Mi Tocaya

The story

Mi Tocaya: Chef Diana Davila’s Mexican Antojería in Chicago – Bib Gourmand

From family taqueria to Bib Gourmand

Chef Diana Davila began cooking at age ten in her parents’ taqueria. She later trained under Susana Trilling in Oaxaca, worked at Michelin-starred Boka, and was named a “Culinary Rising Star” in Washington, D.C. In 2017, she returned to Chicago to open Mi Tocaya Antojería on Logan Boulevard. The name means “my namesake” in Spanish, a term of endearment for someone who shares your name. Here, it signals a deeply personal restaurant: Davila’s menu is built from her summers in Mexico and family travels, reimagining regional dishes through her own lens. The cooking earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2026, recognized for its good quality and good value.

The food – antojitos and regional specialties

The menu moves through small, medium, and large plates. Antojitos (snacks) include the steak burrito that was on the menu before there was a menu—a chela-marinated skirt steak roll stuffed with queso chihuahua, local black beans, and avocado. The Mole Manchamanteles con Setas tells a story: a 17th-century convent mishap in Puebla that gave the “tablecloth stainer” its name, here served with masa-battered enoki mushrooms and a chayote slaw. Squash Blossom Atoladas feature blue heirloom tortillas stuffed with calabacitas and roasted poblano, smothered in a masa-thickened squash blossom salsa—a dish that Davila says highlights what indigenous people have cultivated for millennia. Wednesday nights bring a Burrito Suizo, a classic steak burrito drowned in salsa ranchera and melted cave-aged Alpenhorn Swiss cheese, a nod to the long friendship between Mexico and Switzerland.

The team and atmosphere

Chef de Cuisine Derek Serrano, a Kendall College graduate who previously held a Michelin Bib Gourmand at Chicago’s TWO restaurant, collaborates with Davila to modernize classic Mexican dishes. Serrano’s grandmother inspired his cooking, and the Pollo al Mojo de Ajo Cremoso—a half Amish chicken in a garlicky salsa cremosa—is a tribute to her. The restaurant itself is a neighborhood spot, welcoming and unpretentious, with a commitment to ingredient sourcing that runs through every dish, from Kilgus Farmstead dairy to heirloom corn from Masienda. A 3% surcharge on every check, matched by the house, helps cover employee health benefits—a practical reflection of the care that extends from the kitchen to the dining room.