Tag Archives: merida restaurants

Elio al Mare – Round Two

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Last night the Casual Restaurant Critic revisited, in the company of some other critical foodies, the fabulous Elio al Mare restaurant near Progreso. If you read the previous review, you know that the Critic was blown away by the quality of the food at this beachfront Italian restaurant, especially the delicious pastas.

On this second occasion, there were a couple of things that stood out, one way or the other:

  • the off-menu Juanita shrimp were, as the photo suggested, scrumptious; succulent shrimp thick with tomato-y and cheesy goodness.
  • a fantastic risotto! The Critic is not a huge fan of risotto, but decided that Elio al Mare was the acid test to see if risotto was a good thing or just the mediocre pasty rice of yore; lo and behold this seafood risotto was extremely good!
  • on the not so great side, there was no welcoming sangria to be had and the service was a little on the slow side with a bit of waiting between courses and so on

Still, Elio al Mare is well worth the drive out from Merida to have a fantastic Italian dinner while watching the sunset.

Remixto Brunch – Again

Casual Restaurant Critic, Inspired, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Apparently the Casual Restaurant Critic and his Better Half behaved themselves well enough to garner another invitation, this time to the second Remixto Brunch, once again graciously hosted by MexiChica and Casa Mexilio.

There is little to say that the Critic didn’t mention on the previous occasion, except that the heat/humidity was mercifully much more tolerable on this occasion, and the company that joined the Critic and Better Half was truly enjoyable. Oh, and the menu featured the terrific Lechon Benedict as well as a Henwich and Green Eggs and Ham.

In fact, one member of the group, who we shall call the YT Girl, took photos, a la the Critic, which are posted below!

If you have a chance, come to the next one!

Le Saint Bonnet, Progreso, Yucatan

Casual Restaurant Critic, , , , , , , , , , ,

Le Saint Bonnet is arguable the nicest looking restaurant along Progresos rather ragged malecon, which is why the Casual Critic suggested this as a lunch stop today for some out of town folks who wanted some seafood.

The tablecloths are white, but the fact that there are red stains indicates that these are not changed between diners.

Entertainment is provided, as is the case with all beach front restaurants, by the pirate DVD salesman, the plastic Chinese plastic bird salesman, the Chiapanecan blanket girls, the Cuban cigar salesman, a second pirate DVD salesman, a second Chinese plastic squawking bird salesman, and a lonely musician with a guitar who strummed a chord optimistically while smiling at diners and offering una cancion.

The Critic and his guests had – at the waiters suggestion – one of the restaurants specialities: the shrimp stuffed with crab, served with a combination of a creamy white and what appeared to be cocktail or barbecue sauce (red). When asked how many shrimp the dish had, the waiter replied that it had 4, but that it was well served and ‘si te llena‘.

And llenarnos it did. Those four shrimp, with the crab and the creamy sauce and an upside down bowlful of white rice in the center of the plate was too much to finish, and only the voracious 16 year old at the table managed to do so. The Critic wasn’t too enamored of the dish itself though; after the first shrimp it became empalagoso, which is a term that is hard to describe in English but it could be defined as when your taste buds become over-saturated with whatever it is you are eating – usually it’s used in reference to something sweet. Shrimp 3 and 4 were decidedly less exotic than shrimp 1 and 2.

There was no room for dessert. With 3 Cokes, the bill came to $465 pesos, before tip.

That Seafood Palapita across from Bancarios

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The readers (well, some of them) of the Casual Restaurant Critic have asked him to include addresses so that they can find the restaurants he trashes and praises. This review, from the title alone, will probably irritate one or two of those people, but the truth is, that the Critic doesn’t want his column to look like everyone elses, what with B/L/D, AX, VI, MC, 9:00AM -5:00PM and all that other junk that the Critic can’t be expected to remember or jot down when he is enjoying a fantastic or terrible restaurant experience.

That said, the Critic will ALWAYS give directions to anyone who asks.

