Restaurants in Yucatán Peninsula
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Restaurante Natura
Styled after the successful 100% Natural chain, this little bistro offers up a good mix of natural and vegetarian Mexican cuisine.
reviewed
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La Casa del Cheesecake
This veritable institution offers cheesecakes, whole or by the slice, in an array of funky flavors that may include peach or even Kahlua.
reviewed
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Aluxes Coffee House
Aluxes serves bagels with cream cheese, sandwiches, muffins, and hot and iced coffee. Between Guerrero and Hidalgo.
reviewed
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Mama’s Bakery
At Mama’s try the kiwi-raisin muffins, great carrot cake or the signature sticky buns. Yum! It also offers egg dishes and wonderful smoothies. This intimate, friendly place is a bit hard to find, but don’t give up. Heading north along Gómez, go about four blocks and look on your left for the bamboo wind chimes under the palapa. The small sign is easy to overlook.
reviewed
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Restaurant el Cordobes
This locals’ joint, near Hotel Miralmar, is on the north side of the plaza in a 100-year-old building. Weak ‘American’ coffee is served quickly, with a warm smile, and it’s a perfect place to relax for a bit, sluice down a cerveza (beer) and look out on the main plaza.
reviewed
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Pizza Rolandi
Below the Hotel Belmar, between Abasolo and Madero, it bakes very good thin-crust pizzas and calzones in a wood-fired oven. The menu also includes pasta, fresh salads, fish, good coffee and some Italian specialties – definitely don’t come here looking for Mexican.
reviewed
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Irori
Enjoy the show as the chef slices and dices the night away at this Japanese-run restaurant serving sushi and many other Japanese favorites in an intimate and nicely decorated setting. There’s even a kids menu if you’ve got sushi-scoffing rugrats in tow.
reviewed
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Antojitos Mimi
Try Antojitos Mimi, opposite Hotel Calakmul, for some pretty fine salbutes (tortillas fried until they puff up) and an ice-cold agua de jamaica (hibiscus tea).
reviewed
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Pane e Vino
This Italian-run joint serves tasty antipasti and salads (with olive oil and balsamic vinegar if you wish), lasagna, fish, meat and a selection of respectable wines by the glass or bottle.
reviewed
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K Sadillas del Jalisco
For a cheap lunch on this side of town, head over to the palapa-shaded K Sadillas, where the friendly owner, Javier, serves up super-cheap lunches and, you guessed it…quesadillas.
reviewed
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Alux
About three blocks west of Hwy 307, the Alux is an amazing must-visit. It’s a restaurant-lounge situated in a cavern: stalactites, stalagmites, pools and all.
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Restaurant Mary Doly
Near Hotel Miralmar, this is a homey place with good, cheap seafood and meat dishes and breakfasts. The freshly squeezed orange juice is very refreshing.
reviewed
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Los Pelícanos
This friendly eatery is lauded by locals as the best restaurant in town.
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Restaurante Pórtico del Peregrino
There are several pleasant, traditional-style dining rooms (some with air-con) surrounding a small courtyard in this upscale eatery. Yucatecan dishes such as pollo pibil (chicken flavored with achiote sauce and wrapped in banana leaves) are its forte, but you’ll find many international dishes and a broad range of seafood and steaks as well. Mole poblano, a chocolate and chili sauce, is a house specialty, as is artery-clogging queso relleno (Dutch cheese stuffed with spiced ground beef).
reviewed
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La Habichuela
An elegant restaurant with a lovely courtyard dining area, just off Parque Las Palapas. The specialty is shrimp and lobster in curry sauce served inside a coconut with tropical fruit, but almost anything on the menu is delicious. The seafood ceviche and tapa al ajillo (potatoes in garlic) are mouthwatering. The gorgeous aquarium in the lobby makes for a very attractive wait (reservations are advised). Finish with lime sorbet splashed with xtabentún, a Yucatecan anise-flavored liqueur.
