Alessandro — Restaurant in Oaxaca

This place poses as one of the more up market places in Mazunte offering a more European style 'Italian' menu. We normally don't go to these sorts of places and stick to local food when travelling, and our experience here completely reinforced why we normally do this. Firstly I ordered fish of the day. I was pretty hungry so when I saw a slab of stake the size of my foot I was fairly excited until I wondered how they would have cooked a piece of fish that Big. It turns out the answer is for a very long time. It was tougher than old boots, and not only that there was no way it was 'fresh catch' as it said on the menu. I told the waitress (who was very sweet) that it was extremely overcooked and didn't taste fresh. She came back from the kitchen and told me it was fresh from the day 🤔 Second meal my partner had was a clam linguine. Again the clams looked old, shrivelled and rather than my gargantuan steak, there was barely a morsel of flesh in each clam. It was the saddest looking meal I have ever seen. It was also on the menu as artisanal pasta however it was without a doubt from a packet. Personally I think if your calling yourself an Italian restaurant and naming your pasta artisanal and your twice as expensive as everywhere else, you really need to do better than this. After complaining about the food we neither got offered a discount or to be made anything else. This may seem like a harsh review but it is extremely dissapointing when places mascquerade as better quality restaurants and don't live up to it. Had the waitress not been so nice and the wine ok we would have...

I was there for dinner. We were surprised how popular this place is, so our expectations were high. We had no reservations, had to wait an hour for a table. The place was 100% full the entire time I was there, many people were turned away as they were full for the rest of the evening. That said... Menu is mainly of pastas dishes, about 20. I had a clam linguini in white wine and an octopus starter. They wine list is very narrow (only 3 whites and 3 reds... Their Pinot Grigio was good. Taste of food was good, I would give it a 2nd try but most likely won't if I have to wait an hour. I don't think they have a dessert menu or coffee since I was not offered any. The decor is a copy past of every other restaurant in the area (a mix of dim light, wooden furniture, open space, tree branch walls and ceilings). Prices...

Who thought I would find a nice Italian restaurant on the pacific coast of Mexico? When we stopped on our first night in Mazunte, Oaxaca and asked where was the best place to eat, all the locals seemed to agree that Alessandro is one of the best, if not the best. Be warned, it is not Mexican food. It is however some of the best pasta I have ever had. My favorite was the Pesto Pasta. Although a vegetarian dish, it is full of flavor and color. I also realized that in Mexico, I could have Filet Mignon for half the price it costs in the U.S. I visited two nights and the special one night was Filet Mignon with a Mushroom Cabernet sauce and roasted potatoes. This went down very well paired with a Valpolicella. As they would say in Mexico, "Delicioso!". If you ever find yourself in Mazunte, definitely pay...