Ixi'im

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

The Signature Restaurant of Chablé Yucatán

Ixi'im occupies the old engine room of a 19th-century henequen hacienda on the grounds of Chablé Yucatán, outside the town of Chocholá. The architecture earned the restaurant the 2018 Prix de Versailles Award for design — a fitting recognition for a space where history is not merely decorative but structural to the entire experience.

Chef Luis Ronzón and the Creative Vision Behind the Kitchen

Executive Chef Luis Ronzón arrived at Chablé Yucatán in 2016, drawn by ancestral techniques and the depth of Mayan culture. His path ran through the originality of Chef Yuri de Gortari, the rigorous innovation of René Redzepi at Noma, and the celebrated kitchens of Quintonil. That formation is evident in how he works: grounding Mexican cuisine firmly in Yucatán's landscape while giving it a precision and sensitivity shaped by world-class experience. In 2023 he was named Revelation Chef at the Food and Travel Reader Awards, and in 2025 received Two Knives from The Best Chef Awards.

The broader culinary direction of Chablé Hotels is guided by Corporate Chef Jorge Vallejo — one of Mexico's most internationally recognized figures, holder of two MICHELIN Stars and the force behind Quintonil, currently ranked No. 3 on The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2025. Vallejo and Ronzón built Ixi'im together under a shared premise: embrace local traditions with a genuine commitment to sustainability.

What Arrives at the Table

The cuisine at Ixi'im draws a direct line between Maya agricultural techniques, the smoky register of Pib cooking, Yucatán's Lebanese heritage, and ingredients sourced from the surrounding land. The result is Mexican cuisine that carries real regional identity — not a reinterpretation from a distance, but a tribute built from the inside out. The menu spans a tasting format, à la carte options, wine pairings, and even a dedicated kids' menu, with cocktails and private chef experiences also available.

Wine Spectator recognized the restaurant's cellar with its Award of Excellence in 2023 — a distinction that sits alongside one of the more remarkable collections in the country: 3,435 bottles of tequila, including a label by José Cuervo dating to 1845 and bottles featuring artwork by muralist Rufino Tamayo. Tequila tastings are available by prior reservation.

A Living Kitchen

Ixi'im continues to evolve through collaborative events that bring guest chefs into the hacienda kitchen. The restaurant's ninth anniversary, celebrated under the name Hijos del Maíz, gathered chefs Alex Chávez, Elio Xicum, Erick Bautista, and Ernesto Flores alongside Ronzón to honor corn — the sacred grain at the center of Mayan identity and, in many ways, the heart of everything Ixi'im stands for.