reviewed
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Señor Frog's
The Zona Hotelera is a vast swath of mainly Tex Mex-style places catering to the just-flew-in crowd. Prices are higher and quality is generally lower than what you'll find in Ciudad Cancún. A number of places cater to a young crowd, with conga lines where waiters cheer and pour watery tequila down dancers' throats as they weave by. So you'll either want to head for or away from Señor Frog's and Carlos 'n Charlie's for that kind of dining experience.
reviewed
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Carlos 'n Charlie's
The Zona Hotelera is a vast swath of mainly Tex Mex-style places catering to the just-flew-in crowd. Prices are higher and quality is generally lower than what you'll find in Ciudad Cancún. A number of places cater to a young crowd, with conga lines where waiters cheer and pour watery tequila down dancers' throats as they weave by. So you'll either want to head for or away from Señor Frog's and Carlos 'n Charlie's for that kind of dining experience.
reviewed
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Parador Gastrónomico de Cockteleros
Parador Gastrónomico de Cockteleros, on the north end of the malecón, 2.5km from the Plaza Principal, is the place to partake of the bountiful seafood netted daily from the Gulf. About 20 thatched-roof restaurants all serve pretty much the same thing: shellfish cocktails and fried fish. Ask to see the day's catch and make your selection; a medium-sized fish goes for about around $50. Most places give you free starters such as fried shrimp or crab legs.
reviewed
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Checándole
If you can only eat at one restaurant in Cancún, then you should eat here. It’s a bit away from the city center but well worth the extra effort. Dressed up with a palapa roof, Checándole specializes in Chilango (Mexico City) cuisine. The menú del día (fixed three-course meal) is just M$45 – great value. If it’s offering pollo en mole poblano (chicken smothered in a handmade chocolate and chili sauce), you should definitely go for it.
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Restaurant 100% Natural
Vegetarians and health-food nuts delight at this health-food chain near Avenida Yaxchilán, which serves juice blends (try the ‘Crazy Yog’ or the ‘Vampiro’), a wide selection of yogurt-fruit-vegetable combinations, and brown rice, pasta, fish and chicken dishes. The onsite bakery turns out whole-wheat products, and the entire place is very nicely decorated and landscaped. Service is excellent – at times even too attentive.
reviewed
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Mañana
A good-vibe place with colorful hand-painted tables, superfriendly service and some excellent veggie options - the hummus and veggie baguette is the restaurant's signature dish - Mañana is perhaps the best lunch spot on the island. It also has coffee, licuados (blends of fruit or juice with water or milk, and sugar) and some Middle Eastern dishes. There's a book exchange, too.
reviewed
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John Gray’s Place
The sister restaurant to John Gray’s Kitchen in Puerto Morelos, it has a dark-wood bar downstairs, and the same spectacular food. Crab cakes melt on the tongue, set off by a dash of Asian vinaigrette and a few cilantro leaves. Chicken with cilantro pesto is a favorite. Norah Jones croons in the background as you polish off your glass of wine. Calle Corazón is between Calles 12 and 14.
reviewed
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Marganzo
This touristy spot is worth its mustard. Very sweet waitresses start you off with complimentary shredded manta ray, octopus salad, salsa, garlic cream and chips. From there, dig through the extensive menu, which offers everything from international fare to a regional tasting menu. There’s live music and dances at night, and a pretty decent wine list (this being the provinces and all).
reviewed
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Mexican Food Stalls
Inexpensive Mexican food can be found at the food stalls in the northeast corner of Parque Las Palapas, and at two good taco carts operating in the evening - one at the north edge of the Comercial Mexicana parking lot (across Avenida Tulum from the bus terminal) and the other at the southeast edge of the Plaza de Toros (Bullring) parking lot, at Avenidas Sayil and Bonampak.
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Lonchería Las Mañanitas
At the Portales de San Martín, a block north of Avenida Circuito Baluartes Norte, this place serving regional snacks under the arcades of the plaza is a popular gathering place for families and friends. The festive mood is buoyed by a steady stream of panuchos (tortillas filled with mashed black beans), tamales and bowls of turkey soup.
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