Ticuchi means bat in Zapotec, and Enrique Olvera's Polanco bar at Petrarca 254 commits to the name: a dark, candlelit room built around agave spirits rather than the tasting menu theater of his restaurant Pujol nearby. 50 Best Discovery lists it as a bar first, with food from an open kitchen running second.
Pulse News Mexico called it a bat cave with an unexpected menu when it opened in 2019. The Infatuation's review settles the category question: come for mezcal, stay because the corn program outcooks most full restaurants.
Dark wood and raw concrete under candlelight, designed to evoke a cenote; the low light is the most repeated complaint in Yelp's 53 reviews, since the menu fights the dark. The open kitchen throws the only bright light in the room. It feels closer to a listening bar than a cantina.
The list runs deep into mezcal and further into the unusual corners of agave, including sotol and ceremonial styles tied to the wild ticuchi agave the bar is named for. Cocktails stay agave forward and restrained. Tripadvisor reviewers call it perfect for mezcal drinks while flagging Polanco pricing; this is a $$$$ room and does not apologize for it.
Polanco diners crossing over from Pujol, agave obsessives, and a late local crowd that treats the counter as the seat of record. The room runs quiet and conversational. Solo drinkers do well at the bar.
Petrarca sits in Polanco's restaurant grid, a five minute walk from Masaryk's retail strip and ten from Chapultepec's northern gates. The block rewards a split evening: dinner counter here, then a nightcap in a Juarez or Roma room twenty minutes south by cab.
Early Tuesday through Thursday for counter seats and staff time. Friday and Saturday run full from 21:00. Order food early; the kitchen closes before the bar.
Practical notes: reservations help but the counter holds walk-in seats most weeknights. Bring a phone light for the menu and nobody will judge; Yelp reviewers admit to it openly. The room sits a short block from Petrarca's corner with Horacio, an easy cab drop.