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Recommended Reviews - La Destilería
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This is probably a 3.5 review but I was generous in giving 4 stars. It has good traditional Mexican cuisine and some updates as well. The place is designed for the tourist which was just a little turnoff for me. The service was great and they had roving mariachi bands that play for tips. The ceviche was nice and I had shrimp cooked at the table for a little flare. It was an enjoyable night, I personally like the mariachis, and the food was good. It's not a bad place to go and have some good Mexican food. There are other restaurants that have better food and a less touristy atmosphere. So it depends on what you are looking for. As always the Mexican cuisine is generally gluten-free but always ask if the dish has any wheat-flour as most don't understand what gluten free means.
Went on a Wednesday night and the restaurant wasn't super full! You could immediately hear the music of the mariachi band and can see multiple families enjoying their meal. Food recommendations: 1. Al Pastor - this was the best taco of the three that we ordered and highly recommend it. Not only was it savory, the pineapples in it ended the bite with some sweetness. 2. Molejete Ribeye - the most unique dish we had of the night. It came with hot, fresh tortillas that you could put the Molejete in and eat. It's actually a super popular dish at this restaurant. 3. Tres Leches - don't mind the rest of the desserts, I recommend getting the Tres Leches cake. It's cool because the cakes that I'm used to are a bit heavier, but their Tres Leches was soooo light on the stomach and had a coffee taste to it. I loved it! I'd come back for it haha. Overall Notes 1. We had a great server, Juan. He was super attentive, helpful and was able to make the dinner a good experience. 2. Service tip IS INCLUDED IN THE BILL. Just heads up. 3. Recommended food is above. 4. Great place if you're with a group of people or family. Super spacious.
Let me first start by saying there was not one thing wrong with my family's trip to Cancun. From the time we stepped off the plane until we ate our first, must have taco, we were literally in heaven. We visited La Desteleria on our last night in Mexico. I read a lot of great reviews regarding the food and the service. What I also liked was that this restaurant was in walking distance of our hotel and it was right on the water. We caught a nice sunset as we ate and listened to the in house Mariachi band. The food that we had was amazing and authentic. My husband and I both had the molcajete, which is what they are known for. It is basically chicken or shrimp served in a stone mortar with black beans, cactus, onions, and peppers all deliciously seasoned and served with fresh, handmade tortillas. Sounds a little like fajitas but much better. My stomach is growling as I write this. That's how good it was. They also had a nice drink list and dessert options. I had a tamarind margarita and my husband had the top shelf. I mean, when you're in Mexico you have to have a margarita or at least tequila with every meal. We didn't eat dessert here but, if you read my other reviews you know I went to Ah Cacao! For my dessert instead :)
So this isn't an authentic Mexican spot but you'll probably still have a good or very good time. The food is very good but I guess they forgot to put tequila in our magaritas and you'll hear the mariachis play "La Bamba" too many times and you'll probably wear a big gaudy sombrero at some point. The view of the bay on the outside patio is very nice and I'd definitely recommend eating outside. Service was terrific so no complaints there at all. For the food, I highly recommend the molcajetes which come with your choice of seafood, steak, chicken or a combination of meats. It's a ton of food and pretty delicious. It's a very, very touristy spot, and not cheap, but it's centrally located to many of the hotels and serves high quality food. Negative points for the weak margaritas and for being tourst central but overall, it's a fun place.
As my family completed our Cancun vacation, we were looking for somewhere close to our hotel for our last Mexican dinner. And we wanted it to be Mexican food! La Destilería fit the bill! And on top of that, a sunset view and not terribly expensive. We walked over and were seated right away. They asked if we had a reservation, but the place wasn't busy and we had no problems being seated. We started with drink orders. Throughout the meal, I had several different drinks and they were all delicious! The fun one comes in a twisted, bent glass, as if the glass is also drunk. Tasty and funny! For my meal I got the Pescado cilantro. It was really delicious! More fish than I anticipated, and the sauce and veggies were fantastic! Everyone in my party was happy with their meal. I would certainly be happy to go back on my next visit to Cancun.
