We read good reviews so we decided to have drinks and appetizers. It's a small place off of fifth…read moreAvenue, which made it much quieter. We ordered the guacamole chips and they were below average . We've been having guacamole and chips every day and these seem to be on the lower end of the taste spectrum for all the guacamole we've had so far. The piña colada did not taste like a piña colada . The margarita tasted really good. It's a small restaurant so the menu is a little on the small side. The service was quick and we were able to get our check quickly too .

This place is very romantic and overlooks the ocean. Now it is not easy to find. When you are…read moreclose, you must take the back gate and walk up some steps. Don't give up, it is worth it. Make sure you make a reservation. We ordered the wood fired brie cheese, special ravioli (spinach) and my wife ordered the tagliatelle all Bolognese. There is no need to order a starter. The dinner meals are more than plenty. We were miserable because we finished our plates. We have spent time in Italy, and it was that good. I will never forget smelling the ocean while we ate delicious food. This is a no brainer. Give it a try. We hope you like it too.

We had a fantastic meal at El Fogón in Playa del Carmen! The atmosphere was fun, lively, and felt…read morevery authentic. The service was outstanding, and everyone made us feel welcome. My wife and I shared the chicken fajitas, which were excellent. My friend ordered the al pastor fajitas, and his wife had the pork chops--everyone agreed the food was delicious. The guacamole was fresh and amazing, and every dish was flavorful and generously portioned. If you're looking for authentic Mexican food with excellent service and a great atmosphere, I highly recommend El Fogón. We would definitely come back!

Great food! Here for a spring break trip. Saw this wasn't too far from our hotel and off the beaten…read morepath. Reviews are right. This place is great. My husband got sirloin tacos off the rotisserie. I got a pollo plate. So good! We also added on guac, chips and a potato taco. Everything was great. Will come again. Sorry forgot to take a pic before we dug in.

First, this restaurant had the best ambiance! I loved how they incorporated the natural trees and…read morenature into their architecture. It was adorable and I felt like I was in another world. It's very crowded so you may experience a wait but it's worth it. Lots of food options with decent pricing. Fast staff and delicious food!

Adorable location with attentive staff and great food! We…read moreeven sampled some Mezcal at the suggestion of our waiter and found some new favorites. The seating is comfortable. We look forward to a return trip.

When I first read Ryan L's review of this place, I was a little confused. The "Cenas Mexico…read moreEspectacular Dinner" is located in an Amphitheater where it is intended to be a sit down dinner with wait service. Ryan L stated that it was a buffet. I'm pretty sure that having a buffet in this kind of building would be extremely impractical. Patrons would have a difficult time walking up and down steep stairs to attend a buffet dinner! And they wouldn't like guests walking around while the show is going on. Plus, the seating arrangements are somewhat cramped, making it difficult to come and go. I suspect that it isn't me that is confused, but maybe Ryan L. I think he may have written his review on the wrong restaurant. It is more likely that he went to the "Restaurant La Peninsula" which is the one and only buffet in the Xcaret park that I'm aware of. Now for my review: During our Xcaret water park visit, we attended the "Cenas Mexico Espectactular Dinner." held in the evening. This was an all inclusive 5 course dinner, drinks and a show about the history and culture of Mexico. This spectacular, colorful, and entertaining show had music, dancing, singing, and even personalized attention from our wonderful waiter Oscar throughout the whole evening. The food was served in smaller portions most likely because you get several courses. I wasn't sure what I was eating most of the time, and I couldn't actually see very well during the show since the lighting was quite dim. I had to give a few of my selections to Joe K to eat for me, since I don't like to eat meat that much. But most of the food and drinks were very flavorful and I didn't leave the restaurant still hungry. The dinner and show is a "must" for all who want the full Xcaret park experience!

We debated on adding the cost of yet another experience onto our already packed itinerary. However,…read morethe front row seats to the magical Spectacular show and the 7-course meal that accompanied it, were so enjoyable that I couldn't imagine coming without enjoying the whole experience. Xcaret really knows how to wow their visitors by always creating a first class experience no matter what it happens to be. They go all out for the show which is a giant Broadway-like show about the history of Mexico from the Aztec era to the conquistadores and highlights from different parts of Mexico that give it the flavors and colors we all love. The food was also spectacular and top notch, they kept all the plates and drinks flowing. One plate in particular caught our eye, a potted plant which ended up being a pudding with chocolate dust and a dollop of whipped cream. We almost didn't think it was edible, but there was a spoon! And it was delicious, going green never tasted so good. Get the full experience at Espectacular de Mexico, even at $100 a plate you won't regret it. Ay mamásita!

