This place is pretty lively, live music and it’s hopping.

And ok value for this part of town. 195 pesos for a pretty large drink.

This Is the regular sized margarita.

Mango with a spicy drizzle.

It tasted great, but a little hard to drink as it was very viscous. The mango flavour really was vibrant and that drizzle added a great little kick.

Merilynn had the strawberry basil.

Her’s was even better. That strawberry/basil combination is a perfect combination.

A pretty good stop in the Zona Romantica when you’re looking to get a little tipsy.

8/10

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Live music, lots of people and great smells waft from within.

And it’s close to our hotel. I swear we can smell the place from our room every night, as well as hear the live music.

We really didn’t feel like venturing far tonight so the location was ideal. A short walk down the hill is perfect.

From the moment we walked in the ambiance was fantastic.

The waiters were dancing.

The musicians were rocking it.

The whole place was alive.

There’s a waiter dancing with a bonfire in his hands. Turns out this is how they serve the fajitas.

This is how they serve the guacamole.

I’m not much of a guacamole fan. I’ve never enjoyed the stuff that comes out of a jar from the supermarket.

But this was fantastic. Likely the best I’ve ever had.

I love how much lime he put in. And fresh Mexican avocados are the best in the world.

Along with the guacamole we got fresh made salsa.

It tasted very fresh. I usually prefer Pico de Gallo this was so tasty. And no vampires here. Lots of garlic!

And of course fresh made tortilla chips, a must in any Mexican restaurant. If they don’t serve you fresh made tortilla chips just head right on out the door.

As usual I ordered way too much food for us. I just love to try things.

Here we have Cilantro fried cheese.

If you’ve had Saganaki at a Greek restaurant you’ll be cool with this. Gooey, salty, melted cheese in a tomato/cilantro sauce. Though it could have used more cilantro. I tasted no soap.!

And my first ceviche this week. Why did I wait this long?

I’ll skip the octopus ceviche and stick with the fish.

It was very good. I do prefer a ceviche  that’s a little more citrusy, but no complaints. Still very tasty. A very good balance of tomato, fish, onion and avocado.

Drinks were a margarita,

And a Mojito,

I guess the show they do here sometimes of pouring your tequila into the drink at your table is supposed to impress you by how much they appear to be adding.

I find this makes a very unbalanced drink though. The tequila floats on the top of the drink, so unless you mix it in really well yourself you end with with iced lime juice to start and then watered down tequila to finish.

Best to mix the drink properly to start with.

The mojito was very good. It’s essential to get a nice balance of mint and sweetness to balance the rum, often not achieved. This one was perfect.

And tonight’s bill came to 1200 pesos. That’s $84 CAD.

For the amount, and quality of food and drink we got tonight I think that’s pretty reasonable.

We have eaten cheaper this week for sure. but it wasn’t quite this good.

8/10

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If the lineups at any given time are any evidence then this very well may be the case.

Not that consensus is always proof to go by. We did, after all, at one point in our history think lobotomies were a good idea.

Since we arrived in PV we have walked by a few times and there doesn’t seem to be any point during the day that there isn’t a lineup.

There’s about 30 people in this line right now.

Fortunately this was the line as we left. We were very, very fortunate to get in with only a 5 minute wait. From my understanding this is normally much longer.

Did I really need to eat again so soon after La Campanario?  No. But such a short wait time was hard to resist. So lets’s go!

They walked us in to a very cramped seating area right by a ripping hot cooking station.

How would you like this job in 28° weather? Or warmer? It is only March after all.

The picture doesn’t do it justice but there sparks flying from the rotisserie at times. It nearly burned a hole in my good shirt on the way out.

Interesting menu. Reminds me of going to all you can eat sushi.

We went with a combo, beef and chorizo.

They served us 3 salsas to spice things up.

The green was quite mild, the red a little spicy (to my palate) and the tomato a rich, tasteful addition.

And of course a Pacifico.

No wonder there is a line up here all the time. These were fantastic.

The chorizo with the beef made a wonderful combination.

Adding the different salsas only made it better.

I skipped the habaneros. We were warned they were very spicy. I decided I didn’t need to kill myself.

