Ready to board the boat and start the day!
I have posted about Isla Mujeres before, but I am going to have to post about it again! My BFF and her husband are visiting, so of course we had to take them to our favorite place to take visitors, and this time we discovered a couple great new (to us) places.
After we got our golf cart (which was a bit of a hassle this time) we headed on our usual tour around the island. First stop, beer. Second stop, pictures at the lookout. Third stop…well you get the idea, we usually stop at all of the same places during our tour.
It's been too long since we've taken a self-portrait together.
After we made it all the way around the island we were all starving (well maybe except for baby boy who was munching crackers and granola bars the whole way). We usually eat at one of the restaurants that is downtown on the water, but my BFF’s husband had heard about a Cuban restaurant (a bonus since Papi is Cuban and I don’t exactly cook like his mama) from a man at their condo in Cancun. We decided to give it a try. What a pleasant surprise! It’s called El Varadero del Burgos (and incidentally is not named for the Cuban vacation spot) and is hidden away off of a road that is off of the main road. If you are headed south out of downtown it’s only a few minutes drive in a golf cart.
They offer more than the dishes listed here.
Let me tell you, Papi was stoked. He ordered masitas de puerco (fried boneless pieces of pork) and tostones (fried smashed slices of green plantains). It was just like his mom’s cooking. In fact, we all enjoyed our meals and the prices were reasonable for fresh seafood (the owner catches the fish himself).
The view from our table.
Our table.
I must admit, I was a little worried when we drove up. It’s a little, let’s say…shabby, but I thought, let’s go for it, and it turned-out to be a great experience. They even had a highchair (it was from like 1940 but we made it work)!
We borrowed Uncle W's belt to strap baby in!
Oh, and don’t forget to check-out the interesting artwork in the bathroom! 🙂
From El Varadero we could hear live music coming from somewhere so when we were done eating we decided to check it out. It turned-out to be this place…
What a fun, laid back place! We had more beer and cocktails, baby played the congas and mommy even sang a song (that went poorly but I won’t go into it).
He's a freakin' natural. We fear he's destined to live the life of a poor musician.
We chose to sit in the sand but you can sit in the restaurant if you like. 🙂
We returned our golf cart at 6pm on the dot and took the boat back to Puerto Juarez in the dark. We sat on top, outside, and it was beautiful. Baby was exhausted, sleeping in my arms, and my best friend was just to my right.
My sweet baby boy and my #1 partner in crime.
Isla Mujeres, you never let me down!
