Los Loosers is a vegan cafe/restaurant in the Roma Norte neighborhood offeing animal-free versions of some classic dishes in Mexico, and deliver food using bikes.
The cafe is the idea of Mariana Blanco who was a former journalist in 2011. With no savings or business plan, she started out on this venture borne by her passion for bicycles and vegan food, reports The Guardian. The name came up because of a friend who once teased her for being different, for frequently cycling and insisting on animal-free food. He called her a loser. The double-O in Looser represents the wheels in a bicycle.
The cafe/restaurant is decorated with fairy lights and lamps made from bike handlebars and it has just one large wooden table. There is no website yet, but customers can check the Los Loosers Instagram page then order via message on Twitter or Facebook.
Cyclists will deliver anywhere, even to hotels and parks. They once biked six hours out of Mexico City to deliver an order, using specially made backpacks that protect the food from the city's potholed streets.
The restaurant's menu includes vegan chilaquiles with blue corn tortillas and black bean dip, mushroom tacos with habanero salsa and vegan burgers which are regulars. Also available is Pozole, a popular stew usually made with pork. Blanco's version uses five types of wild Mexican mushroom in a rich broth, filled with edible flowers. "Mexican ramen marries Japanese mushrooms and poblano chillies, while the Los Loosers burger is made from huitlacoche, a black fungus that grows on corn and is considered a delicacy." Non-alcoholic homemade fruit/grain drinks (aguas frescas ), tea and Oaxacan coffee are also available.
Mexico City has a small but growing vegan community, says Blanco. Around 60% of their market are locals. While the delivery-by-bike set up is surely welcome in one of the world's most polluted cities, Blanco admits the environment was not in her original plans.
