Churrería El Moro
Mexico City

29 March 2016

The new El Moro in Mexico City does not look at all like a classical churrería: the colors, the graphic designs on the walls and the formal cleanliness of the spaces are nothing like the traditional décor of this kind of Iberian or Latin-American café. And yet the Cadena+Asociados studio has taken its inspiration for the design from the history of El Moro, which has been serving fried churros to be dunked in a cup of thick chocolate since 1935. The shades of blue of the tiles and the stained glass that have always formed the identity of this brand have been reinterpreted in the Art Deco style, widely used in those years for everything from posters to architecture, from graphics to furniture and typography. The designers have produced a series of these decorative motifs, simplifying them with respect to the originals and applying them to square tiles laid on the walls, floors and façade in a patchwork. Even the menu is set directly on the wall, as if it were an integral part of the decoration. The notices and the illuminated sign on the street are written in Art Deco lettering. El Moro is a good example of Mexican aesthetics transposed into a contemporary key by an eye accustomed to working for spaces dedicated to food, which are after all in the family DNA: in fact Ignacio Cadena’s brother is the famous chef Alfonso Cadena, who has a restaurant in Guadalajara.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.

Churreria, città del Messico.


Loredana Mascheroni

A journalist, she has always been interested in design. Passionate about contemporary art and architecture, she has worked at Domus since 1997, following a decade-long apprenticeship with other magazines in the sector and an early experience as a TV news journalist that left her with a partiality for video interviews. She does yoga and goes running, to loosen up the tensions caused by overuse of the tablet.


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