Mandarina Seaside restaurant — Restaurant in Isla Holbox

My wife and I entered the restaurant from the beach side. We were greeted by the hostess that pointed to the table that we could take. By the time we got to that table, it was already taken by another party, and our hostess was gone. We tried to take another free table, but were approached by another staff member that arrogantly asked if we had a reservation. We said no and explained that we've just been assigned a table, to what he annoyingly replied that all tables are reserved and we should leave. Even though we saw there were plenty of free tables! We went back to the hostess that greeted us first, she apologized and gave us another table in a few minutes. We sat down and ordered food. We chose guacamole as a starter, which ended up having pork belly bites hidden on the bottom of the bowl! I am Muslim and strictly don't consume pork. We told the waitress about what happened, but she said 'Oh, well... I like it!'. Absolutely ignorant. Honestly, in what world would you serve a vegan dish with pork?! We had our main courses, which were just mediocre, and when we got the bill, this "guacamole" was not removed from the bill, and the waitress said "Keep in mind that the tip is not included in the bill". Absolutely disgusting experience that ruined our first day of...

After being rejected (no reservation) at two places, a local friend of a friend suggested Mandarina - and we are grateful forever! They seated us by the sea, in lovely low soft chairs at a round wooden table. The Negroni and Last Word cocktails were stiff and flavorful. The Aperol spritz was as good as (if not even better than) in Italy. We were hungry and ordered the roasted carrots and smoked red beets while waiting for the whole fish of the day ro be prepared. We love beets. We love carrots. And we prepare them often - but nothing prepared us for the symphony of flavors that came in those 2 plates - it'snot just the roots that were done well - but also the sauces. And then came the fish - prepared whole, perfectly seasoned, flaky, with crisp skin and fins. A delightful sight and taste! We are so happy that we had to discover this place - we highly...

This place was utterly fantastic. Great atmosphere and design. Obviously on the beach - can't beat that. The dishes were all outstanding - they have a great chef/team who knows how to combine flavors. You will experience multiple flavors coming together an in interesting/intriguing way. This is not your average restaurant or even average good restaurant.

Our server, Damian, was phenomenal! He provided hands-down the best service I received during this particular trip to Mexico. So in 9 days, he was by far the best. He checked on us frequently, offered suggestions. He offered extra gluten-free bread without me even asking. It was so refreshing and pleasurable to be taken care of in this way. The feeling from Damian's incredible service was as good as the food. I am very thankful that we had him...