And it’s very good value. 240 pesos for 4 tacos, an agua and a cerveza.

Can you really beat that?

That’s way more food than we need. And it was great.

So, if there isnt much of a line up, or there is a big lineup, Pancho’s is definitely worth a visit next time you’re in PV.

9/10

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Since we were with a local (our tour guide through the gardens) we asked where a good spot for lunch that the locals would go.

He recommended Fonda la Marina, on the second level of the Mercado Municipal Rio Cuale, just across the bridge from the Zona Romantica

If you’re a tourist you would likely never even think to go upstairs and find this local gem.

Merilynn went simple, an omelette and refried beans.

Well cooked eggs with a cheesy filling. and while those refried beans don’t look appetizing, they were very tasty.

I had Chili Relleno.

its not gourmet at all, but we aren’t here for that.

Really flavourful, subtly sweet and smokey from the poblano. Incredibly hearty and filling.

This is real Mexican food. and real Mexican prices.

All told, with two drinks, was around S14 Canadian.

9/10

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Are you just walking into a tourist trap with crummy food and expensive prices?

We already had a less than great experience at the Blue Shrimp our first night here. After a long day of travel we were thirsty and hungry and wanted to enjoy our first Mexican sunset. Regardless of quality or cost.

Maybe you can actually get a decent food experience at an establishment not geared toward the locals?

Joe Jack’s does get a 4.6 out of 5 on Google, with over 2600 reviews. To me that is pretty positive.

However The Blue Shrimp also gets a 4.3, with roughly the same amount of reviews.

So it is with some trepidation we decide we will give Joe Jack’s a try.

You will find Joe Jack’s right in the heart of the Zona Romantica.

Right next to Pancho’s if you want something more authentic.

And right across the street from the Margarita Grill if you just need a really big drink. I suspect you will find us there later.

Speaking of a drink, it seems the cerveza scene is improving here in Mexico. Thankfully.

I mean Corona and Pacifico are fine enough, but I would enjoy a good micro brew over a plain Mexican beer any day.

The Latina Agave ale is a great choice, especially if you’re avoiding gluten.

It’s a full bodied amber ale with a slight sweetness and subtle fruit flavours. Very refreshing.

Unfortunately their version of a mojito isn’t very good.

For me, a good mojito has to find that perfect balance of mint and sweet. Not the easiest thing to do.

To achieve that I always infuse my simple syrup with mint, eliminating the guess work when mixing the cocktail.

The bartender tonight did not achieve that balance, not being sweet enough.

Merilynn decided on the beet salad for food, a meal she seems to gravitate to.

The flavours were quite good. We love goat cheese which adds a nice creaminess,and the toasted pecans gave it a good textural component.

My complaint here would be the arugula. Or more specifically the dressing. The arugula was drowning in it. The dressing itself had nice flavour, it just needs way less of it.

I decided to splurge and got the whole grilled red snapper.

Deboned tableside by our server, expertly I might add, this was one of the best entrees I’ve eaten in a while.

It was well cooked, and the garlic, chili lime butter added a nice bite to the fish.

The rice and beans were good, though I would have preferred refried.

Make no mistake about it, Joe Jack’s Fish Shack is not a local eatery. It is meant for tourists and it has tourist prices.

If you are looking for something truly authentic you should keep looking.

7/10

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Normally I avoid restaurants like this like the plague.

Always overpriced and often not very good.

But it’s our first night.

After crap weather in Vancouver for the last three months.

We want to sit on the beach, have a drink, and enjoy the sunset.

So we did. Reputation of tourist traps like this be damned.

And it lived up to expectations!

Ok yes the magarita was pretty good.

They do make a show of pouring the tequila into the drink table-side. From a Patron bottle no less.

I highly doubt it was Patron.

At any rate the drink was fine.

We just had an appetizer, the crab tacos.

They completely met my expectations for a beachfront restaurant. The flavour was ok, real crab I’m pretty sure. But very greasy, and I could feel it in my gut almost immediately.

And $60 US. For two drinks and an appetizer.

If it wasn’t for the view…

Tomorrow we will be looking for some street tacos.

6/10

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