Atmosphere: 10/10 Very spacious restaurant with mostly al fresco dining space overlooking the lagoon. They have a full fledged band dressed in traditional Mexican costumes taking the rounds around all the tables playing songs on request (expect tips). Extra fun if they know it's your birthday. Food: 9/10 Extensive menu of molcajete, which is kind of a stew dish served in a ...surprise molcajete (stone pot). One portion can easily feed 3 so keep this in mind when ordering. They make the guacamole on the spot as you order and customize it to your tastes, which is really cool. Beef tongue tacos are also very good! Desserts: too sweet, but ask for it anyway so they'll bring out the whole dessert menu samplers for you to pick from. Best ordering experience! Drinks: judging by the name it would a misnomer if they don't serve any alcohol here (haha). Tequilla based drinks are good and the drinks here are HUGE. Mango margs are a must!
I have to dine here every time I visit Cancun. This is a nice restaurant & not too pricey. Sits on the lagoon side and it's a stand alone restaurant, with a tequila gift shop. Just like any other restaurant in Cancun the staff is very pleasant and accommodating. The dishes are more authentic here and they also have molcajete! Great drink menu and your meals are started off with tortilla chips, mild salsa and some kind of pate, which is actually really good. You can get table side guacamole for a really good price! I always get the Ensalada Oaxaca (Oaxacan salad) it's so light and fresh. However I always change up my main dish. I always end up eating a lot here because of the AMAZING FOOD so I never have room for dessert. I can honestly say everything I've had here is DELICIOUS! The arrachera tacos are INCREDIBLE. So tender, juicy and seasoned so well. They have a 7 piece mariachi group which goes around the restaurant in the evening. Come here for a more authentic Mexican dining experience!
8 years ago
It was ok, the service was good at beginning but after we did not order the recommended dish, he was little unhappy. Until we finished the dish, our server did not show up and disappeared at all. read more
7 years ago
Great fun Mexican waterside restaurant. Table side dishes and friendly staff. Prices were reasonable. Sit outside and watch the sunset. read more
6 years ago
8 years ago
Where is the 10 star option?! BEST RESTAURANT IN ALL OF CANCUN!!! The staff here deserve to be recognized!! I was in Cancun for a bachelorette trip and we wanted to go Tequila tasting. Since we were staying in hotel zone and had no car, this was our best bet. We all hopped on the city bus, paid a small amount of 12 pesos each and we were on our way to La Distileria! And I am sooo glad we came. From the moment we walked in to the time we left, it was all smiles and laughs. Our food was delicious and filling!! The guac was super addicting!! The steak I ordered was perfectly cooked. Drinks were strong. Goomer, our waitress was super attentive and also had some fun tricks up his sleeve, literally. He sang to us, gave us a magic show and did balloon art. I can't think of anything negative to say about this place. The tequila tasting portion was very informative. Also got some added gratis shots as well. I plan to come back the next time i'm in mexico!! If you get a chance, ask for a shot of the 100 anos... its as smooth as butter down your throat. read more
12 years ago
What you need to know: very nice margaritas. Properly made with natural ingredients and no discernible mixes. Strong (fuerte) as they should be. This place is not cheap but your in Cancun - expect to spend $100 usd for two people. Food: I've had my share of bad food in Cancun and the food here is good. Had the molecajetes (steak) and was delicious. Had the shirt steak (much like a fajita). Flavors very good - rival some I've had in San Antonio, TX. Service: more than willing to get you started with drinks and food but trail away when the bill needs to be paid. More than adequate - likely depends who you get. read more
7 years ago
Great place to eat. Across from Kukulcan Plaza in the Zona Hotelera, here in Cancun. There dishes and pastries are excellent as well as there tequila selection. If you're looking for a nice dinner and a gorgeous view, then the patio and this location will not disappoint. Service was prompt and friendly and the price fit my wallet. We will definitely be back! read more
12 years ago
Delish! Get a margarita on the rocks! Don't worry about the ice if your an american. Food legit. Coming again next time in town ! read more
11 years ago