Today’s stomach-bursting seafood extravaganza lunch was had at that little palapita across from Bancarios, on the Correa Racho avenue. Bancarios is a club, with a huge swimming pool and all kinds of fun activities in the back; the Correa Racho avenue is named after a deceased local politician of PAN extraction, father of a local politician who still is in the business of politics. But this has nothing to do whatsoever with the restaurant, located on that avenue which, by the way, turns into the street in front of the Star Medica and Altabrisa mall that will eventually take you to the periferico and on to Cholul. This should be enough information to give even the most navigationally-challenged among you an idea of where to go. To find this restaurant, of course.

It is a locals favorite, and you won’t see too many tourists in there at all. The restaurant is small, maybe 20 tables at most; there is a palapa roof but air conditioning as well to keep things cool. It’s dark and homey inside and there is of course a television that you can watch when you realize that the person you are with is too boring to have a conversation with or if you are having a spat.

The service is fast, friendly and the waiters are knowledgeable and will recommend dishes rather than saying “todo esta bueno” which is the Critics least favorite answer to the question “What’s good?” Upon taking a seat, you are brought a basket of crispy corn chips and a few moments later, a small plate with a sample of whole-shrimp ceviche. Nothing better than getting something to nibble on when you are hungry and still have before you the weighty task of perusing the menu!

The Critic and his lovely Better Half ordered what amounted to too much food, but it was so good that it all managed to get finished. Two medium cocktails to start, one shrimp only, the other shrimp, octopus and squid; an order of xcatic chiles stuffed with cazon (shark) and bathed in tomato sauce; an order of queso relleno (stuffed cheese) with seafood instead of pork and beef and an order of the Critics favorite local fish, boquinete, pan fried with crunchy garlic bits.

All the food was delicious! The queso relleno was a little heavy on the bell peppers, in the CHO (Critics Humble Opinion), their sweet flavor overpowered the subtler taste of the almonds, capers and raisins. The presentation was interesting, on a banana leaf, which actually imparted some flavor to the dish. The boquinete filets were cooked just enough to not dry them out and the crispy garlic concoction that was sprinkled on top in tasty chunks complemented the understated fish nicely. Was that a pretentious sentence or what. But the most interesting item to pass over the Critics palate was the complex flavors of shredded shark meat stuffed into a mildly (if that) picante xcatic chile and bathed generously with a cooked tomato sauce.

No alcoholic drinks were had; only two limonadas con soda and of course, desserts were skipped entirely. The cost for this feast? $440 pesos, before tips. Highly worth your while to find this little gem of a place, which the Critic believes is only open for lunch.

Make sure you save a few coins for the bowing, scraping, toothy-smiled individual who works the parking lot and may open the restaurant door for you.

Miyabi Sushi

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The Casual Restaurant Critic thinks he may have found a new favourite sushi restaurant in Merida. Opened (and operated) by a 14 year veteran of Cancuns Yamamoto restaurant, tiny sushi-lovers delight Miyabi is tucked unceremoniously in the little strip mall on Montejo where you can also find Carls Junior (formerly Checkers), Segafredo and the underwhelming Ca’ d’Oro Italian restaurant.

Unceremoniously doesn’t mean that this is an unattractive restaurant; far from it! It is all white inside, with a granite sushi bar and many real Japanese decorations brought over from Japan by the chefs Better Half, who is charming and hails from the land of the rising sun.

The Critic and HIS Better Half sat at the slightly uncomfortable sushi bar – uncomfortable because the stools don’t have that cross brace on the bottom which leaves your feet dangling and strains the back. Does this sound like an old fart or what – and ordered directly from the chef/owner. The highlight was a special roll called Nozumi, which featured chopped scallops and heated smoked eel, but all the dishes ordered (sushi – rolls and nigiri only) were excellent. The Critic enjoyed immensely the fact that the raw fish was ice cold and fresh tasting; the chef commented that he only orders what he plans on selling so as to keep things fresh and if it runs out, well better luck next time. This was the case with the salmon (sake, or shake as they call it here) which was no more, much to the Critics chagrin, who ordered a fat slab of fresh cold tuna on a nigiri piece. Fantastic.

