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Dining In Cancun, Ole!

By Marty Martindale

As late as the 1960s, Cancun was a sleepy little fishing village, on a barrier island, with picture-perfect beaches and practically no tourists. And, it wasn’t long before the local population rose to over 400,000 year ‘round residents operating facilities attracting 2 million visitors each year. Cancun became an international destination with 27,000 first class hotel rooms. The area covered is the Mayan Riviera, Cozumel, Isla Murjeres, Merida, Isla Blance and Isla Holbox.

There are over 300 restaurants in the general area. Settings range from fast food to casual bistros, to elegant, themed surroundings.

This cuisine study of the Cancun area’s restaurants doesn’t even scratch the surface of multiple restaurants located inside over 143 first-class hotels. These restaurants represent an evolution of Tex-Mex to today’s “Haute Mexican” and quite sophisticated examples of what’s available geographically, the roots of Mexican cuisine and some of the new innovations in world cuisine. Below are sample appetizers and entrees featured in some of the Cancun area’s various stand-alone restaurants: 

MANGO TANGO:
Potato soup with shrimp and lobster bits
Grilled chicken breast with green mango and carrot chutney   
Grilled salmon with corn relish
Swordfish with avocado relish, herbs and olives
Beef Medallions with cabernet sauce, oysters and mushrooms
Spaghetti with lobster, salmon and scallops

BOGART’S, BOGIE & BERGMAN
ALI Baba Snails with butter, shallots, walnuts and fresh garlic over mushrooms
Persian crepes stuffed with Holland cheese glazed with sour cream and salmon caviar
Finely sliced chicken with lettuce, cabbage seasoned with sesame seed oil, ginger, soy sauce coriander and cashew nuts
Onion soup in Turban squash with Guyere and Parmesan cheese
Roast duck glazed with honey, dressed with pomegranate and nutmeg served with wild rice with red wine

LA DALCE VITA
Quail liver pate
Rigatoni viva Mexico with chorizo, mushrooms and jalapenos
Fetuccine with medallions of lobster and cream
Insalata Francesca, watercress, bell peppers, goat cheese and marinated mushrooms

LE BASILIC
Cold avocado soup with crab
Oyster mushroom cream with foie gras balls
Pate de foie gras and sweet lemon conserve
Terrine of lobster with lentils, citrius fruits mousseline

HACIENDA EL MORTERO RESTAURANT
Smoked salmon tostada with cream cheese and habanero vinaigrette      
Zucchini bloom and black corn and mushroom crepes
Lime soup Yucatan style, tomato, onion and line
Tortilla soup, cream cheese, onion, adocado, fresh coriander and fried chili pepper
Chicken and beef with cheese, Spanish sausage and young cactus leaves

ISABELLA’S
Mexican Botanas, corn masa boats filled with chicken mole, potato & chorizo, crabmeat & seasoned beef
Goat cheese & mango salad with fresh greens, honey, roasted pecans in raspberry vinaigrette
Chile relleno stuffed with seasoned beef, raisins, pecans, almonds and black olives
Chicken breast stuffed with sautéed spinach and Mancheto cheese and mild poblano chile sauce
Lobster and shrimp enchiladas with peppers in tomato-chipotle sauce
Roasted poblano child stuffed with lobster, shrimp &scallops in a roast tomato sauce topped with a pecan cream sauce

PACAL
Marinated beef in bitter orange, radishes, onions, coriander and spicy habanero pepper
Homemade liver pate of veal and chicken served with cucumber sauce
Seafood soup flavored with absinthe
Duck on a fried peanut and green tomato base in mild red pepper sauce
White bass baked with Swiss cheese served over creamed wild spinach
Tender pork baked in banana leave with Mayan ingredients

LAHABICHUELA
Famous for cocobicheula, lobster and shrimp cooked in curry sauce served in a coconut shell with rice and tropical fruits
Grouper stuffed with lobster with guava sauce
Duck in pear sauce
Chicken stuffed with banana and prosciutto with sweet Hawaiian sauce
Fettuccini with sautéed zucchini, onion, parmesan cheese and a touch of anchovies

LA JOYA
Flour tortillas stuffed with mushrooms and Chihuahua cheese
Green tomato and goat cheese tart
Tomato and cactus salad with mozzarella cheese, basil and balsamic vinaigrette
Lobster salad with grilled fennel, orange and jicama in Pipian vinaigrette
Two kinds of shrimp with yucca and chayote stew, guajillo chili sauce
Tuna steak with spinach zucchini and sautéed wild mushrooms, olives, capers and white wine sauce
Pork loin with mashed potato, Corona beer and chili sauce
Hidalgo style lamb stew with vegetables and chickpeas

FAROS
Sea scallops and shrimp with garlic, arbol and Serrano child, white wine and saffron sauce
Tuna with oysters, sesame seed oil and rice vinegar sauce
Salmon with papaya chutney, brown sugar melted in soy sauce
Lobster sautéed with mushrooms in saffon sauce au gratin

LUGANA GRILL
Sesame blackened ahi tuna with teriyaki infusion and oriental asparagus
Sea bass atop ginger, pineapple, beetroot chutney
Lobster and truffle lasagna
Lamb with “beggar’s purse” of goat cheese, vegetables and grapes

THE PLANTATION HOUSE
Warm oysters glazed with garlic on lettuce with bacon
Pineapple stuffed with shrimp under a light coconut sauce

LABNA
Baby shark, tortillas and black beans in mild red chile sauce
Shrimp in escabeche sauce

It is a great time to compare cuisines, what’s repeated, what’s changed, what new crops are incorporated, what foods are jumping cultures. With ever-new surprises, the sweet and the savory are methods are rapidly turning up in new places!  

© Marty Martindale, 2005, Largo FL

For more information, contact:
CANCUN CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU

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