Le Chef Cozumel — Restaurant in San Miguel de Cozumel

This review is of their newly opened location on melgar by the museo. The old location is closed.

The ‘New’ El Chef......

The family and I were walking down melgar on our way to another location for dinner yesterday and noticed the LeChef was open and done with the new location remodel. We had seen them working on the new location for about 10 days and the transformation on the front end in that amount of time was amazing and the owner said the back end and behind the scenes things they had to do in the kitchen was even greater. All of the employees pitched in to make it what it now is.

Let’s talk about the dining area. There is an open air area in the front when you first walk in that has six 4 seat tables. It is spacious and the sun sets and views in front of there of the ocean are amazing. It’s also pretty cool watching the traffic and people stroll by. Definitely more to see than their other two previous locations. The second dining area is inside has 9 tables and has the AC kicking....Worried about not seeing the ocean and sunset? Don’t! Because there is a glass partition that is there is huge to see through. Also in this area is the bar and what I think is the coolest part an open kitchen so you can see everyone at work and all of the dishes being made. New appliances and white subway tile round out the kitchen area. Hand painted murals, quotes, and painted shiplap siding abound creating an inviting space to enjoy your meal. Table decorations included hand picked flowers that were obliviously thoughtfully arranged by hand.

Next the food and drinks. The menu has all of the familiar favorites that put Le Chef on the map years ago. The starters are well thought out and almost to pretty to eat. In case you were wondering we got the fried Brie plate and spicy oilves (which aren’t on the menu but you can order). And of course every table receives a complimentary plate of toasted artesian bread with tomatoes on top. Their bar is vast and beer selection admirable with most local domestic choices available. We decided on rum punches. You talk about craft cocktails! Whoa soooooo good 🙂 No main dishes ordered as we were on our way to another location but we will be back for sure.

Living part time on the island we ate at LeC a ton back in the day when they had two locations on 5th and always enjoyed the atmosphere, service, drinks, and food. Now with the new location even closer to our pad you can bet we will be enjoying many sunset...

Where to start? Maybe food poisoning? We went to this place after reading good reviews and seeing the blog of a chef that apparently has travelled the world. We ordered a tuna tartar which very likely caused a severe food poisoning just a couple of hours later, even though there was very little tuna in it and we even found a fish scale. We also ordered a lobster bisque that was more of a butter bisque. Almost no lobster taste in it, just butter. The next dish was baby calamari in a garlic and pepper sauce. The sauce itself wasn't too bad, but the calamari were chewie and hard. Either not fresh or overcooked, likely both. The last dish was a mahi mahi fish with a calabrese sauce and some vegetables. Vegetables were actually good and so was the fish. Only bad note of this dish was the actual sauce made of olives. Too salty and ruined what otherwise would have been a very good and simple dish. Service also deserves a note. The waiters were very friendly but they didn't really know what they were doing. First waiter took half of the order and couldn't explain how things on the menu were cooked. Then the second waiter came and took the other half of the order They served first one starter and one main that were meant to be for the same person. Then after a few minutes another starter and another main for the other person. After finishing the meal they took also the glasses with remaining beverages in them without leaving a moment to rest and enjoy at least the nice atmosphere. Now I don't usually bother with reviews because after working for more than 10 years in restaurants I know that everyone can have a bad day in the kitchen. But after travelling around the world for a bit I also need to share a reality. Restaurants in places like Cozumel have been completely corrupted by an American (US) tourism and culinary non existing culture. 90% of these reviews come from people who have no idea of what good food and good cooking means. I hope the chef takes this review as constructive and adjusts his restaurant to make proper food and not food to please a culinary culture that at its best has given to the world fast...

I normally do not like to review a establishment when I'm invited from an other party to eat there. But I felt to do so.

It's in their new location. Great view on the waterfront. Very hot and humid inside. Saw fans in the ceiling, but they were not turned on to get some air flowing.

I just ordered a Greek Salad for 135 pesos as was stated on the menu. When it arrived, it looked like a plain dinner salad. Iceberg lettuce, 2 petite tomatoes, and some small cubed cheese. I didn't know if Greek salad was served with iceberg lettuce.

We were the only ones in their establishment, and it was lunchtime. The salad was ok. Just not was I was expecting. My friend had the lobster sandwich with fries. It was on white bread.

Just wanted to tell my experience....