Restaurants in Cozumel
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squarepants
Guest
Hey Jen,
When do you go?
When do you go?
alanconstant
Registered
Jen,
We just returned.
Like you, I am not a seafood lover.
However, I had grouper at Chen Rio on the east side, and loved it.
Poncho's Backyard has excellent Mexican cuisine (try the mole).
El Moro is great for shrimp.
La Cocay was excellent.
The French Quarter was also quite good.
Ernesto's fajitas were good (nice location to catch a sunset).
Alan
We just returned.
Like you, I am not a seafood lover.
However, I had grouper at Chen Rio on the east side, and loved it.
Poncho's Backyard has excellent Mexican cuisine (try the mole).
El Moro is great for shrimp.
La Cocay was excellent.
The French Quarter was also quite good.
Ernesto's fajitas were good (nice location to catch a sunset).
Alan
That's not the burrowing rodent, but a (usually) brown sauce made from peanuts, chocolate, cloves, and a bunch of other stuff, pronounced "moh-lay". I love it. I would eat my shoes with mole sauce.
The most common application of mole is over chicken or chicken enchiladas.
mediakzar
Contributor
Here is a summary of places we ate at in May/June 03. We have a more extensive list with more detail at http://www.mxtravel.com/cozumel/cozumel_restaurants.html
Old standbys that we liked:
La Choza, Guidos, Serras, Rock N Java, Diamond Creations, Santa Carlos Pescaderia, Casa Dennis, Triunfo Rotiseria, and El Turix.
Theres been plenty written about La Choza, Guidos and Casa Dennis in other threads so I wont go into much detail on these. All are still good. I would note that the prices for margaritas at both La Choza and Casa Dennis seem to have risen but I wouldnt let that stop you from eating there.
Rock N Java and Diamond Creations were our choices for a reasonably priced sandwich at lunch. The club sandwich at Rock N Java was good and we liked their potato salad so much that we asked Lisa to give us the recipe. I tried the baked Hawaiiano sandwich at DC and enjoyed that too.
Santa Carlos is still our favorite locals place for fish but all they serve is seafood. The ceviche appetizer was extremely fresh and a single serving was enough as a starter for 4-6 people. Both the whole fried fish and the fillet plates were great...about as good as fish gets. We paid about $6-$8 per person for a plate and beverage but not including the appetizer.
The price for a whole grilled chicken (takeout) at Triunfo Rotiseria at Calle 8 Norte and 30th has gone up to $60 pesos but its still a great lunch that I could eat several times a week. In fact, we did just that.
We had dinner on the patio in front of El Turix on the night of the lunar eclipse and had a great view of the event. I really love their conchinita pibil and as usual, my son went for the shark stew. Glad to report they had not run out of coconut pie that night either.
As far as price to quality ratio, it is hard to beat Serras Tacqueria. Our first night in Cozumel, my wife, son and I had 17 tacos al pastor and 3 cokes. Not only was the food really good, but also with a generous tip, it only ran us $100 pesos. That first night wasnt the only meal we ate there. On other nights we tried a few other items like the chuleta con queso taco (smoked pork chop with cheese) and the al pastor torta (grilled marinated pork sandwich.) All were good. We also liked that they have opened up their patio for outdoor seating.
Im not 100% sure of the name of this place but think it is called something like Super Hit. Its located on the corner or Ave 30 and Calle 15 Sur across 15th from the fruiteria where we like to get fresh squeezed orange and grapefruit juice. We had planned on trying the empanadas at a place I think is called El Patito (or something like that) on the opposite side of Ave 30 but they closed at noon on Saturday and it was just after that when we arrived and we needed to get something quick before our afternoon dive. Ive eaten at Super Hit a couple times with some local friends. Nothing fancy but decent food and reasonably priced. The pappa fritas were on the greasy side but the pork tortas and the licuada del melon (fresh cantaloupe juice drink) were mighty fine and very reasonably priced.
New places that we liked:
Cofelias is a really cute breakfast and lunch restaurant with seating in a pleasant garden on Calle 5 less than a block from the waterfront. We had scrambled eggs with bacon and the house quiche and both were good as was the jamica (hibiscus flower) drink. They had a really nice chipotle (smoked jalapeno) sauce on the table that went well with both the eggs and the quiche. Good service, nice atmosphere and well prepared food.