After the late lunch, the chef and his lovely wife comped a dessert – red bean ice cream. This is not made on the premises, but brought from Mexico City where a Japanese family makes this and other (Lychee, Green Tea) ice creams.

Miyabi has been open for about two months and apparently, business is booming. Go for lunch soon, but late, as it tends to fill up and you will have to wait in the 40 degree heat outside. And that’s not a pretty picture.

Wayan’e Itzimna

Casual Restaurant Critic, , , , , , , , , , ,

Today, as Mr Lawsons Twitter followers may have read, the Casual Restaurant Critic had his first-ever experience with the world-famous Wayan’e Tortas & Tacos in Meridas Itzimná neighborhood. The sandwich was good, the chaya and pineapple drink refreshing – but the best part was the cheery, witty man behind the counter! The owner, perhaps?

“Que va a llevar, chel!?!” he literally shouts, all smiles.

The Critic asks this very friendly man what to order since it is the Critics first time ever. Immediately he issues a command to the cook who starts preparing the sandwich/torta; something meaty with melted cheese.

“What will you have to drink” he asks (in Spanish of course)

“What do you have?”

“Something local?”

“How local?”

“Chaya con Piña?”

“Viene!”

The Critic and the owner chit-chat for a moment longer, waiting for the torta to be heated on the plancha until it is crispy and the cheese melts out the sides. There is another lady waiting for something, who is commenting on the fact that her centro neighborhood is overrun with ‘gringos’ – norteamericanos y canadienses – she points out, looking furtively at the Critic. She expresses amazement at one norteamericano in particular in her neighborhood who is wheelchair-bound and races around in sentido contrario on the streets in his motorized wheelchair ‘like a little truck’ she says shaking her head and smiling. The owner asks if the Critic is a norteamericano.

“Canadiense. Por favor”

Everyone laughs.

A nudge at the Critics elbow. The Critic pretends to jump, as if scared at this sudden intrusion into the conversation by a tall-glass-with-chaya-piña-water-in-it wielding lady. The owner, obviously a master of wit, immediately remarks “and that is why we don’t open at night!”

Hilarious.

A return visit is imminent…

Remixto Sunday Brunch

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The Casual Restaurant Critic had the luck to be advised of this once a month brunch event to be held at Casa Mexilio, in downtown Merida put on by remixto.com and hosted by the intrepid MexiChica and her hubbie.

Let it be said that to start a Sunday morning in a jungle patio with an exquisite Bloody Mary or a Guayaba mimosa is a hell of a great way to wake up in Merida, even with the 40-plus degree heat that is currently plaguing the formerly white city.

Highlights, after the Bloody Mary, were the Eggs Benedict, cooked to perfection and prepared not with ham but with a sabroso hunk of roast pork aka lechon, accompanied by a grilled tomato and some greenery. The french toast, made with rompope and served with a caramelized bacon and soft, mushy-sweet cooked bananas was delicious. So good were these two dishes that the Critic actually ordered both (and ate both, thank you very much). Federico Navarro’s coffee was strong, hot and fresh, silverware was sparkling new and the whole affair was like having brunch at someone’s home; someone who transforms fresh, local ingredients into marvelous mouthfuls in their kitchen and invites you over to sample them.

La BierHaus

Casual Restaurant Critic, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Casual Restaurant Critic and his beloved Better Half were on their way to lunch at Local 3 when suddenly Better Half announced “I think that that new German restaurant is just down that street” which immediately prompted the Critic to pull over, pull a fast u-turn and head in the direction of a good German sausage.


