The Best Breakfast And Brunch Spots In Guayaquil Ecuador

As the gateway to the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador‘s coastal city Guayaquil offers a couple of trendy cafés with brunch-style dishes. However, there’s a long tradition here of eating seafood for breakfast, whether at a local market or at a seafood restaurant (marisqueria). Here’s our round-up of the best spots in town.

1. Lúdica Coffee House

Cafe, European

Lúdica Coffee House is a European-style coffee house popular with locals. This cafe specializes in espresso drinks and cold brews. They serve brunch, lots of great desserts, and local handcrafted, microbrew beers.

2. El Café de Tere

Cafe, Gluten-free

El Café de Tere was once a local secret. Nowadays, with several stores in the city, lines of hungry customers wait their turn to buy the specialty of the house, bolón de verde, or a hefty platter of tigrillo, both dishes made from green plantains. Arrive early for the best selection as they stop serving once sold out, usually just before closing.

3. Sailor Coffee

Coffee Shop, Coffee, American, Australian

Sailor Coffee is the perfect name for a port city like Guayaquil. They also make a superb cup of coffee, whether pour over, Aeropress, French press, or espresso. They have a great selection of bagels, sandwiches and salads, some with an international twist. Healthy options are on the menu as well, including an extensive juice bar. With weekend hours that start at 9am, this is one of the coffee shops that also makes a great place for brunch.

5. Marrecife Marisqueria

Restaurant, Seafood

A local favorite with Guayaquileños, the Marrecife Marisqueria offers some of the best seafood dishes around. This restaurant is open early, but don’t look for omelettes, pancakes, or French toast – they serve traditional Ecuadorian fare only.

6. Los Cebiches de Rumiñahui

Restaurant, Seafood

While ceviche may not immediately strike you as breakfast food, that isn’t the case for the thousands of people living on the Ecuadorian coast – head to any local morning market and you’ll see ceviche being sold by the bucketful. If you prefer your ceviche in a restaurant, you could do a lot worse than head to the chain restaurant, Los Cebiches de Rumiñahui, known for serving excellent Ecuadorian-style ceviches of high quality.

7. El Rey del Tigrillo

Restaurant, South African

At El Rey del Tigrillo, you can choose from all kinds of Ecuadorian dishes but tigrillo, a dish made from mashed green plantains, eggs, and cheese, is the specialty of the house. This no-frills restaurant is laid back and very local. Be warned, the coffee is served like most Ecuadorians expect – hot water with a side of Nescafé.

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