Read about this place on Travel + Leisure and on Yelp so thought to check it out. Came in for a late lunch. Had an amazing tasty Grand Mariner Margarita to start! Instead of an appetizer my husband and I decided to split an Oaxaca salad. It was very refreshing and delicious starter. Plenty for two people. We told the waiter we were splitting the salad and they kindly served the salad split for the both of us. Glad we ordered a salad over an appetizer. For our entrees, I had the shrimp molcajete. The restaurant has different molcajetes.....steak, chicken, or shrimp. It comes with black beans, chorizo, cheese, cactus, and avocado. Plus, you get your choice of flour or corn tortillas to make your own tacos. The shrimp molcajete was fantastic! Hands down the best entree I have had in Cancun! My husband was jealous of my dish. He had the chile rellenos. The chile rellenos were good but not as tasty as my fantastic molcajete! For dessert, they had a number of desserts to choose from but come on you're in Cancun so you should have the flan. The flan was awesomely delicious! It had hot caramel and almond bits on top. Yummy! Even my husband had a couple of bites even though he's not a fan. I think this flan converted him. The service was great! The waiters worked as a team! They were very attentive. The price compared to the other restaurants in the area was a little higher but the quality in food and service called for it. A definite must go to if you want a proper molcajete! Plus, they have the largest selection of tequila! Hence their name....La Destileria. read more
8 years ago
12 years ago
Very nice food, ignore the cheap people and the haters.. Totally worth it... Get a table on the patio and enjoy yourself. A++ read more
8 years ago
It is worth leaving the resort compound for this restaurant. Everything about this place is amazing. From the ambience to the drinks and the service: it is all excellent. I highly recommend going for dinner right before sunset and requesting a table on their balcony: the view is breathtaking. Have a mariachi song you would like to hear because the restaurant has a mariachi band that goes table to table taking requests for tips. Unlike typical street vendors, this mariachi band is not pushy. Still, request a song and give them a tip because it adds to the experience. The drinks at this place are also excellent. My party of six ordered multiple beers, tequila samplers, and golden Cadillac margaritas. The beers were not ice cold, but they were colder then the average beer served at a restaurant around Cancun. The tequila samplers are a great choice if you don't know which tequila to get or want to learn more about tequila. All samplers come with three small shot glass drinks, which include a tequila white, a gold that has been aged 12 months, and a dark tequila that has been aged 2-3 years. The waiter brings all three bottles to the table and explains each drink. I ordered the Maestro tequila for $135 pesos and I was not disappointed. My favorite was the dark 2-3 year old aged tequila because it had a cinnamon flavor undertone. Finally, the golden Cadillac margaritas are a must order. These bad boys are large, delicious, and full of alcohol. Do not cheapen out by ordering one of the lower price margarita choices because you will be disappointed. The other margaritas are not as good or big. The food here is superb. We ordered guacamole, taco de la plaza, chicken Molcajete, and chicken mole poblano. The guacamole is average. It is made table side and served on a cool rock bowl. The consistency is smooth and the chips are served warm. The taco de la plaza is well seasoned with adobo, onions and salt. The meal comes with 4 pork tacos served on corn tortillas sprinkled with bread crumb like cheese. Mmmm. The chicken molcajete is also incredible! I can't decide which was my favorite meal between the molcajete and the chicken mole. The molcajete is served in a rock bowl full of a black bean soup and meats. It includes grilled chicken, spicy chorizo, 1/4 slice of rock avocado, three strips of grilled cactus, black beans and a not too spicy tomato based stew. They provide you with flour and corn tortillas to make delicious tacos with it. Finally, the chicken mole was the best I have ever had! It came with all boneless white meat, which was juicy and tender. The mole was a little spicy and you could really taste the heavy dark chocolate. The mole sauce was creamy and stuck well to the chicken. I will definitely return to this place one day! read more
8 years ago
10 years ago
Good food, although on the smaller side. Family of four had our bill right at $70 before tip. I ordered the salmon which was cook well but didn't have any taste. My wife and small kid shared the Mexican stew with shrimp and sausage e and beans and cheese. She definitely liked it. We have the spinach salad for appetizer that was delish and refreshing and my other boy had the shrimp tostada. read more
