Do Not Sleep on Oaxaca’s Incredible Smoke Hall
Enter a smoke-filled corridor to find succulent meats, grilled to order over blazing charcoal fires and served with salsas, charred veggies and tortillas. Whether they call it a “smoke hall”, “smoke alley”, “meat hall” or some variation on the theme, few Oaxaca Food Guides skip over the Mercado 20 de Noviembre Pasillo de Humo.
This is as close to perfection as you get eating in Oaxaca. A cheap, delicious and chaotic cultural and gastronomic experience. That said, we highly recommend doing some research beforehand on how to navigate the smoke hall.
Step-By-Step Guide to A Pasillo de Humo
Despite the abundance of food/travel guides and blog posts on the subject, we could not find a step-by-step guide through the beautiful, smoke-filled chaos to our meal. Many smoke halls will work similarly but this one is customized for the Oaxaca 20 de Nov market.
1. Find the correct entrance
Enter on the EAST side of the Mercado 20 de Noviembre. The wall is painted orange with signs that say “Pasillo de Humo” but it can be tough to spot through the street vendors. You should see the line of meat vendors and their grills from the entrance. The google maps marker for Pasillo de Humo is correct.
2. Find a meat vendor
Choose your meat vendors. They all offer almost exactly the same thing so look for a stall with no line and hot coals. You really can’t go wrong.
3. Order and pay for your meat
For two people, we suggest: 1/4 kilo tasajo (beef), 1/4 kilo cecina (spiced pork) and 1/4 kilo chorizo (sausage). That’s about a 1/2 pound of each meat and will let you sample the specialties.
4. Find your seat
They’re going to cook the meat and then come find you. Continue down the smoke hall to the seating area. You might have an escort from the meat stall with you or he may give you a table marker to find you again.
Fair warning: this is where the chaos begins. Steps 5 – 7 happen almost simultaneously.
5. Pick and pay for your sides and a beverage
Before sitting, select and pay for your sides and drinks. We suggest grilled onions and peppers, avocado, limes and a salsa. Maybe a corona or coke to wash it down. Pay the sides guy/gal. Follow their directions – they’re here to help.
6. Settle in
Take your sides and find your seat. More than likely, someone showed you where to park it. Keep in mind you may get “seated in” to the end or middle of these long booths. Don’t fret. If you received a basket with your sides, take them off and put them on the table. Your grilled meats will end up in the basket.
7. Find the tortilla lady
You can ask the sides guy – he kind of runs the place – to help you out. You can also clap (yes, clap) low and loud several times, which is the bat signal of the tortilla lady. Buy 4-5 per person and pay her separately.
8. Feast
When your meat comes, feast and get messy. There are no utensils or napkins in the smoke hall. Don’t forget to chat with your neighbors and say “hi” to the kids in English because their parents want them to practice but they’re too shy to start.
*Pro Tip: The Smoke Hall at 20 de Noviembre is open on Sunday afternoon when many restaurants are closed. If you hit that sweet spot between lunch and dinner, around 4 pm, it will be less hectic.