Fantastic Animals Brunch & Cocktail at Zaranda

Through October 18, Zaranda is pouring the Happy Alien, a mezcal cocktail created for Fantastic Animals: Alebrijes and Nahuales from México, and serving weekend brunch a short walk from the sculptures at Discovery Green.

Zaranda sits at 1550 Lamar Street, along the south side of Discovery Green, which puts eight 20-foot sculptures a short walk from your table.

Fantastic Animals: Alebrijes and Nahuales from México runs September 15 through October 18 and is free to view throughout the park. The sculptures were designed and created by Mexican artists and artisans, each one an enlarged reproduction of an original work by a celebrated Oaxacan artist, drawing on the legacy of Mexico City artist Pedro Linares, who is credited with popularizing the fantastical creatures known as alebrijes.

Make a weekend of it. Brunch runs 11:30 AM to 3 PM on Saturday and Sunday, à la carte, with the flavors of Las Californias. Most tables start with the Aguachile Negro: lime-cured shrimp with cucumber, avocado and serrano in a dark broth of soy, Worcestershire and Maggi. The Desayuno side of the menu covers Chilaquiles, Bistec con Huevos and Torrejas Mexicanas, and the Carreta Marisquera sends out oysters and tostadas from the seafood street cart. Sundays add live music from 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM by Trio Media Luna, a guitar trio, plus complimentary valet all day for guests dining with us. Brunch here, then walk over and meet the animals.

Lunch, dinner and cocktails pair with the exhibition just as easily. Among the eight sculptures is Happy Alien by the late Constantino Blas, and we are pouring a cocktail named for it: blood orange liqueur, Amarás mezcal, pomegranate juice, simple syrup, fresh lime juice and Scrappy's Fire Tincture bitters. $1 from every one sold goes to Discovery Green Conservancy, the nonprofit that operates and maintains the park and funds more than 600 free events there each year.

Fantastic Animals: Alebrijes and Nahuales from México
Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney Street
September 15 through October 18, 2026
Free to view, throughout the park

Happy Alien is available to guests 21 and older.