12 Best Restaurants in Antigua, Guatemala
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Like Guatemala City, but on a smaller scale, Antigua assembles a mix of regional and international cuisines into its restaurant scene. Few other cities pack such a variety into a 10-block-by-10-block area. A good rule of thumb: more expensive restaurants line the streets east of the city's Parque Central. Less pricey options line those west of the park.
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Café Barista
This hot spot on the northwest corner of Parque Central hustles and bustles with all the commotion of a big-city café. Coffees, teas, chai, and hot chocolate are on tap, along with a good variety of panini and salads. It can be difficult to find a table during the day, especially on weekends. If you're here with someone else, have one person in your party grab a table the minute one opens up, while another orders at the counter. Things thin out a bit after 8 pm.
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Café Condesa
Breakfast starts at 7 am, and specials such as toast topped with strawberries, papaya, or mango, and omelets made with fresh vegetables will give you plenty of sightseeing fuel. (Breakfast is served all day if you like.) After such a big breakfast, don't count on eating much for the rest of the day. For lunch, try the quiche or the Brie plate; the homemade pies and pastries are also notable. You can eat in the café's airy dining room or grab a cappuccino and a sweet roll at Café Condesa Express next door. Either way, the location right on the Parque Central can't be beat.
Café Flor
The friendly proprietors serve a menu that includes Thai curries, Chinese noodles, and Indian vegetable dishes. Be careful—some of the dishes, especially the curries, are quite spicy. Asian food aficionados will find the food not at all like the real thing, but Antigua is, after all, about as far from the source as you can get. There's live piano music nightly. The restaurant is popular with the many students studying Spanish in Antigua.
Café Mediterráneo
For Italian food in the city, this tiny restaurant can't be beat. Northern Italian specialties, delicious antipasti, and delicate homemade pastas are among the favorites. Wash it all down with a selection from the affordable wine list. The atmosphere and decor are low-key. Instead of giving out individual menus, waiters lug the menu board to your table to explain what's available. Hours can be a bit capricious; evening dining may begin at 6 or 7 pm, or whenever the restaurant opens, but the service is first-rate. Reservations are recommended.
Doña Luisa Xicotencatl
This restaurant—named after the mistress of Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado—is something of a local institution; tables are scattered throughout a dozen rooms, but it's still not easy to get a seat. Early-morning specialties include fruit salad, pancakes, and very fresh bread (the bakery is right downstairs). Sandwiches and other light fare make for ample lunch and dinner options. The service can be slow, but the eclectic decor makes the wait pleasant. The bulletin board downstairs is an excellent source of information for travelers.
Frida's
Looking for a place where you and your friends can knock back a few margaritas? At this festive cantina, a branch of a larger establishment in Guatemala City, the whole group can fill up on Mexican fare, including taquitos, enchiladas, and burros, the diminutive siblings of the American-style burrito. Things really get going when the mariachi band shows up. Stop by for live music Saturday evenings. Fans of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera will find a great selection of prints from these masters—the menu even bears Frida's signature portrait.
La Fonda de la Calle Real
An old Antigua favorite, this place has three locations serving the same Guatemalan and Mexican fare. The newest branch is housed in a colonial home, spacious enough to offer indoor and outdoor seating. Musicians stroll about on weekends. The menu includes queso fundido and the restaurant's famous caldo real (a hearty chicken soup). Other locations are the original on 5 Avenida near Parque Central, and a newer branch just across the street from that one.
Quesos y Vino
One of Antigua's best small Italian restaurants serves up homemade pastas and pizzas from a wood-burning oven, and a variety of home-baked breads. Choose from an impressive selection of cheeses and wines sold by the bottle or glass. This is mostly a place to stop for a light bite, rather than a full meal. Most of the seating is outside, but you'll find plenty of covering to duck under on a rainy day.
Rainbow
We could picture Che Guevara plotting the revolution in a corner of this café, a hangout of young expats in the heart of Antigua's language-school district. You'll find some meat on the menu, but vegetarian fare dominates. (We love the falafel and hummus dishes.) The place is immensely popular. Don't be afraid to ask if you can squeeze in if you see no available tables indoors or in the courtyard. There are lectures, in English, on some topic of political interest, each Tuesday evening, and live music many other nights.
The Bagel Barn
The name is apt. Anything and everything in the bagel realm makes up the bulk of the menu in this place just around the corner from the Parque Central. You'll find an equally wide variety of smoothie flavors here as well as decaf coffee (a real rarity in this country). Stop by at 5:30 pm for the nightly screenings of late-run Hollywood films on DVD; there's a huge selection of those, too. Movie time occasionally varies but will always be announced that day on a board in the doorway.