The Best Restaurants in Campeche, Mexico

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Restaurant, Mexican, $

A firm favorite among visitors keen to sample local flavors, russet-red Marganzo offers some of the best regional cuisine in the city. They specialize in seafood – the ceviche is a real standout – with plenty of fish pooled fresh from the Gulf of Mexico and served from the ice-stocked bar. It’s a great spot for a hearty desayuno (breakfast), too.

Restaurant, Mexican, $
With its kaleidoscopic floor tiles, light-box artworks and distinctively Mexican vibe, La Recova is a feast for the eyes. Your stomach won’t be far behind, with a moreish menu of sizzling fajitas, flame-grilled steaks and market-fresh seafood – the grilled octopus and juicy lobster taco are two strong favorites. You can also enjoy your meal al fresco, either on the pretty terrace or at a table right on pedestrianized Calle 59.

Restaurant, Mexican, $$

Just outside the city center, La Pigua is instantly recognizable for its orange facade and colorful stained glass. Inside, the main dining room is a long, timber-roofed hall, where you can sample an impressive seafood-focused menu. Coconut also features, both in mains and the signature cake. Look out for the Francis Drake dishes, among the very best.

Restaurant, Mexican
Mexican pastels, chunky wood furniture and Yucatán art set the tone for this unpretentious and atmospheric eatery. Flavors are intensely regional, with delicious dishes presented in heavy earthenware – and in the case of the still-steaming, hand-made tortillas, in carved gourds. The coconut-crusted shrimp is a winner, best accompanied with a tamarind mezcal margarita, and to finish, the home-made seasonal sorbet is the perfect palate-cleanser.

Restaurant, Mexican
Set inside a boutique hotel, the eponymous Casa Don Gustavo restaurant offers refined interpretations of classic regional cooking. Inside, antique furniture and embroidered tablecloths create an old-world ambience, while you can also pick a table on the al fresco terrace or buzzy Calle 59 itself. Their sopa de lima (lime soup) is one of the city’s finest, especially when enjoyed with their sikilp’ak an ancient Mayan pumpkin-seed dip.

Restaurant, Mexican, $
This restaurant-cum-gallery is a riot of colorful folkloric art, vintage photography and decorative hanging lights. The food is mostly classic Mexican, with steaming tamales, a great choice of tacos and reputedly some of the best mole in town. There’s pasta, burgers and salads, too, if you fancy something international, and if it’s breakfast you’re after, they do an excellent huevos a la Mexicana, complete with edible cactus.

Restaurant, Mexican, $

Right at the top of Calle 59, this colorful restaurant offers an extensive menu of Mexican cuisine from early breakfast to late-night tacos. Their traditional cochinita pibil (slow-cooked suckling pig) is an outstanding example of the popular dish, while fresh guacamole comes with the bonus of dried chapulines (grasshoppers). For dessert, most diners agree the apple cheesecake is the top pick.

Restaurant, Seafood, $
Positioned on Campeche’s waterfront malecón, this thatched-roof restaurant offers an impressive seafood menu with fab views over the Gulf of Mexico. They do shrimp every which way you can imagine – including shrimp cocktail – plus top-notch grilled octopus and fried whole fish. There are land-based options, too, but vegetarians should probably look elsewhere.