Located in the Colonia Mexico, the restaurant stands out immediately by way of a checkered Bavarian flag and its dark, almost medieval look. A Wilkommen sign over the entrance greets you, as does the fellow out front sweeping, who is service-challenged however and can’t bring himself to do more than indicate the door (as opposed to actually opening it, which would have been a little more welcoming).


Inside, you are greeted with a bar scene: high wooden tables and stools, a bar and off to the side, a door that leads to a more conventional seating area, again with wooden tables, chairs and wood siding up half the wall. Colors are dark and the effect is one of being in a German “kneipe” or neighborhood pub.

Lo and behold, a large selection of German beer is on the menu, not all of which are available all the time. Prices for these are reasonable, in the Critics humble opinion, around 70 – 80 pesos each. Of course you are getting a premium beer and it’s a big bottle too. Also on the menu are all sorts of sausages (Weisswurst, Bratwurst, Nuremberger) as well as their most popular item, according to our waitress, Gaby: a chunk of pork called chamorro in Spanish and whose name in English revolves around the leg of pork idea.

The Critic and BH ordered, as usual, too much food, opting for the only soup on the menu: goulash, which, in the Critics humble opinion was too heavy on the vegetables, especially the corn, and too light on chunks of hearty beef; the afore-mentioned chamorro and a platter of cold cuts, cheeses and a selection of all the sausages on the menu. Of course it was too much!

The sausages were fantastic; even the mustard tasted authentic. The chunk of pork leg was crispy on the outside and perfectly cooked inside. And the beer! Yum. Highly recommended!

Service was serious and not too friendly on the part of Gaby at the beginning, however as the meal progressed she became much friendlier and smily. She even packed an extra set of chamorro bones for Better Halfs spoiled little dog. Don Jurgen also came by the table to say hello and explain what it was he was trying to do with this venture, which is only about a month old.

In the parking lot, Ausfahrt and Einfahrt signs have been posted and the parking attendants hut has a sign which is a faithful copy of one found at Checkpoint Charlie, at the Berlin Wall. Details that show the owner has a sense of humor!

The Critic will be back with reinforcements to this new German restaurant! Prosst!

Local 3 – Fresh, New Restaurant in Merida

Casual Restaurant Critic, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Local 3 is an ambitious new restaurant, run by the people from COVI, who sell a great assortment of wines and liquors and who are a go-to source when looking for something beyond the scope of the wine selection at Sam’s Club and Costco; and Culinaria, the new cooking school here in sunny Merida.

The Critic and group of friends went the other night based on a recommendation by the Critics BetterHalf, who had had lunch there and raved about the delicious offerings, and the food, to be sure, was impressive. There was a salmon ceviche, served in little cubes piled in a cylinder and doused with what seemed to be a light cream or yogurt. Not sure if that is a ceviche purists dream, but it was good and innovative in its presentation. The tuna tartar was served the same way and the flavor of the tuna was excellent and hard to stop eating once the Critic had a taste. Last on the list of appetizers was an octopus carpaccio style, thinly sliced and lightly seasoned with lime. Refreshing but just a tad sparse for sharing among 6 persons, even with the other two appies on the table.

Bread, in the form of croissant-like rolls and bread sticks, brought earlier to the table was homemade and served with a creamed butter, also quite good.

For the main course, there was an arrachera steak, which was apparently very good as it disappeared before the Critic could finagle a bite to try. There was a goat cheese foccacia also, which, although advertised as warm, unfortunately arrived quite cold (¡está helado!) as the Yucatecan who ordered it, put it) and was sent back. It returned warm, perhaps heated in a microwave judging from the inconsistent temperature throughout. The Critic sampled the Sea Bass, one of the day’s specials which was excellent; as was a strange concoction of seafood served in a small casserole dish and baked with choclo, a kind of creamed corn mixture which rendered the dish a little sweet but served as an interesting counterpoint to the savory seafood – shrimp and scallops – within.

There was no room for desserts.

