With a background in film and television, Bernardo Serna, known for projects such as Gossip Girl: Acapulco and La Academia reality show, followed his passion for mezcal and teamed up with a Mexico City hospitality veteran and opened Tlecān—a mezcal bar that in it’s first year found itself on the prestigious World’s 50 Best Bars list at #20 (and #10 in North America).
While many Mexico City bars opt for a more cosmopolitan vibe, Tlecān looks to celebrate its Mexican roots. Here you’ll find the flagship cocktail Paloma Blanca made with carbonated clarified grapefruit juice, mezcal, lime, and grapefruit salt alongside the Tascalate Sour, inspired by an ancient Mexican drink made of cacao, achiote and corn from the state of Chiapas.
While Tlecān made a big splash on the global cocktail scene in a matter of months, Serna is looking to take things nice and easy and relish the moment.
Were you surprised how many Mexico City bars made The World’s 50 Best Bars list?
I was not that surprised. I think Mexico is hot right now. People are interested in our culture. I think next year there’s going to be more Mexican bars on the list.
Do you mean Mexico City is hot or Mexico in general?
In general, but the City is pumping right now. During Covid, there were a lot of ex-pats coming from the global north and they realized what we had here and it spread like wildfire. They were interested in what we have to offer. All of the spirits that we have in Mexico, some were considered not that luxurious and they are now. So, we decided to make this concept a tribute to Prehispanic roots and have all the distillates that we make in Mexico and elevate the experience. We thought the spirts deserved better.
A lot of the mezcal you use don’t get exported outside of Mexico.
We don’t use any labels. Labels don’t matter here. Everything is bought straight from the producers at fair prices. We embrace the ephemerality of these spirits, which are not quality controlled. They are not coming from factories. This is not a place to come and ask for ‘the usual’. It’s more like, what do you have this time? Surprise me.
Your partner, Eli Martinez Bello, ran the Pujol bar program for five years. Please talk about your relationship.
She’s an icon in the industry. I knew her from Pujol and Pato Negra and several places. I was starting this project and I told her, what do you say? I already had the investors so do you want to take this to the next level? This is my first bar and I wanted to learn from the greatest.
What was the inspiration in starting a mezcal bar?
I love mezcal but I didn’t like mezcalerias. Here, they know what they’re serving you. They know who makes it and how it’s made. They know all the mezcals that we have. They know the flavor profiles and they can recommend something that you will like.
You’re one of the few prestige bars that play music in Spanish, which helps to offer the Mexican experience.
Here we play cumbia; Mexican and a little bit of Colombian because they invented it. Toy [Antonio “Toy” Hernandez] of Control Machete made our playlist.
With drinks like the Pulque Colada, do you find that Mexicans are familiar with the ingredients?
Some of them, yes. A lot of people from the north don’t know what happens in the south. Tascalate is probably known in Mexico City but in the north, it’s rare for someone to know. We provide an experience for Mexicans to know the rest of their own country.
Are tourists more willing to try something new compared to the locals?
There was a moment in time where foreigners did more research before coming so they knew more. Now, I think it’s balanced. Everyone knows what mezcal is. Now it’s mainstream. When we first opened, I had to tell people not to shoot it. This is for sipping.
When did your love affair with mezcal start?
It started in Oaxaca in the ‘90s. I went to a mezcaleria there and it was a very strange experience. I feel in love with the drink but it was hard to find. The first mezcaleria here opened around 2010. Then the bottles became mainstream and I went back to the artisanal ones and it blew my mind. The diversity is amazing. People tend to say that mezcal is smoky, and some of them are, but a lot of them are not. There are herbal and fruity mezcals. There are many flavors.
Is there a cocktail on your menu that is representative of the bar?
Yes, I think the flagship is the Paloma.
What do you hope someone takes away from their experience at Tlecān?
It’s very clear to me. When you first come in from the street, it looks really serious. But mezcal is going to make a party of everything. Just let yourself go. It’s like a street party. That’s what we want.
Tlecān is located at Av. Álvaro Obregón 228-Local 2, Roma Norte, Cuauhtémoc, 06700 Mexico City.
