COCINANDO A la MEXICANA — Restaurant in Playa del Carmen

During our most recent visit to Playa del Carmen, we ended up eating at Cocinando a la Mexican twice as it was an easy walk from our Airbnb.

On our first visit, we did have to wait a little bit for a table. This was our first brunch in Mexico.

Mestizo Breakfast $149 - This came with scrambled eggs with chili and corn, 2 mini quesadillas, and guacamole. You also have the option of juice or coffee. The Husband really enjoyed their guacamole and loved their coffee as well.

Veracruz style Enfrijoladas $149 - This was four tacos filled with scrambled Mexican-style eggs, bean sauce, sour cream, Oaxaca cheese, and chorizo. I'm assuming it was pretty good because the Little Guy ate it all and we didn't get a bite.

Jarocho Breakfast $149 - The option was scrambled or fried eggs, I went with fried. Picadas with green salsa and red tomato sauce, fried plantains, and beans. Coffee or juice also accompanied this breakfast. The Little Gal loved the plantains, so we ended up ordering a separate order of just fried plantains. Because of the different flavor profiles on this dish, it was a great mix to enjoy.

Fried Plantains $99 - Smothered with cheese. Great flavor.

Papaya Milkshake $75

We returned a few days later and got this:

Mestizo breakfast $149 - The portion of eggs did look a bit smaller compared to our first vist. Veracruz style Enfrijoladas $149 Huaraches with Skirt Steak $129 - This comes with beans, salad, sour cream, and cheese. I guess the tomato slice counted as the salad portion. I initially tried to order this with cochinita pibil, but they were out. The dish was a bit one note and it was only okay. I should have gotten the Jarocho Breakfast like my initial visit. Fried Plantains $99 Green Juice $70

Service is fine. They have about two people running the front. You will need to request milk for your coffee as it doesn't come automatically. Menus are in Spanish and English.

It's a bit stuffy if you sit inside, although they do have fans to help with air circulation. Ideally, enjoy the patio if seats are available. The restroom doesn't have a toilet seat, but it does have soap to wash...

Had a T-Bone steak.....it was not great. It was not the worst thing, but quality of meat was just okay. The quality of beef in the pictures were not the same as what came on my plate . The waitress was wonderful. The fries and salad were quite good. Price was quite reasonable. UPDATE: THE owner then tried to get me to change my review and lied about it not being the same restaurant. Visually confirmed this was the place and then double checked on google Earth. I want to give a lower rating for the liar, but will leave the review based on experience. I understand being a business owner is hard, but shouldn't revert to those tactics. 3 stars isn't horrible. 1 and 2 star is horrible. 3...

We chose this for breakfast because it was well reviewed and convenient to Quinta Avenida, with an appealing menu. We each had a "combo friend" platter: one Traditional - scrambled eggs, bacon, seasoned smashed potatoes and pancakes - with oj (which wasn't totally thawed, so it was like a slushee) and one Jarochos - fried eggs, green and red sopes, refried black beans and fried plantains - with coffee. Everything was delicious and the staff was very patient with our Spanish, as they didn't speak English. Our bill was MX$288 and we had no problem paying with a card; they seemingly even accept Amex, though we...