Retire Early
Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler

In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age
of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this
financially independent lifestyle, they invite you
to take advantage of their wisdom and experience. |
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Poleo
Holistic Kitchen and Maria Bonita Terrace Bar
Oaxaca, Mexico
Currency Exchange
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli
Oaxaca City,
Mexico holds lots of delights and surprises. We especially enjoy
the Centro
where there are
walking
streets, activities,
markets, live music and
a variety of restaurants to go and
have a meal.
About a block from our
hotel room was this lovely sandwich shop with a separate restaurant on the roof.
They were distinctly
different and we found out that it was a Father-Daughter joint venture.
The daughter's place
offered items that were focused on one's health and spirituality. With names
like Krishna, Laksmi, Ganesha, Shiva, Ying, Yang, and Guru one had the idea that
we should be "Om-ing" while we chewed our sprouts.
Nonetheless, her food was
fresh, delicious and with unique combinations like brie, pear, tahini, nuts and
honey. She also had a great turkey breast sandwich.
She was open in the
mornings, and her father's place upstairs was open from 1pm to late evening.

Paleo Restaurant
Paleo's was bright, clean
and sun-filled. The kitchen is to the front left out of the photo, and at the
side of the bar to the left, is the stairway up to Maria Bonita Rooftop Bar.
Oaxaca is the home of
Mezcal,
and lined up at the bar are several styles of both
tequila
(Mexico's National Drink) and Mezcal.
The small triangle against
the wall you see is of the Virgin Mary, adorned in jeweled velvet. She sits on a
shelf above the sign for Convite, a very popular style of Mezcal. Here, you see
two types of spirituality mixed: the Catholic (Virgin Mary) and Mezcal. In the
olden days, only the spiritual elite drank Mezcal to commune with the gods.
Whether this pairing was by
accident or on purpose, it's still an interesting juxtaposition!
And... the restaurant
upstairs is named Maria Bonita, so maybe there is something there. Or perhaps
his wife's name is Maria.
A mystery to be solved at
another time!

Paleo roast beef
sandwich named Mani
As I mentioned
previously, the names of Paleo's offerings were all from sources of Hindu
spirituality.
Om mani padme hum
is a chant of compassion that is very well-known all over the world. It has even
entered Chinese Buddhism and Chinese Taoism.
But hey, it's just a roast
beef sandwich!
Roast beef, grilled onions,
gouda cheese and fresh sliced tomatoes.

Our bill
Our bill for 2 sandwiches
(mine was Nam, a turkey breast), an agua fresca and 2 lager beers was $14USD
before tip.

Maria Bonita Terrace Bar
We had a chat with the
Father one afternoon before we went upstairs to his rooftop terrace.
Papa was explaining that
the downstairs, Paleo, was his daughter's endeavor, focused on health food.
HIS restaurant, by
contrast, was focused on living life! Traditional food, Mezcal, and the
company of friends, he said with a hearty laugh.

Tasajo over crisp
tortilla
Tasajo is thinly sliced
grilled flank steak that's pounded super thin and then cured in salt before
being grilled up. In Oaxaca, tortillas are
grilled on a
comala until they are crisp, for added texture. Inside the tortilla here is
more shredded tasajo. Served with mild grilled chile, radish, herbs and green
seed pods from local trees.

Cochinita pibil sandwich
Cochinita pibil is a slow
roasted pork with a paste made from achiote seed to make it red. Served with pickled
onions.

Tasajo tacos with
accompaniments
These tacos are made with
the same beef jerky except shredded. Bowls of additional items to dress the
tacos are displayed in front of the customer. There are raw onions, sliced lime,
avocado sauce, red sauce, fresh cilantro and more.

Quesadillas with
quesillo
These quesadillas have
crumbled quesillo on top. Quesillo is a fresh cheese that only takes 2-3 hours
to make and is very popular in Mexican dishes. Topped with spicy avocado sauce.

Chapulines ceviche tacos
Ok guys, get ready
for it.
In Oaxaca, chapulines or
grasshoppers, are a very common food item. The indigenous have used this insect
as a source of protein for centuries, and it's part of local cuisine.
There's no point in being
in Oaxaca and not trying a local dish or two, so we ordered these chapulines
ceviche tacos.
And yes, they were
delicious!

Friends enjoying some
after dinner drinks at Maria Bonita/Poleo
Sometime towards the end of
our meal upstairs, it began to drizzle. The Father mentioned that we could have
a nightcap downstairs (in the Poleo Restaurant) and take our time.

Here is a photo of us
finishing off the evening at Maria Bonita Terrace Bar... except downstairs at
Poleo Restaurant instead.
Sitting next to Billy in
the black shirt and hat is
Dale Knight,
another world traveler (as everyone at the table is as well). Take a look at his
interviews and
photos
of his travels here. His experiences of
travel during Covid were also informative.

our bill at Maria Bonita
Our bill for 5 people, with
drinks and before tip was about $74USD.
Would we go back?
Yes!
To both of these
restaurants and for completely different reasons.
Maria Bonita Terrace
Bar and Poleo Restaurant
Calle Macedonio Alcala 706 B Esquina Humboldt
Oaxaca 68000 Mexico
Tele: +52 951 516 7233
For Maria Bonita Menu and more Click Here
For Poleo Restaurant Menu and more, Click Here
For more on
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About the Authors



Retire
Early Lifestyle appeals to a different
kind of person – the person who prizes their
independence, values their time, and who doesn’t
want to mindlessly follow the crowd.
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