Johnny Bravos Tacqueria is a new place located on Ave 15 just south of Santiagos Grill. For long time visitors, its in the same location as the old El Fiesta Taco from years ago. The prices were a little higher here than at Serras but the food was very good. They dont offer al pastor but do have a good tasting steak taco and very good frijoles charos (black bean soup). The best deal is probably the sampler platter (enough for 2) or the half platter, which was enough for a meal for one person at about $45 pesos. The owner (Juan aka Johnny) is very personable and helpful.
We also finally tried the locally made ice cream at Michoacans located on Ave 20 near 1st. (There is another location closer to the downtown square.) Over our stay, we sampled several varieties including pineapple (more of a sorbet than ice cream), chocolate and mamay; a local fruit that looks like it has cantaloupe skin and an oblong shape. It wasnt Ben and Jerrys but it was decent and reasonably priced. A medium cup, which would equal two large scoops, was $14 pesos.
Disappointments:
The food at Jeannies Waffle House was as good as ever but the prices have jumped considerably since we were there at Christmas. It appeared to us that their business was off a bit as well. We heard from another restaurant owner in the same area that the landlord of the building that Jeannies is in has raised their rent 3 times in the past year and they had to raise prices to meet it. Too bad. I like the people and the food there but Im not likely to pay $6 for a waffle any time soon.
The Coffee Bean was a minor disappointment but not so bad that we wouldnt give it another try. We stopped by one night for coffee and dessert. It may have just been an off night but our brownie was not nearly as good as we remembered the last one we had there.
Our biggest disappointment was Santiagos Grill. For years, many considered Santiago's to be the best Mexican restaurant in Cozumel. We used to eat there at least once every time we visited Cozumel. Then in recent years, the quality fell off and we visited less often and over Christmas, we heard that Santiagos had closed. But when we got there this trip, we discovered it had re-opened so we decided, what the hell? Lets give it another shot. I wish we hadnt. It was the most expensive meal we ate on our entire trip and the food was at best mediocre. The grouper fillet my wife ordered was thin and dry. My chicken kabob was tasteless. Someone else at our table seemed to be enjoying their grilled lobster but I didnt taste it. There was only one other table seated while we were there and unless some changes are made, I doubt it will stay open much longer.
Old standbys that we liked:
La Choza, Guidos, Serras, Rock N Java, Diamond Creations, Santa Carlos Pescaderia, Casa Dennis, Triunfo Rotiseria, and El Turix.
Theres been plenty written about La Choza, Guidos and Casa Dennis in other threads so I wont go into much detail on these. All are still good. I would note that the prices for margaritas at both La Choza and Casa Dennis seem to have risen but I wouldnt let that stop you from eating there.
Rock N Java and Diamond Creations were our choices for a reasonably priced sandwich at lunch. The club sandwich at Rock N Java was good and we liked their potato salad so much that we asked Lisa to give us the recipe. I tried the baked Hawaiiano sandwich at DC and enjoyed that too.
Santa Carlos is still our favorite locals place for fish but all they serve is seafood. The ceviche appetizer was extremely fresh and a single serving was enough as a starter for 4-6 people. Both the whole fried fish and the fillet plates were great...about as good as fish gets. We paid about $6-$8 per person for a plate and beverage but not including the appetizer.
The price for a whole grilled chicken (takeout) at Triunfo Rotiseria at Calle 8 Norte and 30th has gone up to $60 pesos but its still a great lunch that I could eat several times a week. In fact, we did just that.
We had dinner on the patio in front of El Turix on the night of the lunar eclipse and had a great view of the event. I really love their conchinita pibil and as usual, my son went for the shark stew. Glad to report they had not run out of coconut pie that night either.
