Las Guacamayas, El Toro Guerro, & The Container

Settled in Cabo, and on an eating spree with my family in town, we hit a few local favorites!

Let's start with Las Guacamayas- authentic Mexican street food in a very casual outdoor setting, that may even be cheaper than eating at home. At least I know I can't replicate these dishes without slaving away for hours, not to mention finding out where to buy and how to set up a pork slow roaster...but if you can lmk and please invite me!

My absolute favorite Mexican food is "tacos al pastor". Small handmade tortillas with adobo marinated pork that's been slow roasting for hours on a spit with a pineapple on top releasing its juices and breaking down any meat toughness with its enzymes. Add to that some "cebollitas de chambray"- lime & Maggi marinated and roasted onions- and you have sent your tastebuds to another planet. 

The melted cheese, or "queso fundido" is one of the few cheese references I'll make when it comes to real Mexican food. Don't get me started on nachos and that yellow string cheese on all the Tex Mex stuff. 

My parents had the arrachera- tender, thin steak with rice, beans, and tortillas- and my brother had some tacos and a sope, which is a thicker handmade tortilla with pork or meat, typically some lettuce and salsa. The best sopes are small pancake-like...this one was right on the thickness but long. 

They also have amazing horchata (rice water, like rice milk but ice cold, and cinnamon-y), and Jamaica (hibiscus) water, which in my opinion is the only way to fight off the burn from really hot/spicy food.

It is now my go-to place when I'm craving salty, meaty, goodness, and I can't wait to do a long training day and then come pig out here for less than $15. 

Being right on the water, Cabo has amazingly fresh seafood. My family and I have always loved all fish and shellfish, so we asked a dozen locals where the best place was and hands down the vote went to El Toro Guerro. 

The huge clams and oysters were to die for, and the ceviche and shrimp/octopus cocktail were perfectly seasoned/marinated. The atmosphere is also outdoors and very casual, though a bit pricier of course, as seafood tends to be. 

In contrast to these local hot spots, The Container is a nicer, more touristy restaurant in Puerto Los Cabos. The Kitchen is built from a ship container, and the seating is all outdoors on a lovely deck with live music overlooking the Marina. 

Their menu will please seafood and meat lovers, as well as accommodate vegetarians. It's locally sourced, seasonal ingredients bring out the best flavors. 

The red snapper on a bed of rice and sautéed vegetables was flawless. 

Cabo, Mexico!

Well I got back from Cabo last week, and wanted share some of the highlights of the trip.

My mom and I stayed at the Sheraton Hacienda del Mar, and it is now on my list of favorite resorts- actually tied in first with the Ibero Gran of Playa del Carmen. The service was incredible! The people in Cabo prove the psychological impact such environmental beauty and tranquility has on attitude and outlook- I don't know where else I've seen so many kind and happy people:)

The food at the Sheraton was really good, though we didn't eat at the various restaurants they have on site because we didn't get the all inclusive purposefully in order to venture into town after spending most of the day in the resort. However, we did have breakfast included and it was a wonderful buffet of made-to-order omelettes, a station of hot items (scrambled eggs, chilquiles, beans, potatoes, roasted veggies), a granola/cereal station, fresh Abuelita hot chocolate, fruit station, and bagel/toast section....not to mention the fresh squeezed juices and mimosas (I don't know how people can drink at 8am!). A couple of times for lunch my mom had the ceviche and once I ordered the seared ahi with salad and vegetables- total hits. My observations and brief conversations with the waitstaff led me to believe that the hotel understands and really tries to implement healthy cooking.

 The first night we went out to the Marina which is in Cabo San Lucas. **A brief layout: "Cabo" in its entirety is a stretch along the ocean called "the corridor" from the town of San Jose del Cabo, from which a bit south/east leads to Puerto Los Cabos, to Cabo San Lucas (where notably the Marina, and nightlife are located). Most of the resorts are along the corridor- the Sheraton is kind of in the middle, but closer to the Marina**

Despite my Trip Adviser search, we weren't sure where to eat, we just knew we wanted seafood. So as we were walking through the Puerto Paraiso mall trying to figure out the exit that leads to the Marina, we asked a lady for help and she happened to be the director of the Marina, Francia Olmos, and originally from Panama City- which we were just in. Needless to say, we hit it off and she joined us for dinner. It was awesome to get her insight on moving to Cabo, and hear her stories of all she's seen/experienced during her time working there. Francia, took us to a gem of a seafood restaurant called Pochos. The staff surpassed excellence. At one point I was shivering a little and the waiter noticed and brought me a blanket. The food was equally amazing, so much that we went back the second night.

After we tired of seafood, I had a big craving for authentic Mexican food. I may be Mexican but rarely eat classic Mexican dishes, especially when at 9/10 places in the US they're Americanized. So, I did thorough research for this one, and we ended up at Mi Casa. It has grown from just a few tables and word of mouth traffic, to a huge three levels of dining areas. They even have a gift shop on site, where I bought this cool bracelet! A local lady makes them by hand from real leather and she happens to have a store in San Diego but sadly the register girl didn't know the name of it.

Mi Casa is also in Cabo, just past the Marina, near Pedregal (a very wealthy, private residential community that's adjacent to the exclusive Capella Pedregal Hotel- which not surprisingly is supposed to have an incredible restaurant that you can bet I'll be trying and blogging about asap).We also dined here two nights in a row haha, and both times my mom had the chicken mole, and I had the carnitas with fresh handmade tortillas, guac, salsas galore, and plantains. We capped that off with the delicious flan. By the way, if you want a replacement for chocolate and wine- try flan and wine...you're welcome;)






After our second time at Mi Casa, we walked around and found a Tequila Store that was way cool!  Cabo Unico educated me on the hisotry and process of tequila, and gave me a new found appreciation for this craft.

