CLASSIC RESTAURANTS TOUR OF CARTAGENA DE INDIAS, COLOMBIA.
TOP COLOMBIA TIPS
Classic restaurants of Cartagena
By:
Néstor Meléndez Soler
Top Colombia Tips
Besides being the most
important touristic destination of Colombia, Cartagena de Indias is a great
place to enjoy wonderful restaurants that will make your stay at this
marvelous city a gastronomic experience with local and international first
level cuisine.
It is not only the Colombian and Cartagena typical
food but also all the influences that
have been brought to this port since the 16th century when it
was founded by the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Heredia.
At Cartagena arrived many immigrants that came from
all parts of Europe, the Middle East,
China, and obviously from all parts of Colombia. The marines also brought
in the ships different kinds of products, spices, flavors and cooking knowledge
that transpired into the taste of the city cooks and made them local.
So Cartagena was destined to be a gastronomic hub and it really turned to be one. In this blog we
will tour thru classic restaurants of the city that have been making good food and
attending happy customers for many years at this beautiful place on earth.
This are the Top
Colombia Tips for classic restaurants at Cartagena de Indias, episode # 1.
·
Restaurante Árabe Internacional:
It is catalogued as one of the best restaurants in Colombia, the menu is based on Arab food with some international dishes
in the offer. It is as good as it sounds, this is a restaurant in which you
will go out by the door with a happy smile on your face.
It is located at the
touristic sector of Bocagrande. If you don’t know too much about Arab food the
waiters would gladly assist you in the delights of this Mediterranean food that
is really good for the heart and the
soul.
Leave space for the desserts and the really strong and
aromatic expresso coffee.
·
La Vitrola:
La Vitrola is one of the
restaurants where famous people and personalities that come to Cartagena always go.
The reason why is because it is located at a
privileged corner of the walled city, the ambience is really fabulous, it’s not
big but it’s not small and the decoration with antiques from all eras of
Cartagena is discrete and charming.
The menu is based
on Cuban food but there are also some international and signature dishes.
Good wines and excellent Champaign are always suggested by a professional staff
that offers a very good service all over the restaurant.
At night it gets going with a Cuban music band that
makes the party ignites all over the place.
If you go to La Vitrola, for sure you are going to
have good food, a great time and maybe will be seated next to someone famous or a VIP.
·
Club de Pesca:
At the Club de
Pesca you will not only be eating very good seafood but it’s such a nice site
that the visit to this restaurant will be unforgettable.
The restaurant is located at the Fuerte de San Sebastián de Pastelillo, one of the fortified jetties
constructed by the Spanish crown to deter possible invaders to the richest city
of the Caribbean during the colony, from the late 16th century well
into the 18th century.
The view over
the Cartagena bay is majestic, and the food at the Club de Pesca is as good
as the sights.
If you want to have a romantic dinner, a compromise, a
family or friend’s reunion, a wedding or a corporate meeting this restaurant is
a perfect choice to do so.
·
La
Langosta:
Just outside the walled city in an ample mansion at
the barrio El Cabrero, dated from the beginning of the 20th century,
“La Langosta” that means the Lobster has
been offering splendid and delicious seafood for more than 30 years.
They offer lobster cooked to perfection in 20
different recipes that make the visit to this wonderful restaurant a delicious
motive to enjoy at lunch or dinner.
In the menu they also offer fresh catch of the day and their chefs are experts in cooking
fish in different forms.
It’s a nice place to be at and the house is a work of
art in a neighborhood that is one of the many treasures of Cartagena.
La Olla Cartagenera:
Since 1978 the “Olla Cartagenera”
has been attending
guests at the same place in the touristic sector of Bocagrande.
Outside it doesn’t looks like the best gourmet
experience you will have, but as soon as you enter you will feel the aromas of
good food on the air.
They offer a very
big menu with so many delicious dishes it turns to be a difficult decision
to just choose just one main dish. It is a mix
between Cartagenero, Mediterranean and Arab food that will make you think
twice about what to order.
The attention is very familiar and sometimes you will
feel like in a house and not in a restaurant, but don’t get it wrong, the food
is marvelous.
They say about this restaurant that if you come one
time you will come back again and again.
·
Nautilus:
It is one of the best
seafood restaurants in Cartagena as their Cazuela de mariscos (seafood casserole) is legendary. They have
been located in the same corner of the barrio San Diego since the last century.
The decoration is like the submarine of captain Nemo from the novel of Jules Verne should look
and the waiters are dressed like marine cadets.
The seafood is good and it has been returning to gain
some popularity in the last few years.
It is a classic
restaurant of Cartagena and it is a good stop for lunch or dinner time.
·
Juan del Mar:
Just over the plaza
de San Diego this iconic restaurant of Cartagena marked a revolution in
local gastronomy when it opened in the last part of the 20th
century.
Owned by a chef called Juan del Mar this restaurant
with his signature name offers Mediterranean
cuisine made in part with some local ingredients and approach. The place is
one of the best that you can find to eat day or night at the walled city, as is
located at one of the trendiest plazas
of colonial Cartagena.
The food is great and the sangría (Spanish origin
beverage of wine and fruits juices mix) is famous. Make sure you have some.
·
La Casa de Socorro:
Socorro had a tent at Bazurto the
popular market of Cartagena
where she became an icon of the culinary traditions of the city and its
surroundings.
The recipes that she had
received from her grandmother are kept on by her family who made the “Casa de
Socorro” in her honor.
At this restaurant customers will taste typical food
at its maximum expression. From seafood to many kinds of meats and the world
famous coconut rice.
You will feel and eat like a local with good service to
your table.
If you want to read a Spanish version of this blog go
to https://tousrcolombia.blogspot.com.co/2018/02/5-restaurantes-clasicos-en-cartagena-de.html
Check my tours of Cartagena at:
And also the GPS Audio tours at:
Remember always that
“Travelling makes you a better
person”
Journalist:
Néstor Meléndez Soler
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