Notes on Dining

Notes on Dining

Prepare yourself for a gourmand's delight. The competition, creativity, selection, and, yes, even the prices are utterly beyond comprehension. From elegant dining rooms to casual seafood cafés to simple taquerías, Los Cabos serves up both standard and exotic fare. In the past, some restaurants have tried to please everyone and overcome fierce competition by offering similar menus with often mediocre results. But a number of the chefs and restaurateurs are settling into their niches and subsequently delighting their audiences. The food scene changes fairly quickly, so it's always a good idea to ask fellow travelers or locals about their dining experiences.

Seafood is the truly local cuisine. Fresh catches that land on area menus include dorado (mahimahi), lenguado (halibut), cabrilla (sea bass), wahoo, jurel (yellowtail), and marlin. Local lobster, shrimp, and octopus are particularly good. Fish grilled over a mesquite wood fire is perhaps the most indigenous and tasty seafood dish, while the most popular may be the tacos de pescado (fish tacos); traditionally a deep-fried fillet wrapped in a handmade corn tortilla, served with shredded cabbage, cilantro, and salsas. Beef and pork—commonly served grilled and marinated—are also quite good. Many restaurants import their steak, lamb, duck, and quail from Sonora, Mexico's prime pastureland, and also from the United States.

In San José, international chefs prepare excellent Continental, French, Asian, and Mexican dishes in lovely, intimate restaurants. The Corridor is the place to go for exceptional hotel restaurants. Recently, due to the intense competition for business in Los Cabos, all the restaurants are going through remodels and reinvention, the Corridor restaurants included. San Lucas is where the major portion of the area's explosion in new eateries has occurred. To be expected, also, Cabo has comfort food covered, with franchise eateries from McDonald's, Subway, and Domino's to Carlos 'n' Charlie's and Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.