This restaurant in Merida is having a little good reputation… That is so strange . We had a bad experience and we shall not give them a second chance.
The hostess is pointing us a free table. Why we did understand that it was already a bad sign ? So we went to a table next to the window. It was next to the bar space and the coffee machine was on all the time. Finally the waiter gave us some menu, but only one for two. After a long moment he asked us if we wanted some drinks. We ordered at the same time what we wanted and orange juice and coffee was suppose to arrive very soon. It took a while… The coffee was undrinkable. Did not have any taste of coffee and we could not drink that “socks juice”. We ordered then some expresso coffees.
We had to wait around 20 minutes to see our foods coming. Eggs were missing on one plate and mine were cold. I was starving and decided to eat them fast. When the server arrived to clear my plate, I reminded him that I placed an order for French toats and I wished to have them warm because my eggs were cold. Sorry to say, but that did not work. It was cold as well.
We finally paid the bill and left this place where we never should enter.
On the Paseo Montejo in Merida, we were walking to find a nice restaurant. A beautiful terrace full of guests made us wanting to have a look at the Menu.
The owners are French, But their menu offers you somedays, an international option. The whole staff is very professional and will great you with a warm welcome. Then you meet Sophie and Antoine, the most adorable couple who own this beautiful and welcoming restaurant. Between regular tables to the bar or sofa corner, I garantee you a real moment of delighfull and very tasty cuisine. Everything they can do to make you happy, they will do. This is not the same everywhere…
We had a nice cocktail at first and selected a French Pinot noir, and that was a great choice. The menu will give you Vegetarian and Vegan option. That was awsome for one of our guests. The other guest ordered the Plat du Jour (dish of the day) and that was a Lamb curry. While I went for a superb Crepe complete, my husband decided to go for a stunning Lamb filet and homemade puree with some vegetables.
Of course some desserts were needed followed by a beautiful “Trou Normand”, a glass of Calvados with some apple sorbet.
Since that dinner at Zinc, we cannot stop talking between us about this wonderful discovery of this honestly awesome spot and there is no doubt that they will see us again soon we go to Merida. There is at Zinc, this “je ne sais quoi” of charm that prouve they love there guests. Cherry on the cake, the prices are reasonable .
Avenida Bonampak is where a few new restaurants just arrived. La Vicenta is one of them and we discovered a great Argentinan place where it is very well decorated and where the hostesses are really offering you a nice welcome. They do have a valet service as well so no worries for your car.
The tables are spacious, the chairs are confortable and the tableware is beautiful. Maybe the red plastic jar for Ketchup is not appropriate ? Check if they have live music, it is extremely loud and that said, it is not pleasant if you go there that night.
Nevertheless, the foods are awesome and in big portion. The quality of the meat is unbelievable and we did enjoy a lot. The presentation is nice as well. They have a very nice selection of wine but of course all kinds of other drinks are for you if you prefer.
The desserts are really good but one for two people is enought. It is very generous…
For sure a place where we will go again. For Cancun, this is not a cheap restaurant but still under these in the zona hotelera.
Xalapa comes from the Nahuatl Aztec language meaning “springs of water in the sand.” Sometimes, you’ll see it spelled Jalapa because “X” has several sounds and the Spaniards spelled Jalapa the way they thought it should be. Pickled serrano chiles are known as jalapeños because Don Mario Jimenez began commercializing them from here.
Xalapa is also known as the “Athens of Veracruz” because of it’s strong cultural influences of three major universities, a multitude of preparatory and technical schools, insitutes, art galleries, folklore groups, outstanding anthropology and science museums, and the world renowned Xalapa Symphony Orchestra.
In the surrounding area, you’ll find many interesting villages to visit such as: Coatepec and Xico (lots of coffee and where the movie “Romancing the Stone” was shot); Naolinco, famous for its “standing river” (waterfall!); Las Vigas in the pine covered mountains with delicious jamón serrano, cured Spanish ham and beautiful vistas; and Carrizal with it’s thermal baths and white water rafting.
I live right downtown in Xalapa, even though the traffic is often annoying in this active colonial city of over 600,000 inhabitants. I rarely use a car since the taxis only cost around a euro! Why hassle finding a parking place when a taxi will drop you off right where you want to go? Then later, for a little more money, you can call a radio taxi to meet you at the door. And for you “walkaholics,” like me, who love to explore new sights and sounds on foot, Xalapa is the place to come, with it’s narrow and often very steep streets.
