7 Best Restaurants in Panajachel, The Highlands

Hummingbirds dart among flowering vines at this romantic eatery just up the street from the lake. Enter through an iron gate that leads into a garden hidden behind a low wall. There are outside tables and a pair of intimate dining rooms. All the delicious Italian food, from the tasty bread to the fresh pasta, is homemade. Two standout specialties are the fettuccine arrabiata (with a slightly spicy tomato sauce), and the steak au poivre (cooked in a wine sauce and black pepper) served with fresh vegetables.

The Uruguayan and American owners contribute to the live acoustic music many evenings here at one of Calle Santander's liveliest restaurants and a favorite with Pana's expat community. Grab a seat in this semi-open-air place, enjoy the entertainment, and survey all the action on the main drag. Uruguayan-style beef tenderloin rules, as do churtos (beef cutlets prepared variously with mozzarella cheese, ham, bacon, peppers, or olives).

Despite the name, you'll find very little that is Indian about the cuisine here. The menu is a real catch-all, and "vegetarian" or "macrobiotic" are better descriptions to describe the falafel, pita, pad thai, burritos, lasagna, and key lime pie. Dine inside, or grab one of the two umbrella-covered tables on the front deck and survey the action on Calle Santander.

Panajachel's most elegant restaurant, Casablanca has a white-walled dining room with windows overlooking the main street. The handful of tables on the upper level is much more intimate. The menu is ample, if a bit overpriced, and includes a few seafood and fish standouts such as lobster and black lake bass, as well as tenderloin in a green-pepper sauce. Musicians occasionally entertain.

Although it's known by the outdoor patio with umbrella-covered tables that gives the place its name, most of the restaurant's tables are inside a large dining room decorated with lots of palms and ferns, and a few indigenous drawings on the wall. Nevertheless, the lunch and dinner menus offer great variety, including such choices as pepper steak, roast pork, and chicken à la king. It's also a popular spot for breakfast. You'll find a couple of Internet computers to log on to after you eat.

Our favorite in-town lakefront restaurant, with great views from its picture window, takes its name from the tightly wrapped cloth worn as a headdress by Tzutuhil women in the area. This is about as elegant as Panajachel gets: waiters in white shirts and bow ties scurry around and serve pepián or chile relleno on the local side of the menu, or a good steak if you're looking for something international. This is still Pana, though, so you don't need to dress up.

Tired of frijoles? There isn't a single bean to be found at this café, which serves up outstanding crepes. Choose from a small but creative menu of savory dinner crepes—fill them with vegetables, tofu, chicken, or pork—and sweet dessert crepes—we like the banana–brown sugar–yogurt Jamaica one—or pick and choose among your favorite ingredients. While you wait, you can thumb through a pile of back-issue magazines (including, oddly enough, the New Yorker).