Food & Cuisine in Cancun
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When it comes to food and restaurants, there is no shortage of restaurants in Cancun. The choices are so many and so varied that it can be really confusing at times. You see, there are over 300 restaurants in Cancun serving the most delectable fare! The cuisines on offer include Mexican, Caribbean, Italian, Japanese, French, Thai, Chinese and Mediterranean. But it is not just the food that makes dining in Cancun such an unforgettable experience, it is also the atmosphere and the ambience.
Many of the restaurants in Cancun have great locations on the water front with breathtaking views, stylish décor and live music to make for a perfect dining experience.
A flavoursome local meal at a Cancun restaurant is the ideal way to end a busy day touring or shopping in Cancun. Take a look at our Cancun Restaurant Guide below to find the best places to eat out in Cancun, as well as some local tips about the tasty Cancun cuisine. Our Mexico Restaurant Guide tells you more about the food and cuisine found throughout the country.
Food & Cuisine in Cancun
If you are not into the lavish dining scene and don't care to splurge on your dinner, you can always opt for the budget restaurants downtown that serve good food, both traditional and otherwise, at affordable rates. Other options for food that is easy on the pocket are street vendors and outdoor cafes in downtown Cancun. Being more American than Mexican in spirit, the city also has its fair share of fast food outlets, burger outlets, and all-you-can-eat buffets too. So basically no one goes hungry in Cancun.
Traditional Cuisine
Traditional cuisine is very diverse and gives preference to pork, chicken and rabbit apart from fresh seafood. A variety of chilli sauces are used to spice up the dishes and the use of the local sour orange give the sauces and soups a special flavour. Some of the commonly used ingredients include achiote (annatto), pumpkin seeds (pepitas) and the local spinach called chaya. Fish or meat preparations are often baked or barbecued wrapped in banana leaves.
Some of the much sought after traditional dishes include Cochinita Pibil (pork with achiote sauce cooked in a pit oven wrapped in banana leaves and served with tortillas), Huevos motuleños (egg dish with sliced ham and tortillas usually served for breakfast), Tikin Xic (fish prepared with achiote baked or barbecued wrapped in banana leaves), and Papadzules (tortillas stuffed with egg). Snacks like Salbutes, Panuchos, and Empanadas are also very delicious and available at most Cancun restaurants.
The popular traditional breakfast consists of sweet rolls, oatmeal and coffee. Pancakes, fruit salads, milk and yogurt are also favoured by many people. Egg dishes like "huevos a la mexicana" or "huevos rancheros" are well liked and are usually taken for late breakfast or brunch, also called "Almuerzo". Large brunch buffets are served at many Cancun restaurants in the hotel zone and they are quite popular with the tourists since many of them stay up late into the night having a blast at the bars, discos or clubs.
For the local Mexican population, the biggest meal of the day is lunch or "Comida". The Cancun restaurants serving traditional lunch, especially those in downtown, experience heavy rush during lunch hour. Many traditional shopping establishments and businesses take a long break at noon as Mexicans love a leisurely lunch. In the hotel zone though, most restaurants come alive only at dinnertime and serve mainly sandwiches, pasta and soups for lunch.
The evening meal, called "Cena" in these parts, is traditionally a light meal. But tourists in Cancun are treated to the most scrumptious dishes at upscale restaurants in the evenings. Cancun restaurants in the hotel zone, several of them five-diamond-rated, dish out their best fare for dinner and treat customers to cuisines from many regions of the world as well as excellent fusion preparations.
When it comes to refreshments and beverages, the choices are endless. Most people find the fresh fruit juices and sodas very refreshing during the day time but prefer stronger drinks in the evenings. There are plenty of bars in cancun so you are sure to find your favourite drink.
