Capella Ixtapa, Photo Credit: Capella Hotels and Resorts
Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo’s cuisine is truly delicious. Generally, you should steer toward the seafood dishes — after all, this is a seaside town — and be sure to devour all the chips, salsa and guacamole you can get your fingers on. But here are a few favorite dishes and drinks from the area:
Pozole. In Mexico, this soup dish is traditionally eaten on Thursdays and includes pork and corn, but at La Casa Que Canta, it’s a seafood affair that you can order any day of the week. A waiter will bring you a bowl full of tasty wild shrimp, baby calamari and clams and then pour a hot, spicy broth over the seafood from a pitcher (adding a bit of zest to the food presentation). For some more spice, sprinkle on a few serrano peppers.
Hibiscus water. Many of the hotels serve this refreshing beverage to incoming guests. Cooling on a hot day, the delicious concoction uses hibiscus flowers, water and lime. They are steeped for three hours, strained and then mixed with sugar.
Mezcal. A cousin of tequila, this quintessentially Mexican distilled spirit — meant to be sipped from an attractive shot glass — has a lovely smoky flavor. At La Casa Que Canta, we were instructed to sip the mezcal, and then bite into an orange slice that had been dipped in sea salt — an altogether delicious combination. And the fried grasshoppers served alongside the mezcal turned out to be surprisingly complementary.
Chilaquiles. In this popular Mexican breakfast dish, warm fried tortillas are drenched in either a spicy green or red sauce and topped with chopped onions, cheese and an egg (or two). It’s a hearty and decidedly local way to begin your day.
Fresh seafood. Like we said, this is a coastal town, so local seafood is really the way to go wherever you eat. At Capella Ixtapa, for example, Las Rocas Seafood Market, a cliffside restaurant overlooking the ocean, serves local seafood caught that very day. You should definitely take advantage of the fresh finds and the unparalleled views.
Caldo de cuatete and guintatán. No matter how high the mercury in the thermometer, be sure to try caldo de cuatete and guintatán — blue sea catfish soup and dried fish simmered in coconut milk, respectively — Guerrero specialties that you’ll find in most any ma-and-pa eatery in town.
