June 12, 2007

Latin America | Mexico | Puebla

Ice, Ice, Bebe

By Lisa Wixon

Mexico's top architect turns trash into treasure.

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Long considered a way station on the journey from Mexico City to Oaxaca, eternally spring-blessed Puebla — the birthplace of mole poblano and other culinary sueños — is now the place to chill. Literally. A 19th-century ice factory renovated by Mexican legend Ricardo Legorreta has just opened as Hotel La Purificadora. The rectangular design hotels inductee is a radical departure for both Puebla, renowned for its grand colonial architecture, as well as for Legorreta. The architect, in his 76th year, eschewed the bold colors that trademarked his career, and limited the hotel’s palate to mostly black and white. He also used bottles and glass shards culled from the factory wreckage — likely the worst assistant’s job in design history.

Ninety minutes by car from the capital, Puebla’s Madrid-style centro is packed with cafes, restaurants and clubs — a resurgence that can be largely attributed to Poblano immigrants in New York, who send home $500 million annually. And then there’s the mole. If monks take credit for Champagne, there’s no reason to doubt Puebla’s lore that its nuns perfected Mexico’s fabled dish — a rich chili-and-chocolate sauce that blankets poultry and takes three days to brew. Hot work, for sure. Though to cool down you’ve got La Purificadora’s rooftop pool — and the safest cubes in town.