THE SEAHORSE CUCINA BAR & LOUNGE — Restaurant in Jalisco

My partner Eric and I visited Seahorse Cucina Bar & Lounge today, and we were highly impressed with Chef Raul and Mrs. Othy Garcia.

The food and wine here is excellent. We ordered the a plate of shareable fresh strawberries with watermelon salad drizzled with tomatoes and cheese for starters; a plate of their paella and a plate of their steak with mashed potatoes for our main courses. A glass of Sangria, red wine and sparkling water. Serving portions were generous — we wish we could have also tried their desserts.

This place is a gem, at the heart of old town beach front. The bonus: it is located in front of Our Lady of Guadalupe church.

Because we came on a Monday, we were very lucky to have a table facing the church, while we enjoyed our dinner.

Thank you to Chef Raul and Mrs. Othy Garcia for a very personal touch of service. They were literally running the place by themselves this evening — as two of their staff were unable to come to work. So the duo owners ran the whole restaurant by themselves tonight with grace and smile.

We learned from Chef and Mrs. Garcia that The Sea Horse Cucina Bar and Lounge only opened in April of this year — and we know this restaurant is already a blessing to Puerto Vallarta. They will be serving good food to visitors while helping the economy of the city. Chef Raul comes from over two decades with Il Fornaio of San Francisco Bay Area in California.

We will be back to try more of their Italian dishes, and yes a dessert or two next...

The restaurant was very responsive when I made my reservation online the night before our visit. I wanted to make sure they accepted credit cards, (They do). We had a choice of tables and were happy with the one we selected, and the view of the sunset could be seen from virtually anywhere in the room. The menus we had viewed online must have been dated as the prices reflected the overall increases we've experienced everywhere in Puerto Vallarta this visit. My wife and I decided to order the bruschetta to start but changed our minds to share a caesar salad because the waiter brought some delicious warm bread. The shared salad was not skimpy at all and had shaved parmesson and anchovies. My wife ordered the spaghetti carbanaro, and I chose the spaghetti al fruti del mare.Both entrees were very generous, and the presentation was pleasing. My wife loved hers and managed to finish the entire dish. My entree had a good number of shrimp, clams, and muscles, but I was a little surprised to see the fake crab in it. It had turned mushy. The dish didn't really need it as the other shellfish were plenty. It was perfectly spiced, and I also managed to eat the entire plate. Our waiter was attentive, friendly, and gracious. We will definitely be back on our next visit to the beautiful city. The pictures included are of the menu on...

The food was good. It was a dinner theatre.

The service was TERRIBLE. I finished my meal before 4 of the people at my table were served. People were leaving before my friends got their food.

My second margarita only filled the glass 2/3 to the top. I showed it to the waiter who did nothing so I went to the bar myself and got a new drink.

The singer was good. But I do not like a singer walking around putting a tip bucket in front of me at what appears to be a high class restaurant.

Before the singer began and during his break the music was so loud that you had to shout to have a conversation, and even then I could not hear well. This is not good in a pandemic as shouting increases the likelihood of transmission of germs from your mouth. And no one ever took my temperature.

Upon being seated the view was nice but the sun beat in through the glass wall windows making it very very hot. I asked for the shades to be closed. One waiter said he would, another walked away. Turns out there were no shades.

My check had the wrong orders on it and I was overcharged. The waiter blamed me for this because we had asked for separate checks. The waiter also blamed the poor service on the kitchen staff. No ever apologized nor offered anything like a complimentary drink to make up for the very...