Food

For a country place, Puerto Ángel [1] has surprisingly good food, starting with the Hotel Villa Florencia (Blv. Virgilio Uribe s/n, tel./fax 958/584-3044, 8 a.m.–11 p.m. daily). The restaurant is right on the main beachfront street, upstairs. Lulu, the wife of the late Italian-born owner/chef, carries on his tradition, specializing in antipasti and salads ($3–5), and meat and seafood pastas ($5–12). As in any good country Italian restaurant, service is crisp and presentations are attractive. The modest wine list has, in the past, included some good old-country imports, and the pastas al dente and cappuccino rank among the best on the coast.

Most welcoming of all Puerto Ángel [1] places to eat is the relaxingly simple restaurant at Casa de Huéspedes Gundi y Tomás (uphill on the west end of Puerto Ángel’s beachfront street, tel. 958/584-3068, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. daily. $4–7); see the streetside sign. Owner Gundi Ley offers hearty breakfasts, light lunches, and one or two tasty dinner entrées.

The unpretentiously elegant view palapa restaurant at the Hotel La Buena Vista (tel. 958/584-3104, 8:30–11 a.m. and 6:30–9 p.m.) is one of the best spots in town for a leisurely, intimate dinner. The menu includes salads, soups ($4), pastas ($4–7), and fresh broiled fish and meats ($7–9).

For simply good comida casera (home-cooked food), head straight to Beto’s (tel. 958/584-3011, 4 p.m.–midnight daily), two blocks west of the town center, a block uphill, past the west-side creek bridge. It’s strictly a family operation, with Edilbert (Alberto) Espinosa, owner; Teresa Guzman, his mother, doing the cooking; and Felipe Guzman, his uncle, lending a helping hand. Over more than 20 years, they’ve barely raised their prices and have built a loyal clientele who return year after year for their tasty ceviche ($3) and healthy specialties, such as avocado stuffed with tuna ($4) and pescado veracruzana (huachinango, mahimahi, or tuna, veracruz style, $6).

For a spectacular view with late lunch or early dinner (or even just a drink), visit the family-run Restaurant Rincón del Mar (on the west-side headland overlooking the bay, 4–10 p.m. daily Dec. 15–Easter). Follow the andador toward the beach from the beachfront Avenida Uribe bridge, just west of the naval compound. At the restaurant sign, follow the stairway up the rocky headland. The star of the show (aided by a husband-daughter team) is the wife, Mari, who crafts a short but tasty menu of soups and salads ($3–5), pastas ($4–7), seafood and meats ($5–12).

Zipolite [2] also has some good eating places. For tasty macrobiotic-style fare and a breezy beach view, go to the restaurant at Shambhala (on the Playa Zipolite west-end headland above the beach, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. daily). Personable owner Gloria Johnson runs a very tidy kitchen, which serves good breakfasts ($3–6), soups and salads ($3–4), and sandwiches ($3–5). No alcohol.

If you’d like a similarly healthy menu, but also with beer or wine, try Bohemo (noon–10 p.m. daily), Shambhala’s new beachfront coffee house and café.

A regiment of satisfied patrons of Restaurant Alquimista (right on the Shambhala–Lo Cósmico beachfront, tel. 958/587-8961 4–10 p.m. daily low season, noon–midnight daily high season) choose from a seemingly mile-long menu of appetizers (hummus, guacamole, $3–5), soups (onion, cream of carrot, $3–6), salads (Greek, romaine, $4–6), tortas (egg, ham, cheese, $3–5), fish (10 styles of fillet, $6–12), pastas (al burro, cream, Bolognese, $4–8), hamburgers (fish, beef, chicken, $4), and much, much more.

Beach Restaurant San Cristóbal (on the beach, a few steps from Zipolite’s main street-adoquín in Colonia Roca Blanca, tel. 958/584-3191, 8 a.m.–about 9 p.m. daily) is among the best. Especially good are the breakfasts: scrambled eggs with bacon ($4), vegetable soup ($3), and hamburger with french fries ($4).

In San Agustinillo [3], longtimers like shady beachfront palapa Restaurant Mexico Lindo (at the east, Mazunte end of the beach, 8 a.m.–10 p.m. daily, closed Sept.–Oct.). Owner Fausto and his wife serve from a short but tasty menu of salads ($3), sandwiches ($2–4), tacos and tostadas ($2–4), and seafood ($5–10).

In Mazunte [3], tasty vegetarian-style goodies are the specialty at Tanya’s (on the west end, uphill, above the cosmetics factory-store, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. daily). Besides superfresh seafood ($5–10), Tanya offers plenty of hearty juices ($2–3), salads ($3–5), and soy burgers ($3–4).

A fortunate addition to Mazunte [3]’s growing list of good restaurants is Armadillo restaurant and bakery (8 a.m.–11 p.m. daily high season, 3–11 p.m. daily low season, armadillo.mazunte [at] yahoo [dot] com [dot] mx, no phone). Armadillo is the life project of a personable Mexican-French husband-wife team, who, beneath their sculpture-decorated palapa (he’s the sculptor), offer a delicious, eclectic menu (she’s the chef), including breakfasts (omelets, $3), lunch (tuna salad $4), and, for dinner, the Armadillo specialty, stuffed fish fillet ($9). Find them a block and a half down Calle Rinconcito, the street that heads toward the beach, a block west of the Mazunte bridge.