8 years ago
If I am ever back by the hotel zone in Cancun, I would stop back here. The food is good and the views are beautiful! Food Good food. Nice-sized portions. Large/diverse menu. Definitely recommend the table-side guac. Hard to screw that up! And, it's yummy! They don't do chips and salsa. They bring out chips and this spicy dipping sauce. For the soups, our table had the Destilería Soup and the Dry Noodles. Both were very good. Between the two, I would HIGHLY recommend the Dry Noodles. So different... and very tasty! For my main mean, I had the Chiles Rellenos. It was fine, but not amazing. My friend who went with some chicken dish. I just hopped on their website, and of the life of me cannot figure out which dish it was! It was OUTSTANDING. It was almost a Mexican version of chicken parmesan. The chicken was so tender. Atmosphere Awesome atmosphere. One side of the restaurant overlooks the lagoon and has a beautiful view of the sunset. Plus, the inside decor is neat, kind of rustic. Servers Friendly. Attentive. Accommodating. And, a mariachi band that was AWESOME! If you're in the area - make this a stop! read more
12 years ago
This place was delicious. We went during a rainy day in Cancun and still sat on the patio. It was a great view and great ambiance. We stayed at the JW Marriott and took the R2 and jumped off at the stop for La Destileria. Pretty much anywhere in the hotel zone is super easy to get to using one of these bus lines. Food: Pollo Molcajetes: This was the first time I ever had this dish, IT WAS AMAZING. The chicken was cooked absolutely perfectly, the brothy stew was salted perfectly. If you go here, make sure to order this dish. Steak medallions in Green sauce: This was subpar. The meat was dry and hard to cut. Pass on this one. Service: Very good. Tequila Tasting: We did the higher end which consisted of : Don Julio Real, Herradura Seleccion Suprema, and Jose Cuervo Reserva de La familia. The shots are not actual 1.5 oz shots, they are mini shots. read more
8 years ago
Great ambiance, drinks, and service. I got the mole which was very flavorful and filling. The tres leches cake left something to be desired though. But I definitely recommend this spot for a nice dinner and sunset view. read more
8 years ago
La Destilería is our favorite restaurant when vacationing in Cancun. We have been coming for the past three years and the restaurant never disappoints us. Mango margaritas all around! Fresh made guacamole and steak and chicken molcajete's. They are so delicious. If you can get a seat on the patio during sunset, quite beautiful! The service is impeccable. :) read more
7 years ago
Excellent food & service. The food was exquisite, as well as the drinks. I will definitely recommend this place to anybody I know that will visit Cancún. Don't forget to try the Tequila Tasting. read more
11 years ago
We arrived right as they opened for lunch, so we pretty much had the whole restaurant to ourselves. The service was impeccable and our waiter was so friendly: cracked jokes, answered all our questions about food and drink, and recommended some fabulous food. My favorites of the whole meal were the appetizers. We'd ordered the fried cheese with salsa verde, and when it arrived, the server saw how bewildered we were by the giant fried rectangle, so he cut up the cheese and built the soft taco for us. It was so rich and delicious! We also ordered the sopes and they were little palm-sized pieces of heaven. Thin, round, toasted pieces of... bread? Covered with a spread of black beans, then topped with the most succulent pieces of pork? chicken? I forget, some avocado and picked onion. I had the tortilla soup for 90 pesos and it was delicious. The chicken was a bit dry, but the mole poblano was delicious. The fish was also very dry, despite the sauce they slathered it in. The waiter recommended a... malocojete? It came sizzling hot in a stone bowl/stand and was probably the best entree we had. The tequila jade was great, but the tamarind magarita was only faintly tamarind in flavor. read more
8 years ago
We had our first meal here in Cancun. The food our server recommended were very super tasty and savory!! We ordered garlic shrimp and a stone pot of steak soup (sorry I forgot the name), and they tasted like heaven. read more
7 years ago
We were looking for authentic Mexican since we arrived in Cancun and this place was an amazing find. The tequila tasting was amazing. You can feel every flavor popping in your mouth. The chips, guacamole, margarita were all super fresh. We ordered 1 pollo Molcajetes between 2 and it was so delicious. We ordered habanero sauce on the side to spice things up and that took it to a whole other level. We will be back before we leave cancun. read more