This little gem sits off 5th Avenue. We almost walked past and glad we came up this little street…read more The Mayan lobster flambé is made table side. This is amazing!!!!!!! The aroma of fresh garlic, onion and peppers filled the air immediately. I was over joyed with the flavors and medley of the dish coming together. Fresh ingredients, bold mix of flavors and amazing staff!! I love this place

Carboncitos was a really enjoyable experience overall. The food was genuinely delicious. I started…read morewith the chicken soup, which had great flavor, but the portion was pretty small. For my entrée, I had the skirt steak, and it was tender, flavorful, and cooked perfectly. The sweet potato with honey and cinnamon was absolutely delicious. My only real complaint is the portion sizes on a couple of items. The salad was very small, and I would have loved a more generous serving. I also ordered an amaretto sour. It was a little weak at first, so I asked for more amaretto, which made it better, but it still wasn't quite as strong as I prefer. The service was phenomenal. The staff was attentive, kind, and genuinely friendly throughout the entire experience. I felt well taken care of and truly enjoyed myself. I would definitely return.

We celebrated my wife's birthday at HA', the Michelin-starred concept by Carlos Gaytán inside Hotel…read moreXcaret, and I'll be straight about it. The service? Exceptional. Easily the highlight of the night. Attentive without being overbearing, thoughtful pacing, and they made the occasion feel special from start to finish. The food... didn't live up to the same level. Visually, every dish was stunning. You can tell a lot of intention and technique goes into the plating. But once you actually taste it, things fall off. Course after course, flavors felt muted, disconnected, or just not memorable. Nothing was bad, but very little was crave-worthy. Standouts were limited. The wagyu tartare and crab had moments, but even those didn't fully deliver on flavor. The oxtail had the depth you'd expect, but by that point it felt like an exception rather than the standard. Desserts were creative, but again leaned more interesting than satisfying. For a one Michelin star experience, you expect precision in flavor first, presentation second. Here, it felt flipped. My take (and this is opinion): HA' is trying hard to be elevated and artistic, but it's missing the soul and punch that makes a tasting menu truly memorable. Especially at this level, "beautiful but forgettable" isn't enough. Would I go again? Probably not. Was it worth experiencing once? Yes, mainly for the service and the setting.

4.5 Stars This was a…read moregreat spot at Xcaret Mexico (not Xcaret Arte). Loved the food here. Everything was very good. Service was very nice. We started at the bar upstairs with welcome drinks and were brought downstairs for the dining portion.

Great experience last Friday night at this Michinlin Bib restaurant. So glad I stopped by this…read moreplace is bomb and super not pretentious! Wish I got the tasting menu but I opted for 3 of the specialties instead and they were delicious... Tasting menu is best value tho! I got the raw trout sashimi thing and it was by far the best plate of the meal (first dish/appetizer) , then got the shrimp flautas (good not amazing) then I got the trout loin for the entree (good not amazing) Skinny marg was perfect and so was the waitress! Would recommend and go back but like I said I would for sure do with the 6 or 8 course tasting menu!