The big problem on this occasion was the fact that the main dishes took over 45 minutes to arrive at the table, from when the appetizers were finished. This is a huge time lapse and by the time the dishes did make it to the table, the stomach was sending messages to the brain that with the appetizers and bread already ingested, it was full, thank you very much. Apparently, this delay was due to the fact that there was some filming or photography going on and dishes were being prepared for the shoot. Not a good plan, unless the other diners were informed of this and offered a round of drinks or some other form of compensation in exchange for being ‘extras’ in their promotional piece.

Service by Danae was very good; she was calmly professional and completely unflappable by some of the slight whining going on at the Critics table regarding the tardiness of the food.

The Critic recommends you try this restaurant, as it has some imaginative ideas on the menu, the room is comfortable (and cold, especially by the window facing Montejo) and if you are lucky enough to have Danae as your server, you will be very pleased indeed. Just look out for a professional photo session first.

Pasta with Baked Salmon Cream Sauce

Casual Restaurant Critic, Inspired, Life in the Yucatan, Nada que Ver, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Since the Diario de Yucatan reports that Jorge Esma from Cultur is not saying a word about how the financial situation is after the Elton John concert, I thought I would post something completely unrelated and different. Even unexpected. It’s my recipe for the lunch I made at home today – spaghetti topped with salmon and cream.

Cook as much pasta as you want (this recipe is idea for 2-3 people) al dente or however soft or hard you like. There was this lady who used to keep leftover pasta in a Tupperware container in her fridge, soaking in water. Really. Whenever she felt like pasta, there it was! Just reheat and serve. If you do this also, take it out of the fridge and throw it away, for gods sake and make some up fresh!!

As the pasta is cooking, finely chop half an onion and two garlic cloves. If you are lazy like me you can now buy chopped garlic at an upscale supermarket like Superama where only the salchichoneria staff are as unfriendly and overly familiar as they are in any other supermarket. The rest of the staff is more or less friendly and helpful.

Throw the chopped onions and garlic into some olive oil in a pan and simmer over low heat. In the Yucatan, you are using a gas stove instead of one of those horrendous electric jobs they sell you in Canada or the USA; gas is the way to go if you want better control over your heat. Unless of course the brand is Mabe, which in my house is synonymous with absolute crap; if you turn the flame down to simmer those onions and garlic, you will be driven mad by the ‘tick tick tick’ sound it will continually make until the heat is back up to full power. That’s the spark/igniter doing it’s thing and, well these aren’t Viking stoves, people.

While the pasta and the onions are doing their thing, get some of those great Kalamata olives you can now find at Costco, already pitted and full of real flavor. Use about a handful, and chop ’em up and throw those in with the garlic and onions. Check the pasta while you’re at it.

Two tomatoes, also chopped, can then be added to the sauteing goodness in that pan. Stir it up a little to mix everything and ensure nothing is burning.

Remember that salmon you made yesterday? The one from Costco, a whole half fresh salmon. You roasted it in the oven at 180 degrees (C) with Montreal Steak Seasoning on it and didn’t finish it, remember? Well take a chunk of that from your fridge; about the size of a large hand, and with a fork or whatever’s handy, break off bite size pieces and throw them and all those little pieces that break off, in the onion/garlic/olive/tomato mixture and continue over low heat, stirring occasionally.

Don’t over cook that pasta. Strain ‘n’ Drain when ready and cover while you finish the sauce.

To the simmering salmon, add a half container of fresh cream. By fresh I mean not the canned variety. Alpura makes the best dairy products, from yogurt (also spelled here as yoghurt, yoghur, yoghurth, yogurth, among others) to milk to butter to cream. Speaking of dairy products, one of my favorite awful names for cheese is a brand called Gonela. What does THAT name conjure up in your mind? Anyway, stir it up until it mixes nicely and acquires some consistency. Add salt if you wish.

Serve pasta in bowls and spoon over the salmon cream mixture. Enjoy!