Restaurant Review: La Casa de Itzimna

La Casa de Itzimna: October 2009

After 3 years of renovations, one of the most beautiful and special houses in Itzimná has opened its doors as the new La Casa de Itzimná restaurant. The food is delicious, and as a bonus the setting is magnificent.

The restaurant offers a sumptuous buffet breakfast from 7 am to noon. This is a wonderful way to start the day, or relax over a weekend brunch with friends. A la carte lunches are served from 12 to 5 pm. For business lunches, gatherings with friends, or a relaxing midday meal during a day of sightseeing, La Casa de Itzimna is an excellent option.

Appetizers include cilantro mousse, fish pate, and tuna carpaccio. A delicious salad to try is the watercress and jicama salad with shallot vinaigrette. Other salads include the caprese with cheese and mint pesto, and the classic Caesar salad. The cream of leek and potato soup is thick and flavorful…almost a meal in itself! Or try the cream of pistachio with cognac, or cream of squash with Roquefort. And the traditional Yucatecan sopa de lima is one of the best in Merida.

The menu also includes various spaghetti and fusilli pasta options. The fish choices include grilled salmon with lentils and bacon, baked salmon with couscous and dried fruit, prawns with chiles and ratatouille, and tuna prepared with soy and habanero. And if you are a grouper fan, the mero fish filet served with garlic is light and flavorful.

Meats and poultry include the traditional poc chuc and cochinita pibil, but also other inventive creations dreamed up by the talented chef Jorge Alejandro Carvajal Narvaez: beef filet with a mustard-beer sauce served with chipotle mashed carrots; or chicken breast in a jamaica sauce with watercress and jicama brie salad. Another tasty option is the arrachera with Argentinian chimichurri, served with Mediterranean vegetables…delicious!

And now a word about the building. This is truly an architectural jewel. "La Casa de Itzimna" was built at the beginning of the XX century at the corner which until a few years ago was called "el rincon del arbol" (the corner of the tree) in the Itzimna neighborhood. It was originally owned by the three single Alonzo Fajardo sisters. Upon the death of the last of these, the house was left in her will to the Catholic church, who sold it a few years later to the Barbachano family, who later sold it to a French family. They sold it to the current owner, William A stager. He invested a great deal of money over three years, and then opened it as a restaurant. The restaurant "La Casa de Itzimna" is the first step of a project which also includes a guest house on the same property.

If you are curious about the murals on the walls which feature equestrian activities, a word with the owner, William Stager, will clarify everything…this was his passion for many years! He rode and jumped in competitions and for pleasure. A local artist spent six months painting the wall murals with scenes from William’s equestrian past, as well as highlights of the casona itself.

La Casa de Itzimna, Restaurant-Bar
Calle 21 #102 x 20 and 22, Col. Itzimna
Tel. (999) 938 2147
Cel. (999) 157 9312