8 years ago
7 years ago
Our friend recommended us here. The food we ordered is delicious. We love it. For the beef tacos we ordered one more since it is really delicious. All the food is soft and my daddy who doesn't have teeth eats well. read more
9 years ago
This was recommended to us by one of the local employees at the hotel at which we were staying. Did NOT disappoint!! Brilliant atmosphere, very friendly service, outstanding view of the lagoon - especially if you're on the deck outside - and most importantly, the food was fantastic!! We are vegetarian, but they had plenty of choices for is. They accommodated any requests. Live mariachi band. Overall, a great experience!! read more
8 years ago
8 years ago
Great food, great atmosphere, great service... These are all great ways to describe our experience at La Destilería. We ordered guacamole that was made table side. For my son course, I ordered some authentic dish that came with chicken, steak, nopales and chorizo inside of a molcajete that was piping hot inside of some sort of sauce. The dish came with homemade tortillas that were delicious as well. Great first dinner in Cancun. read more
6 years ago
9 years ago
Delicious food, great service and great mariachi band! We were staying at the westin lagunamar so we all got a free drink which was delicious (forget the name but it's pineapple and tequila and comes In a "drunk glass"). Make sure to get a molcajete, it was amazing and is a really good sized serving of food. read more
8 years ago
My friend and I were recently in Cancun and got tired of the repetitive food at our resort, so we opted to take the quick walk down the street to La Destileria. I am so glad we stopped here! We stopped here 3 times in our trip, actually. Twice for dinner and drinks, and once just to sit at the bar and have some margs and tequila tastings. Hector was a great bartender. He was so sweet to us and gave us some great recommendations on which tequilas to try. The first time we had dinner we had Ruben as our waiter. He always had a smile on his face and was always willing to give us his recommendations on which tequila to try next. Perfecto! The second time we had dinner there, Ruben was our waiter again and remembered us from a few nights before. I HIGHLY recommend the chicken and steak molcajete. You will not be disappointed. The guacamole was just okay, could have used a little salt, but it's made fresh at the table so that's a plus! The chalupa appetizer wasn't what I was expecting, but it was quite tasty. I also tried the chipotle chicken and that was really tender and topped with a ton of cheese. If you're in town and have the opportunity to stop here, don't hesitate to do it. You won't be disappointed! read more
6 years ago
9 years ago
Lovely restaurant with a good atmosphere and solid food/drink choices. We had the chalupas appetizer, the steak and chicken molcajete (hot stone bowl with meat, cheese, beans, and a cactus leaf served with corn and flour tortillas) and the chicken mole. Avoid the chalupas--too greasy and the flavors were bland. Both the entrees were generously portioned, delicious, and served quickly. The highlight of the evening was probably the mezcal margaritas, which you have to request off-menu. That is hands down the best margarita I had all trip. They make their drinks STRONG, so order the smaller (or business) size to start (as opposed to the vacation size which is larger). The mango margarita was pretty nondescript and I could take it or leave it. The other highlight of the night was the amazingly talented mariachi band who sang for us at the table. The guacamole which everyone was raving about is just disappointing. It was a pretty cool experience to watch but don't expect much from the taste. I would come back for the drinks and would probably try other entree food items. Edit: came back another night just for tequila tastings. Our bartender Hector was knowledgeable, fun, and made great recommendations. We tried the Don Julio trio and the Maestro Anejo. Highly recommended activity for a reasonable price (3 tasting + full shot for $20 USD) read more
9 years ago
How we go here: This was recommended by our taxi driver that this was authentic Mexican food and it was clean. I was quite hesitant, seeing as that everyone tries to hustle you as a "tourist". Food: However the service and quality of food proved me wrong. I had the chicken chalupas, and did not expect it to be the way it was. It pretty much looked like 6 mini tacos with verde y roja sauce - simple but tasty. My dad had the taco de lengua, and was quite impressed seeing as all the tacos were gone. I would recommend anyone visiting to stop by and give it a whirl. read more
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