The Best Restaurants in San José del Cabo, Mexico

The best beachside fine dining? It’s hard to beat Mezcal in the Montage hotel, 15-minutes by car to the west of town, whose glass-fronted modernist raw stone and concrete pavilions sit sentinel over stepped pools that drop to a half-moon cove. Chef Odin Rocha (formerly of the Rosewood, San Miguel) focuses on traditional Mexican market ingredients – Baja seafood, grilled meats, tepache fermented-pineapple, chilate chocolate – showcased through individual dishes and best experienced on the Mercados de Mexico tasting menu.

Housed in the Cape Thompson hotel, the San José branch of Enrique Olvera’s gourmet Mexican food empire sits on a bluff with gorgeous bay and sunset-over-the-ocean views. Olvera, who cooks at multi-award-winning Pujol restaurant in Mexico City, is one of Latin America’s most-celebrated restaurateurs. Manta’s chef de cuisine Abisai Sanchez – cooking under Olvera’s direction – focuses on fresh seafood cooked simply and elegantly, paired with the finest ingredients. Signatures include soft shell crab tacos with chipotle mayo and North Mexican herbs.

With its raw wood awning, lilac walls (daubed with artsy Day of the Dead skulls) and musicians’ mezzanine, this San José hipster hangout is always buzzing with young expat Americans and Mexicans. The food formula is simple; great tacos, great mezcals, great prices. And the bar snacks are terrific too. Try the Taste of La Lupita – with Mayan Sikil Pak (pumpkin seed and tomato dip), field grasshoppers, guacamole and mini tortillas.

Sitting in the shadow of the Sierra de la Laguna mountains, this shady garden kitchen sits on a working organic farm. The seasonal menu constantly changes but all produce is reared on the Flora’s ranch or grown in the gardens. The wood-fired pizzas are a firm favorite – especially the margherita with homemade mozzarella. The Farm Bar serves house variations on margaritas and the shop sells Flora’s range of pickles and chutneys.

Tinkling with fountains and set in a mock-colonial house with an airy courtyard terrace, Mi Cocina in the Casa Natalia boutique hotel in central San José, feels like a family-run restaurant reimagined by a design-conscious chef from Laguna Beach. Food is classic, simple Mexican exquisitely prepared and presented – think shrimp tacos made from tortillas pressed right in front of you, organic chicken with black and green mole and coriander rice. The mezcal-margaritas are divine, too.

Brazilian Picanha steaks, Venezuelan arepa and empanada pastries, Argentinian chorizo buns; tacos, guacamole; Choriarte offers all manner of grilled and fried Latin American dishes, served al fresco on an airy terrace in downtown San José. There’s live music at weekends and great pan-Latin American cocktails, including an excellent Gin Mate, Maracuya (made with Mezcal, passion fruit juice and basil) and big pitchers of sangria.

This lively family-run cantina sits in the heart of the downtown art district and is popular for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Menus and portions are huge. For all-day-fuel, breakfast on the Fried Eggs Motuleños served with corn tortillas, grilled cheese, tomato mole sauce, peas and plantains. There are light lunch salads for the heat of the day as well as grilled meats and Mexican classics such as enchiladas and tacos. At night there’s a live music and dance show in the adjacent street.

Sitting over one of the least-spoiled beaches on Baja’s east cape, the Four Seasons Costa Palmas flagship resort restaurant is as effortlessly plush as you’d expect from the brand. The menu’s strength is the catch of the day – plucked from the Sea of Cortez and grilled or pan-fried Mediterranean-style with either olive oil or lemon juice. Dishes are served in a curvilinear, glass-walled pavilion that looks as if it was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, with 180-degree views of the beach and ocean.

A long-established local favorite, Habanero’s has been serving Mexican and international grilled and barbecued food for a generation. The restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner – served in the lush, airy courtyard at the Encanto Inn hotel. Popular choices include the tuna tartare (served with poke sauce and wakame seaweed), the surf and turf (mixed grill with lobster tail, ajillo shrimp and fillet steak) and panko-crusted Chihuahua cheese and prickly pear-cactus salad.

Sitting under a palm-roofed palapa right over Acapulquito Beach, the Seven Seas is so close to the surf you can practically taste the spray. Fresh fish of the day is appropriately the focus, grilled to perfection by chef Alejandro Rodrigues Ponce. Red Snapper, grouper and lobster are always reliable, especially paired with wines or craft beers from the menu. With Pacific Ocean views this good, this is a great spot for a pre-dinner aperitif. Try the house mojito, made with seasonal berries, rum, lime and mint.