As far as price to quality ratio, it is hard to beat Serras Tacqueria. Our first night in Cozumel, my wife, son and I had 17 tacos al pastor and 3 cokes. Not only was the food really good, but also with a generous tip, it only ran us $100 pesos. That first night wasnt the only meal we ate there. On other nights we tried a few other items like the chuleta con queso taco (smoked pork chop with cheese) and the al pastor torta (grilled marinated pork sandwich.) All were good. We also liked that they have opened up their patio for outdoor seating.
Im not 100% sure of the name of this place but think it is called something like Super Hit. Its located on the corner or Ave 30 and Calle 15 Sur across 15th from the fruiteria where we like to get fresh squeezed orange and grapefruit juice. We had planned on trying the empanadas at a place I think is called El Patito (or something like that) on the opposite side of Ave 30 but they closed at noon on Saturday and it was just after that when we arrived and we needed to get something quick before our afternoon dive. Ive eaten at Super Hit a couple times with some local friends. Nothing fancy but decent food and reasonably priced. The pappa fritas were on the greasy side but the pork tortas and the licuada del melon (fresh cantaloupe juice drink) were mighty fine and very reasonably priced.
New places that we liked:
Cofelias is a really cute breakfast and lunch restaurant with seating in a pleasant garden on Calle 5 less than a block from the waterfront. We had scrambled eggs with bacon and the house quiche and both were good as was the jamica (hibiscus flower) drink. They had a really nice chipotle (smoked jalapeno) sauce on the table that went well with both the eggs and the quiche. Good service, nice atmosphere and well prepared food.
Johnny Bravos Tacqueria is a new place located on Ave 15 just south of Santiagos Grill. For long time visitors, its in the same location as the old El Fiesta Taco from years ago. The prices were a little higher here than at Serras but the food was very good. They dont offer al pastor but do have a good tasting steak taco and very good frijoles charos (black bean soup). The best deal is probably the sampler platter (enough for 2) or the half platter, which was enough for a meal for one person at about $45 pesos. The owner (Juan aka Johnny) is very personable and helpful.
We also finally tried the locally made ice cream at Michoacans located on Ave 20 near 1st. (There is another location closer to the downtown square.) Over our stay, we sampled several varieties including pineapple (more of a sorbet than ice cream), chocolate and mamay; a local fruit that looks like it has cantaloupe skin and an oblong shape. It wasnt Ben and Jerrys but it was decent and reasonably priced. A medium cup, which would equal two large scoops, was $14 pesos.
Disappointments:
The food at Jeannies Waffle House was as good as ever but the prices have jumped considerably since we were there at Christmas. It appeared to us that their business was off a bit as well. We heard from another restaurant owner in the same area that the landlord of the building that Jeannies is in has raised their rent 3 times in the past year and they had to raise prices to meet it. Too bad. I like the people and the food there but Im not likely to pay $6 for a waffle any time soon.
The Coffee Bean was a minor disappointment but not so bad that we wouldnt give it another try. We stopped by one night for coffee and dessert. It may have just been an off night but our brownie was not nearly as good as we remembered the last one we had there.
Our biggest disappointment was Santiagos Grill. For years, many considered Santiago's to be the best Mexican restaurant in Cozumel. We used to eat there at least once every time we visited Cozumel. Then in recent years, the quality fell off and we visited less often and over Christmas, we heard that Santiagos had closed. But when we got there this trip, we discovered it had re-opened so we decided, what the hell? Lets give it another shot. I wish we hadnt. It was the most expensive meal we ate on our entire trip and the food was at best mediocre. The grouper fillet my wife ordered was thin and dry. My chicken kabob was tasteless. Someone else at our table seemed to be enjoying their grilled lobster but I didnt taste it. There was only one other table seated while we were there and unless some changes are made, I doubt it will stay open much longer.
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Wow,
Quite a report.
Anyway Jen, For food in Coz: La Choza is on ever list you can find. Nobody dislikes the place. Opinions vary on others but without a doubt try La Choza.
James
P.S. You can buy their garlic sauce to take home, I have a bottle in my fridge right now
Quite a report.
Anyway Jen, For food in Coz: La Choza is on ever list you can find. Nobody dislikes the place. Opinions vary on others but without a doubt try La Choza.
James
P.S. You can buy their garlic sauce to take home, I have a bottle in my fridge right now
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