Photos from the cocktail party celebrating the /Body/Rock photo session in San Miguel de Allende.

Leave a Comment

Posted by: Kate Newman

Oaxacan chef Jose Manuel Baños has been earning praise since the doors opened at his restaurant Pitiona in 2010. In an article for Condé Nast Traveler, Rick Bayless described Baños as the “most promising rising star” in Mexico’s culinary world.

Prior to opening Pitiona, Baños trained and worked in Spain and France, most notably at renowned Spanish restaurants Arzak and elBulli, both of which have placed in the top ten on San Pellegrino’s list of best restaurants worldwide.

Baños’ innovative style combines traditional flavors with modern technique. Popular dishes at his restaurant include beef tongue in chili adobo topped with potato foam, lamb accompanied by a savory rosemary ice cream, and pulled sheep meat served with cocoa gravy.

Pitiona, named for a local herb, draws culinary inspiration from across all of Oaxaca state. All of the ingredients Baños uses in his kitchen—the olive oil, the sea salt, even the wine—are produced in Mexico.

Baños will be the guest chef for a Supper Club event at Hotel Matilda on March 16.

Leave a Comment

Posted by: Kate Newman

On January 30, Hotel Matilda will host a special Supper Club event in support of San Miguel Siempre Hermoso.

This local organization seeks to beautify public spaces by removing graffiti, repairing public fountains, and planting greenery throughout the city. By doing so, San Miguel Siempre Hermoso hopes to discourage petty crime, raise property values, and promote San Miguel as a tourist destination, thus boosting the local economy.  This project would not be possible if not for great cooperation between the municipal government and the private sector, each of which pays 50% of operational costs.

The Supper Club event will be attended by organization president Filip Lein, a Belgian national who, after years spent in Tokyo, New York, and London, settled in San Miguel in 2005. Upon their arrival, Lein and his wife were struck by the lack of graffiti in San Miguel’s Centro area. After learning that this was due in large part to the success of a graffiti removal program, Lein was eager to become involved. When the program began, its workers spent nearly 80% of their time repainting in the Centro. Just seven years later, that figure has dropped to 25%. With this and other fundraising events, the organization hopes to move beyond the Centro and extend their work to outlying colonias.

For this event, Chef Boneta will prepare a mouth-watering feast of roasted red pepper and beet gazpacho, grilled octopus, huitlacoche soup and barbecue brisket, followed by a white chocolate mousse.

See the full menu and get the details here….

Reserve now:  restaurant@hotelmatilda.com

Leave a Comment

By Kate Newman

According to a popular adage in the Arab world, “Whoever goes to the bath on forty consecutive Wednesdays will succeed at anything they do.”

In Arabic, the word hammam means “spreader of warmth”—before these steam baths were introduced to Arab societies, men and women bathed only in cold water. Yet after observing the Roman-inspired baths of Syria, in 630 AD, the prophet Mohammed recommended “sweat baths” to his followers for his belief that they improved fertility, particularly important as he wished to expand the young religion.

As Islam grew, so too did the hammam, first popping up with nomadic groups in the midst of desert wilderness, and eventually spreading to towns throughout Iran, Turkey, North Africa, and even southern Spain. Most formed a sort of annex to the local mosque and were held to the hygienic standards of the religion.

Much like the Roman baths before them, hammams became both a place of rest as well as an important social site in early Muslim culture. This was especially the case for women, who in many regions were discouraged from socializing outside the home. Hammams were a place where members of all levels of society came together, their low entrance fees making them accessible to the majority of the population. Even wealthy men and women with private baths in their homes would visit the hammam for its social appeal, and, by some accounts, to show off their superior cleanliness.

Decidedly less decadent than their Roman predecessors, the first hammams were composed of three chambers with domed white roofs, the design best suited to trap their steam. Heated from the floor, each had hot and cold water for washing, and attendants present for massage and exfoliation treatments.

Scent has always been an important part of the hammam experience. Massage attendants were forbidden to consume garlic for its strong odor, and would rub their hands with fragrant pomegranate peel before treating clients.

Although the hammam is far from new, in recent years, its health benefits have gained increasing international attention. Spa officials around the world support claims that this combination of heat, steam, and aromatherapy helps to relieve stress, relax muscles, ease respiratory problems, and stimulate circulation. The treatment also deeply cleanses the skin, improving its tone and texture. Perhaps most importantly, because the steam opens the pores, the hammam helps the body to rid itself of toxins.

Spa enthusiasts and doctors alike suggest that visiting hammams can play an important part in the nutritional cleansing process, promoting weight loss, increased muscle mass, higher energy levels, and mental clarity. The holistic combination of hammam with measures like diet and exercise boosts the immune system and promotes general well-being.

Spa Matilda is home to the only hammam in San Miguel de Allende. A session in the private, eucalyptus-scented room is certain to leave guests feeling relaxed and refreshed.

Leave a Comment

by Kate Newman

Hotel Matilda Executive Chef Jorge Boneta draws culinary inspiration from all over Mexico, its fine gourmet restaurants as well as its street markets and home-cooked meals.

Boneta has traveled extensively throughout the country to learn the nuances of its many cuisines. “I have eaten shrimp with the fishermen of Mazatlán, tasted barbecued armadillo on the road to Oaxaca, tried iguana soup, the best burritos in Cuidad Juárez, the best barbacoa in Hidalgo, tortas ahogadas in Guadalajara…more flavors than I can tell you!” the chef recalls.