Xalapa is the place to make friends where you can meet for a delicious cup of coffee at the myriad of cafés and restaurants this city has to offer. If you are sports oriented, Xalapa lends itself to mountain biking and hiking, with it’s paths through the coffee plantations.
If you’re looking for creative pastimes, the Patio Muñoz, almost in front of my studio, offers painting, sculpture, jarana (Mexican small guitar) and jarocho (Veracruz) dance classes. Xalapa has an active artist community, with painters like Fernando Vilchis and his very famous wife, Leticia Tarrago(her brother is a world famous violinist). With the excellent Xalapa Symphony Orchestra, probably one of the best in all the Americas, and the Universidad Veracruzana School of Music, the opportunities for studying a musical instrument are abundant. There are also many private classes for pottery and other crafts. No worries, there are many fine and nice hotels in the city.
The Anthropology museum is really a must and you should not miss it. The very best after the one in Mexico city.
The Zapotec and Mixtec peoples had settlements in the valley of Oaxaca for thousands of years, all of this in connection with the important ancient centers of Monte Albán and Nitla. Modern Oaxaca city developed relatively near them. The Aztec entered the valley in 1440 and named it “Huaxyacac”, a Nahuatl phrase meaning “among the huaje” trees. They created a strategic military position at what is now called the Cerro or large hill del Fortín to oversee the Zapotec capital of Zaachila and secure the trade route between the Valley of Mexico, Tehuantepec, and what is now Central America.
When the Spanish arrived in 1521, the Zapotec and the Mixtec were involved in one of their many wars. The Spanish Conquest ended this fighting, imposing a kind of imperial peace on the area. At the same time, Spanish Catholic missionaries began evangelizing the indigenous peoples, urging them to conversion.
Today, Oaxaca is a splendid touristic city where to spend time and discover so many things. From monuments, architecture, museums and a lot more, you will not time to visit all. The charming colours of the houses and giving a strong and elegant idea of what that city was and is strongly proud of.
So many fantastic restaurants will offer such a huge choice of local cuisine. Mexcal is the region alcool but be carreful… You will find a lot of tiny hotels, like 15 rooms, up to actual standard with a reasonable price. Igaranty you a wonderful moment in this lovely city of Oaxaca.
Just before you arrive to the ferry going to Isla Mujeres, there is this discreet restaurant where the guests are all elegant and there is reason. This place is a bit of a Saint Tropez restaurant’s style, directly on the beach.
The menu is very interesting with some wonderfull local dishes and of course Lobster. They offer you a very nice selection of wine. A valet service is provided.
Soon your charming hostess takes you to your table,your waiter is there to welcome you as well and is taking your drink order so you have time to decide what will be your food order.
The live music was perfect. Mexican music but not very loud, so we did enjoy it. We ordered a very nice bottle of wine that was not crazy expensive like in the “hotels zone”.
We had a hard time to make our choise has everything was tempting. We did order a nice selection of dishes that we were going to share but I could not resist to get a wonderful Lobster cooked with a white wine sauce and mushrooms, just divine,
Some deserts after all that and that lunch is still in our mind so we will go back for sure.
If there is a only one museum to see in Mexico city it is the Museo Nacional de Anthropologia. The National Museum of Anthropology (in English), is famous to be the most visited Mexico City museum.
This enormous museum traces the history of human habitation going back millennia throughout the nation of Mexico (and beyond). Separate exhibition spaces, mostly indoor gallery halls but also some spectacular outdoor exhibits, explore this broad topic by time period and region.
Of course, some of the civilizations that came and went, were more spectacular and more historically notable than others. Some left more monumental or artistically captivating relics of their life and presence.
The Aztecs are first among equals here. And perhaps that’s fitting because Mexico City sits on the site of their wonderous capital, Tenochtitlan, originally built on an island in the middle of a lake, which the Spanish first saw in 1519, over 500 years ago now.
This museum presents over 600 000 artifacts in a perfect beautiful building, thank you to the Architects Rafael Mijares Alcérreca and Pedro Ramirez Vasquez, that gives the most tremondous space to those historical pieces of the history of Mexico.
french ideas 