April 02, 2014

Seafood Dinner at Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta is a Mexican beachside city that is known for its resorts and beautiful sceneries. There is a restaurant of the same name located in Homestead, and they specialize in serving some of the best seafood in the area. Although you can find other proteins (such as beef or chicken), it would be a mistake to come here and not get some of their marine inspired dishes. The are two locations (one in Homestead and one in the Keys), and they both take pride in serving fresh and affordable fish and crustaceans to their customers. Seafood is not generally a cheap type of food to serve, but the prices here are less than what you will typically find in other restaurants.

The ambiance is quite comfortable and homey, with ochre-colored walls and pictures of the city spread throughout. It is not a necessarily large restaurant, but it is not uncomfortably cramped like other small restaurants tend to feel like. Service can be hit or miss, and the food may take a little longer to come out than you would like, but the food is worth the wait. The thing to get here is the whole fried red snapper. It is perfectly fried to where you are getting crispy skin on the outside but juicy meet on the inside. At other restaurants, I have gotten fried fish that can be overly dry due to too much time in the fryer, but this restaurant has it down to a science. The fish you are served is appropriately sized to the price of the fish so you don’t feel like you are getting less than what you are paying. Pair your fish with some homemade salsa and just a squeeze of fresh lemon for some of the freshest snapper you will find north of the Keys.

Although I have tried some dishes served with beef or chicken, I would stick to the seafood. That is not to say that they were not good, but Puerto Vallarta specializes in seafood, so it comes to no surprise that the best dishes here are seafood dishes. If you insist on trying something with beef, I recommend the chimichanga, which is basically a fried burrito. Although this may sound like overkill, the flash-fry adds a crispness to the tortilla that differentiates it from a regular burrito. One of the unfortunate downsides to burritos is that most of the ingredients are soft and mushy, which can get monotonous after a while. Puerto Vallarta solves this problem by adding a crunchy tortilla through frying.

The seafood here is extremely satisfying and a must when in the area. The ambiance is homey and pleasant, and you will get a different experience of Mexican cuisine than what you will find at other Mexican restaurants. It is a nice hole in the wall to experience, and may provide a nice change of pace from what you will find in the rest of the area.