexico
  • Travel: United States
  • Uncategorized

Best Travel Blog! Best Culinary Travel! Best Travel Photography! And this just in: Finalist, Food Photographer of the Year

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • April 1, 2021
View Post
  • Travel: Culinary
  • Travel: Mexico

10-Second Review: El Tizoncito, Mexico City

  • Brad A. Johnson
  • October 5, 2019
My sincerest thanks to the North American Travel Journalists Awards!⁠ 128 19
Hey, OC. FYI in case you missed it, @ryegoods has opened a new location on Red Hill in Tustin, just down the street from Flight/Mess Hall. Same incredible breads and pastries as the original on the peninsula. No lines here, plus a huge seating area. #sourdough #pastries #coffee #orangecounty 331 9
One more post from our lovely stay at @fstokyo. Delicious lunch at @maisonmarunouchi, the casual sibling to @sezannetokyo. Excellent all around. And clearly popular with Tokyo's ladies who lunch: the clientele during our visit, almost entirely women. Quite the see-and-be-seen crowd. 66 1
I’m not sure which I liked better about the @fstokyo, the valet greeter and escort from the train station, the view of the trains from our room, or the super comfy pajamas. Excellent service all around. #Tokyo #Japan #hoteljunkie 83 3
I think @sezannetokyo ⁠has a #footfetish, and I’m ok with that. Truly fantastic lunch. Impeccable service. ⁠ 64 2
We had a really fun "Lost in Translation" moment at @meatman_roppongi. Google Translate failed hilariously. Delicious meat/fat overload anyway. Great staff, charming hospitality. Lots of sake. Thank you, @fstokyo for securing the reservation! #Tokyo #Roppongi #sake 77 1
Brad A. Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact
Writer. Photographer. Traveler. Restaurant Critic.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.