Okay, where do I start…read more I made a reservation about a month before our trip, they were already pretty booked so I made a 4:45pm. I somehow missed that the coursed meal doesn't start until 6...and we didn't realize until same day. They couldn't rebook us until 9PM but told us to swing by early to see if they could get us in AND THEY DID. It was a Christmas miracle. And I'm glad they did because the whole experience was about 2.5 hours from start to finish. The place isn't very big, but is beautiful inside. They have an awesome bar and and open kitchen so you can see everything. It's a really neat place. We were seated pretty quick once they got the table cleaned, and then were greeted by our waitress. When we told her we were there for the 8 course meal, they switched waiters on us, and then the upselling started. Right off the bat they tried to talk us into a cocktail...when we were doing a pairing with our meal. It took them a little time to get the meal going, and then between courses was a little hit or miss. Sometimes it was free flowing and sometimes it took 10-15 minutes to get our next dish. The food. We were a little nervous we would leave still a little hungry but I assure you, you will not. For ~$100USD each, you get so much food, and a drink with every course. It was fantastic and so worth it. Here were the courses and pairings (that I can remember lol): 1. We started with the dips - a bean dip with cheese sauce and guacamole with crickets. Very classic, very well done. The crickets added a nice, nutty flavor. I was a huge fan of the beans with their blue corn tostadas, so much flavor. They also had a third dip that was pumpkin seed based, it was good but not as memorable. Their hot sauces came out with this course. It was paired with a house mezcal (with salts, cucumber, and orange) that was incredible and smooth. 2. Shrimp ceviche which was super refreshing and flavorful. They paired this with sparkling wine. 3. Sea bass with a cream sauce and grapefruit. I'm not a huge fishy flavor person - my first bite had all three compnents and I thought it was delicious. My husband just had fish as his first bite and thought it a little fishy, but once we added everything else he agreed it was great. Three small pieces, so it was a nice course. Paired with a sauv blanc. 4. Roasted tomatoes in a mole sauce. A nice veggie course. I thought they were cooked well, nothing super fancy. Paired with a Chardonnay. 5. Cooked shrimp with potatoes. My husband called this a "filler" course - there wasn't much to it. The sauce had some greens in it but it was just something light and easy to serve. Can't remember the pairing here. 6. THE CARROTS. MY FAV THING. OMG. Literally so fresh, the perfect texture, and the sauces. I could have eated a whole bowl with this one. Paired it with a red blend. 7. Cow tongue. I forgot a photo. I was starting to get drunk, I'm sorry. Paired with a red wine. This was tender, the sauce was delicious. If you're not used to beef tongue, please don't let it scare you. It was amazing. 8. Dessert. Also amazing. I think it was paired with a sweet red but....a little drunk here...we got a cheesecake which was more on the savory side, super unique, and so delicious. I was a huge fan. We also got a passion fruit custard and I'm a SUCKER for passion fruit. This was phenomenal. The food was INCREDIBLE. And such an amazing experience. And now the loss of a star. I hit on the service a little, but there was also some upselling which we don't love, especially at what is supposed to be michelin recognized. We often try Michelin recognized when we travel and the upselling was unexpected, I undertsand the culture down here, but still. ALSO we LOVED the house mezcal so much we asked for another shot ($280 pesos/shot). When we got the bill, the waiter upcharged to one of the most expensive mezcals on their menu ($520 pesos/shot) and refused to change it. We spent $60 on two shots after paying for our 8-course meal. It honestly was SUCH a dissapointing end to our meal and felt so icky. Be very careful with the service here.

Always great eats- al pastor tacos, guacamole habanero green sauce and service by JOSE always an…read moreawesome time!

Food is spectacular, we got alambre de pastor/de pollo. Portions were smaller, and cost was pretty…read morehigh ($220 for each plate). We noticed that (as common in PDC) our mixed drinks did not have liquor in them. We thought we found a honest restaurant but it seems they have trickery too, so we won't be going back. Service is nuanced too; we had a great server the first time and a server that misheard us and didn't ask again the second time. First server seemed happy with a small/moderate tip, while second didn't even say thanks for the same tip (when we went a second time). Ambiance is okay... part of the restaurant is next to the road outside and chairs are within "grabbing" distance, which makes leaving a purse hanging or just not watching your back a bit stressful. We also got approached by multiple people offering roses made out of folded leaves... and had to continuously say that "no, we didn't want it".

Sad that last place to eat dinner before heading back home was mediocre restaurant. I saw some…read moregood reviews and food looked good so thought I give this place a try. Friendly staff like all the other place. Menu was simple and price was not too bad. Ordered guacamole to start, pastor taco, carne Asada taco, stuffed casadilla with Carne Asada. Guac was some what blend, lacked in flavor just mashed up guacamole.. But tasted pretty good. Pastor taco was better than some of the other places. Carne Asada taco meat was little bit on the tough chewy side.. It lacked in flavor but they do give you good amount of meat and tortilla to make your own. Casadilla was not bad, added cheese made it little bit better. Over all food was OK, nothing here made me go man I'm glad I came here.. Nothing I couldn't get it at home.

Best pastor I have ever had! I got a "volcano" which is like a crispy flat tostada. I also enjoyed…read moresome chips and 2 hot salsas (verde and rojo) which were very delicious. I tried a michelado which is beer mixed with a spicy red juice, also good. Very cheap! Watching them cook everything fresh on the griddle was fun and the food was so hot (temp) due to the extremely quick service. My server was also very sweet. I loved watching and listening to the bumping Señor Frogs across the street while supporting a small local business and enjoying undoubtedly much better food at a much better price! Show this place some love!