  The second to last night, we went to Nicko San for sushi. They have two locations- one in Palmilla (another exclusive area on the corridor), and one in Cabo. We went to the one in Palmilla, as my mom had seen it earlier that day and mentioned the killer ocean view. The design of the restaurant is super chic/modern. They have an outdoor lounge that on weekends and some week nights gets quite "club-y".  The sushi was good, but extremely overpriced. I'll pay almost $30 for a roll or chirashi but they better be substantial and outstanding. When you've had a chirashi at Chelsea Market in NYC that's equally as fresh with a ton more variety of sashimi, and double the size for almost half the price, it's disappointing. I'd be back to Nicko San for some organized occasion, but it's not to get my sushi fix.

The very last afternoon, I dropped my mom off at the airport as she had a mid morning flight, and I ventured out to Flora Farms- toward Puerto Los Cabos fron San Jose and follow the clearly marked signs. I had envisioned a country/rural type of place with a little restaurant, and that's not at all what it was like....it reminded me of The Secret Garden. Little cottages, beautiful flowers everywhere, perfectly trimmed grass, a cricket area, a pool next to the gardens, and then a restaurant and bar with a modern-barn look- stunning! I walked the grounds for a bit and discovered you can rent the cottages, they have a cute space for private events, tours, and culinary classes.For lunch I devoured their roasted chicken salad.

Then it was off to the airport and back to LA, to pack and hurry back to begin life in this magical part of Mexico.

Panama City, Panama

A day ago I returned from a week in Panama for my cousin's wedding. I'd been there as a kid on a cruise, but we only crossed the Canal, and didn't stop to visit the city. So, it was exciting to be back for such a special occasion.

As a place that's consistently on many top travel lists, I had high expectations of Panama City as a tourist. I'd recently read that it was one of the happiest places as reported by their citizen's outlook on overall quality of life.

Aesthetically, it's awesome- I got to run along the water where you can be fooled into thinking you're in Miami by all the high rise buildings. On the other end, you're met with a gorgeous historic part of Panama known as Casco Viejo/Antiguo, which is old Panama and is currently undergoing restorations to its buldings, homes, and churches.

You can find almost any type of cuisine in Panama, and am not sure of any specific Panamian foods, but I was there to go with the flow of the wedding and didn't have leeway to explore that many restaurants. I never ate bad, in fact the food was pretty great, but I have to disclose the astonishingly bad customer service.

Panama hasn't ever really known unemployment- the Canal, some tourism, and it's locale as the hub of Central America makes it ideal for large company headquarters. As a result, employees are complacent. There's not much fear associated with getting fired, and no incentive to go out of your way for customers.

Examples of this sub par service are: hearing you request something at a restaurant or hotel and being utterly nonchalant about addressing your needs, often forgetting you even mentioned anything. You'll spend an eternity waiting for drinks, a server for your order, your food, and your bill. Bring patience to Panama and you'll definitely have an enjoyable trip.

At one restaurant, Beirut, I had an average lunch experience with my friend Brandon the first day I arrived. So I took my brother there a few days later as it was only a walk away from the hotel, and at one point I was in the middle of speaking my order to the waiter and he held his hand out to quiet me as he was getting a phone call he felt like answering. He proceeded to answer it and walked aside to chat, then came back with no apology! It was baffling! It's a Lebanese place and I will admit the salad and chicken schwarma I tried, plus the complimentary Arabic tea at the end of the meal, were all good but not worth the bad service. I did go back again though because I'm weird and wanted a baked potato and didn't know where else to get it :/

At the Hotel Bistrol, where we stayed, they had a good breakfast buffet with an omelette station, but definitely no gluten free options, not even oatmeal. One day I asked for rice and got charged $5 for one cup of steamed white rice haha. The lunch and dinner were really good though! Ceviche, burgers, soups, and an awesome ahi poke bowl left everyone happy.

Capital Bistro has an incredible view on the water, and the night we went we sat on the rooftop of the 3 (downward) story restaurant. Some had the filet mignon and loved it, and a few of us got fish entrees which albeit tiny, were excellent.

Another day, my uncle who had lived there for 2 years before, took us to La Puerta  which is super cute inside and here the service was relatively quick and without issues. We had shared spectacular tuna tartare, corvina en papillote (poached sea bass with vegetables), salad, and some all time best mojitos!

The last night we ate at Mostaza for my mom's birthday, in Casco Viejo, and their roasted garlic, asparagus, sauteed mushrooms, salad, pastas, and fish entrees were a hit. It's cozy and intimate and makes you feel like you're in "old Panama".

Finally, the very last day, after I missed my morning flight :) another cousin and I went to get sushi at Sake in the Tower of the Americas building. I found it on Trip Advisor and it was touted as the best sushi in the city and 22nd amongst 370somthing restaurants in Panama so we decided to check it out. There was obviously a business crowd but it wasn't packed and the waitress was nice. The salad I ordered was outstanding for a sushi place- so many vegetables and a light dressing. My favorite roll at most sushi restaurants is the rainbow roll- how can you not love avocado and a variety of sashimi on top?! They nailed it.

A related but random comment...The day before we left, we went to the mall. I know, why go to the mall in Panama of all places? But my great aunt has a shopping addiction and frankly it was a fun, weird escapade. I mention it because we went to Crepes and Waffles and it took me by surprise! Usually I'd rather starve or quickly flee than eat in a mall, but these fresh squeezed juices and smoothies, crepes, and salads made me remember this little franchise gem for the future.

So that's a wrap! I doubt I'll ever go back to Panama City again, however the trip as a whole was incredibly memorable. Family is the most important thing to me and spending this week under an umbrella of love with all of them was priceless.