Boneta’s menu, recently released at Restaurant Matilda, features a complete list of breakfast offerings—dishes like the Huevos Matilda, poached eg

gs with smoked salmon and wilted greens, doused in a flavorful chipotle Béarnaise and served on a crisp English muffin.

The lunch menu gives guests their choice of fresh salads and seafood dishes, while also presenting gourmet interpretations of Mexican classics like tortas and tacos—one popular dish is a taco of soft-shell crab wrapped a blue corn tortilla, garnished with Baja-style pickled cabbage.

The dinner service shows Boneta at his most creative, artfully pairing unexpected flavors. Diners might try the tender duck breast covered in a rich berry mole, served with green lentils and a purée of sweet potato and orange.

Of his kitchen philosophy, Boneta says simply: “Mexican cuisine is not just tacos or enchiladas—it comes from the people, the ones who cook, the tortilla makers, the butchers—it’s to love what you do and transmit this through your food. It’s to have fun, to play, to enjoy. When we convey this to the world through our cooking, we have achieved our goals, or at least mine.”

Leave a Comment

Posted by: Kate Newman

Artist Daniela Edburg’s seductive, darkly funny work plays with themes of excess and compulsion, the fine line between pleasure and harm. Her photo series Drop Dead Gorgeous shows characters falling victim to their own indulgence—a lifeless figure surrounded by empty jars of Nutella or engulfed in gummy bears at a picnic gone horribly awry.

Of the collection, the artist said, “It’s not really about the products, but the relationship of love and then hate that we have with them. When you look at a beautiful package of Oreos everything is new and shiny and attractive, and there is the promise of the sweetness and the pleasure, and then you go and open it and eat it and all you have are a stomachache, crumbs and garbage.”

Her series Knit, shot in Querétaro and San Miguel de Allende, reveals elaborate, fantasy-like scenes in which characters face their own restlessness. Knitting, the artist contends, can be a compulsive action, an obsession, or a form of occupational therapy and comfort: a way of creating “a cushioned version of almost anything.” In her piece La Tormenta, a woman stands in a field before an approaching storm, her arms drawn back as brightly knit sleeves stretch endlessly behind her.

Edburg’s willingness to address broad conceptual themes—the self-destructive nature of mankind is present in much of her work—does not come at the cost of her aesthetic sensibility, creating images that are often beautiful and disturbing. In her 2005 photograph Roadkill, a dismembered body lies abandoned on a rural, empty road. Yet the scene is composed with the perfect symmetry of a still life, its colors idyllic, bright pink against green grass and blue sky.

Born in Texas, Edburg grew up in San Miguel de Allende and went on to study visual arts at San Carlos Academy in Mexico City. Her work has been featured in exhibits throughout Mexico and South America, as well as in the United States, Russia, China, France, Belgium, and Spain.

Three of Edburg’s pieces form part of Hotel Matilda’s permanent collection.

Leave a Comment

Leave a Comment

Head to Toe:

• Hamman ritual
• Lavendar and vanilla body wrap
• Hair and scalp treatment
• 30-minute massage
• Manicure
• Pedicure

Total time 4 hour, 45 minutes
Price: $3,417 taxes included

For Couples:

• Detoxification bath
• Exfoliation with coconut, vanilla and lavendar
• Herbal compression massage
• Holistic facial

Total time: 2-1/2 hours
Price for two: $6,844 taxes included

For Her:

• Tres leches (three milk) body exfoliation
• Tres leches body wrap
• 30-minute holistic facial

Total time: 1-1/2 hours
Price: $2,494 taxes included

For Him:

• Hamman ritual
• Body scrub with coffee, chocolate and mint
• Deep tissue massage

Total time: 2 hours
Price: $2,668 taxes included

Reservations:  spa@hotelmatilda.com

Leave a Comment

View Video

Leave a Comment

Posted by: Kate Newman

Inspired by the creative process of Surrealist projects like the collage and the exquisite corpse, the designers have created simple pieces working with silk, cotton, and lace, in a palette of muted hues including charcoal, sage, hazelnut, and vintage blue.

When asked what is special about their designs, the sisters responded, “Each collection we treat as if it was the first time.” Indeed, there is a great versatility to their work, with pieces ranging from billowy, one-piece pantsuits to short party dresses. They stress their respect for the female body, designing clothing that is sexy but elegant, dramatic but feminine. The sisters believe in “creating stylish possibilities of errors,” and their unique work is filled with unexpected combinations: ruffles and tulle adorn the clean lines of minimalist, well-cut pieces.

Julia and Renata draw great inspiration from their travels; since starting their line in 1993, they have shown at major fashion events in Spain, Greece, Croatia, Colombia, the United States, and of course, their native Mexico. They have collaborated on special projects with Absolut Vodka in Sweden and Adidas in Mexico, and their work has been featured in Vogue, Elle, Glamour, and Harper’s Bazaar. Quién Magazine named Julia and Renata among Mexico’s 50 most influential people, and British publication Monocle named them number one in a list of Top Five Mexican Designers.

The designers will attend a cocktail reception at Hotel Matilda on 30 November, followed by a three-day trunk sale in the owner’s suite of the hotel.

Cocktail Reception: Wednesday, Nov 30 – 6pm
Trunk Show: Thurs, Fri, Sat, Dec 1-3 – 11am – 7pm

Leave a Comment