El Ma. Carmita — Restaurant in Quintana Roo

Between the prime location and the gorgeous design, this place could only serve their drink menu (unique and yummy craft cocktails & mocktails in addition to a legit wine list) and I’d spend the whole day here. Luckily, they also have amazing food. We had the local grilled fish with eggplant, lentils and arugula, which was so simple, but elegant and fresh, like, the arugula is grown on the island. We also had the classic Oysters Rockefeller, but they do it with Chaya and Edam cheese, Yucatan style. This is the only places on the island that offers all the raw bar classics; clams, shrimp, ceviches, oysters, lobster…. The oysters we ordered were top notch, not “good for Holbox” good, they are good for anywhere, my friend ordered the steamer clams and was drinking the broth, we also had the steak, octopus and a ceviche, all outstanding. The dessert menu is short, but it’s creme brûlée and Mexican hot chocolate with beignets, and they are both heaven. And the restaurant itself is seriously stunning, it’s a small space that feels grand with warm and attentive service. Looking forward to going back next week, I was even able to make a reservation...

Marco brought us in and made us feel like we were the only customers in the world! The atmosphere is perfect, right on the corner in the middle of absolutely everything happening in town! The lighting is soft and beautiful, which played in my favor. 🥰 The service was thoughtful and attentive. The food was delicious! We started with the oysters Rockefeller. Small but lovely and perfectly prepared! Worth every penny and perfection in each bite! Then we have the pear and Gorgonzola salad. It was also really well done. The portion was large and generous. The flavors were well balanced and robust. For dinner, we enjoyed the risotto of the day. It was a creamy creamy wonderful concoction of shrimp and herbs and a chili oil that was superb. The restroom was well appointed and clean. The drinks tasted good and were still stout! I recommend, hands down. Enjoy your time here in Isla Holbox with this beautiful meal...

There are some really fabulous restaurants in Holbox but this definitely isn’t one of them. It’s a tourist trap and the rude servers make no secret of the fact that they don’t care if you never come back. Even though there was only one other table occupied, we waited 45 minutes for our food and when it arrived it was cold. Mac and cheese for our child tasted like cardboard but the worst was the grilled fish which came with a cold, strangely bright white risotto that had no identifiable flavor at all and smothered in an unappetizing brown gravy that tasted vaguely of soy sauce. There was no apology just blank stares and eye rolling when we complained about the food being cold and we left this place feeling hangry in the truest sense...