Chai

Chai is a popular chain of cafes that can be found around Guadalajara.  The location at Juarez 200 in the city centre is excellent for people-watching, while the location on Vallarta (in the Zona Rosa) is located in a beautiful old mansion with gorgeous seating on the huge front patio.  Chai is definitely a hip place to hang out in Guadalajara, but I can't recommend it.  They have a very limited menu and, for the most part, the food is sub-par.  I have tried both their salads and their soups, and I would have been better off at McDonalds or a street vendor.  Truly, the food is slopped together and thrown on a plate.  Their coffee beverages are suspect as well, and usually seem to be coated with a sort of oily film.  The only thing Chai is really good for is people-watching and lounging around, so that makes it a good spot for alcoholic drinks before dinner or before a big night on the town.  They have a huge mixed-drink menu with something for everyone's tastes.  Drink your heart out but head elsewhere for your food.

Alta Fibra is actually a locally-owned chain of bakeries that specialize in supposedly-healthy baked goods.  At their location in the city center, they have an attached cafeteria-style restaurant that offers diners some of the best value for their money in the city.  Alta Fibra offers cheap comidas- fixed-price menus- that appeal to health-minded lunchers and especially vegetarians.  For approximately 35 pesos ($3.50 US), servers will pass your plate along a buffet line and pile it high with fresh salad, a hot entree (usually from a choice of four), soup, bread and dessert.  Your meal comes complete with one of the daily agua frescas- fruit pureed with sugar and water then strained into an icy-cold glass.  There is a small selection of a la carte items such as soy-based burgers and cheese quesadillas, but the real draw here is the lunch buffet.  On your way out, consider visiting the bakery for some of their awesome cinnamon-sugar cookies (usually packaged indiviually in plastic and priced at 10 pesos for ten cookies).