We headed out for dinner on our second (and last) night in San Miguel. As with our previous dinner I had taken a recommendation and made reservations for the meal. It was a nice, short stroll to dinner, just a short distance from the main square.
Located in a restored mansion, The Restaurant apparently created quite a buzz when it opened in 2008, and has been credited with changing the food scene in San Miguel.
The dining room is situated in the lovely courtyard (so many beautiful courtyards in SME) and the menu is somewhat globally focused.
Since we had a late lunch we would stick to one of our favorite strategies and go with several appetizers and one main to make our meal.
We started with the Beef Carpaccio – $300/MX.
The beef was tenderloin and quite lean, the truffled ponzu was quite pronounced in flavor and to be perfectly frank served better as a dressing for the nice crisp veggies and potato strings. Loved the addition of mint and cilantro on this.
The Charred Octopus ($300/MX) was indeed quite charred and a bit more chewy than we prefer.
The overall bitterness of the charred Cephalopod marred the dish, though the tomatoes were sweet, with the perfect acidity, and the avocado puree helped balance out whatever heat that was provided by the habanero sauce.
I was intrigued by the Shrimp and Scallop dish ($510/MX), which featured curry dusted scallops and shrimp, and a cauliflower puree, with lentils.
This was pretty good as the shrimp and scallops were perfectly cooked, the curry flavor was tempered and really harmonized with the creamy, nutty-lightly sweet mashed cauliflower. Loved the lentils which added a nice earthy flavor and textural contrast to the dish.
The most interesting item we ordered was the Cheese Plate ($285/MX).
Yes, that's right, the cheese plate. Why? Well, it's all local/regional cheeses and except for the bleu cheese….I'm thinking that it's basically based on the type of edible mold from the area, all the others were pretty good.
The Missus enjoyed the wine selection and the service was professional and accommodating.
The Restaurant
Diez de Sollano y Dávalos 16
37700 San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato Mexico
After dinner we strolled on over to the heart of SME, the Jardín Allende. The Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel looked lovely as the sun slowly set.
And unlike when we visited earlier, the church was open and wasn't having any special event going on, so we went to take a peek inside.
After taking a quick look into the church, we crossed the street to the Jardin and had a seat and enjoyed the passage of time.
It was a nice evening for us.
The next morning we slept in for a bit. The owners of the B&B sent me a text and asked if we wanted them to make us breakfast. Since we were the only customers staying in the place we told them to not go thru the effort. Plus, the Missus wanted to try another pour over from Lavanda Café. So we headed on over a bit before they opened and were the first customers on this morning.
The Missus got Her pour over which She enjoyed.
And we shared a Salsa Verde con Chicharron which the Missus enjoyed.
The eggs were perfectly cooked, nice tanginess, a bit of heat, a nice, hearty breakfast.
Lavanda Café de Especialidad
Calle del Dr Ignacio Hernandez Macias 87, Zona Centro,
37700 San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
Since we were the only folks staying at our accommodation, we were told to just take our time, and that we could check out at noon instead of eleven. This would make things work out better for us in terms of getting to our next stop Guanajuato, which would take around 2 hours via Uber.
It was a pretty quiet morning around the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel.
Since the clock was just striking ten, we decided to check out the Museo de San Miguel de Allende right across the street that opened at ten.
Most of this museum is dedicated to it's former resident; Ignacio Allende, who became a hero of the Mexican War on Independence. The Allende family was a wealthy family and the museum is housed in the family's former home.
Much of the family's living quarters have been restored and I especially like the replica of the original kitchen.
The first floor contains a history of the region as well.
It was a nice little diversion. And soon enough we had to head back to our room and finish packing; call our Uber, and then we were off…..
Next stop Guananjuato!
Thanks for stopping by!
A wonderful green space, which is fairly peaceful in the morning, but gets more lively as the days passes and is really buzzing at night.
Which was quite striking in its own right.
This came with some really tasty black beans. Surprisingly, at least for us, we really enjoyed the parsley rub more! It had nice garlic tones; some cumin, and you could really taste the mild, almost sweet flavor of the snapper, which was grilled perfectly! Don't get me wrong; that adobo rub had some nice smokiness and spice; but you really couldn't enjoy the great quality of the fish as much.
Panadería Almuerzos
On occasion I would take either my or the Missus's car to Victor's next door for a hand carwash, especially after roadtrips. So, during one of those sessions I decided to have some tacos while waiting for the Missus's car.
Again I was the only customer and even though it was just 1045 in the morning I was the only customer, which made me a bit concerned about sustaining business.
I should have known better, but perhaps I was 
I enjoyed the textural contrast of the Chorizo with Nopales….but of course I enjoy the supposed "mucilaginous" texture. I do think I'd enjoy a more assertive flavor component.
The smoked fish taco was pretty good….I had read in the Eater post that items had a "Asian" touch….I figure in the case of these tacos, it was the sesame seeds? Anyway, the fish was nice and moist, smoky, good savory hints, no off flavors, and the tortillas held up well. The cabbage added textural contrast and a touch of sweetness. 
This was actually pretty good; I mean it ain't 
There was a generous amount of shrimp in this; but we both thought this was a bit lacking in overall flavor and was really too salty. The texture of the shrimp was fine.
We got this with the "verde", the green sauce which was tangy and tart, a perfect foil for the spice. Loved the avocado which helped to quell whatever heat evolved from the dish, the cucumbers added a nice, crisp and "chlorophyllic" touch to the dish. The shrimp had spent the perfect amount of time in the sauce, being just toothsome enough. We'd have this again!
And that couple was the folks from that new yellow Corvette. We were just going to take a stroll on the Devil's Bridge and maybe do a selfie. But the really nice guy told me; "I'm going to rest here a while, so why don't you walk on over and I'll take a picture of you!" And he didn't take just one photo, but an entire set! You know, people like him really do make travels just so much better!
It is a nice hike and I loved the rock formations. Now this is what I envision when I think of Sedona!
