I recently made a culinary pilgrimage to Puerto Vallarta, where I had the opportunity to experience a variety of the city’s best restaurants and dishes. Here’s a few of my favorite memories from my epicurean adventure along Mexico’s beautiful west coast.
San Sebastián del Oeste is a beautifully restored colonial silver mining town nestled high up in the Sierra Madres mountains. It’s just a 90-minute bus drive from Puerto Vallarta’s bustling downtown and it’s an ideal place to find incredible authentic Mexican foods.
During my day trip, I stopped in at La Quinta-Cafe de Altura, an organic coffee farm owned and operated by five generations of the Sanchez family, and bought a delicious vanilla and almond-flavored roast and some homemade sweets or dulce tipicos.
I ate one of my favorite meals of the trip at Comedor La Lupita, a small lunch stop near the entrance to San Sebastián. Everything here is handmade with fresh local ingredients, including corn tortillas, machaca and the best mole I’ve ever tasted in my life.
La Leche is an interesting, avant-garde restaurant close to downtown, with a completely white interior serving as a broad, blank canvas for executive chef Alfonso Cadena’s colorful culinary innovations. New recipes and menus are written daily and food is whimsically served up in everything from mousetraps to toothpaste tubes.
creme brulee with popcorn ice cream
I tried the chapulines, or cricket, tacos at El Arrayan. You should too.
Chef Bernhard Guth of TRIO
El Eden Eco Park is a great place to spend the day. There is an open-aired restaurant right on the banks of the Mismaloya River that serves up excellent, and extremely fresh, seafood. The son of the chef here is a fisherman and brings his best catches back to the restaurant every day. Admission to the park is free and locals bring their families to play in the idyllic swimming hole or relax on the patio with a few cervezas.
I visited several artisanal tequila haciendas during my trip and I quickly found out that it’s always a good idea, no matter what time of day, to stop in for a tasting. The tequila blanca at El Nogalita, one such plant located on the way to San Sebastian, was particularly impressive.
Click here for more information about planning a trip to Puerto Vallarta.
Cool stuff. I love food! I will be down there in Puerto Vallarta, and Punta Mita later this month. Looking forward to Tequila and tortillas
Robert–that will be amazing! Keep me posted if you’d like any other fellow foodie recommendations!
If there are ever water bug tacos on one of your adventures…will you please try one for me and Violet, too?