Each month Yucatan Today visits a restaurant in order to describe what it has to offer. This is not a review; it is a summary of the menu, service, ambience, prices, and opening hours.
February 2007
Cuisine: International. Chefs: Julio Mendez and Juan Carlos Benítez. Setting: a charming antique-filled dining room plus two outdoor garden patios. Credit cards: Visa, MC, Amex. Price for 2 including 2 drinks: $350 pesos. Schedule: lunch & dinner 12 noon - 12 midnight daily. Seating: 90 in three settings - indoor dining room w/AC, 2 outdoor patios for smoking and non-smoking. Location: Calle 57 between 60 and 62 - down a hallway next to Pop Cafeteria. Parking: 2 hours free.
For 33 years El Pórtico del Peregrino ("the entrance door for the pilgrims") has been serving consistently excellent food. When we decided to feature this restaurant and started asking around about it, we received very favorable comments. With this in mind, we went to the restaurant with expectations of being served good food. We are happy to say, and pass on the word, that our expectations were met!
The selection of wines has something for all tastes. Choose a red or white depending on your meal and taste. Or a real made-in-Mexico margarita might also be the perfect touch to your meal.
While the menu is not huge, it does offer the perfect variety of traditional Yucatecan food, plus international meats, chicken, seafood and pastas. Of course, the banana leaf wrapped Yucatecan dish pollo pibil is a popular choice for tourists, while the red snapper choices might be the perfect choice for a local. Salad options include a fruit plate, a green salad, and a shrimp cocktail. We started our meal with traditional lime soup and an onion soup au gratin. Both were rich and perfect. Other soups are tortilla soup, consommé, and vegetable.
The seafood zarzuela that included fish fillet, shrimp, squid and octopus in a delicately herbed wine sauce was tasty and fresh. The chicken liver shish-ka-bob was better than homemade. The salmon dish also sounded great. For dessert we shared coconut ice cream with Kahlua liqueur and a piece of almond cake – divine!
Our wonderful meal was served by gentle, multi-lingual professional waiters.
For us, Pórtico del Peregrino definitely scores a 10!
Portico del Peregrino
Calle 57 between 60 and 62, Centro.
(down a hallway next to Pop Cafeteria)
Schedule: lunch & dinner 12 noon – 12 midnight daily.
Website: www.porticodelperegrino.com
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