I’ve been a vegetarian for ages and almost always manage to eat well when we go out.  Food options are getting better and better here in Mazatlan.  Here’s a bit of a random rundown of where I eat and what I order, starting out here in Centro.

My favorite restaurants, hands down, are the Water’s Edge Bistro and Molika.  Both are in Centro and serve delicious food prepared by thoughtful chefs.  At Water’s Edge (they are now open in their new location next to Casa Etnika)  I have my pick of two pastas (with hand made pasta), goyzas, and several salads.  Molika has a number of excellent dishes with roasted veggies and lovely soups.  You might wonder why El Presidio isn’t among my favorite restaurants. It’s because they have nothing on their menu that’s vegetarian, one day I may go talk to them about preparing something for me so we can have a meal together there.  Paul has eaten there with friends and loved it.

We also like the delicious high end tacos at Delirium (they have several vegetarian ones) and also love to stop in there for dessert.  They serve vanilla ice cream with strawberries and black pepper that is weird and wonderful. I also adore their sweet potato chips!  Our favorite pizza is at La Mona, and we enjoy our almost weekly pizza while watching 80’s music videos.

In the Plazuela Machado we like La Bohemia’s pizza and salads and El Bife’s veggie brochetta.  Pedro and Lola has several menu options and always has music on the weekend.  We also like Casa Canobbio under the portales at the West side of the Machado. Last week I had a delicious and spicy Penne Arrabiata there, and the service was excellent too.  Next to the Hotel Machado you can have a good meal at Il Mosto.  We always eat their roasted zucchini appetizer and I love their angel hair pasta.

Just down Calle Constitución a block and a half you’ll find El Aljibe de San Pedro.  It’s a (to say the least) quirky restaurant inside an old water cistern.  We’ve gone several times and they always make me something good, even though there isn’t anything vegetarian on their menu.  For the romantic atmosphere and tableside salsa we like Topolo, too.

Across from the entrance to the Angela Peralta Theater we also like the cenaduria El Tunel.  I usually have potato tacos there but just ask, and they’ll make you something good.  A little further along you’ll see the Hotel Jonathon and their rooftop bar is a nice place to eat.  The vibe there is quiet and hip and I had an excellent  pasta there  a couple of weeks ago.

Moving down to Olas Altas… I like to eat a meal of guacamole and totopos (chips) at Puerto Viejo while watching the sunset.  (Hey, that’s a perfectly good dinner!) They also have quesadillas on the menu or a salad if you like. Angelina’s Latin Kitchen has several menu items but the last couple times I’ve been there they’ve made me a roasted veggie baguette that was delicious.  Just ask!  The Shrimp Bucket has some nice salads and their Penne with Vodka Sauce is really good.  Next door to them the Fish Market (in the old Olas Altas Steakhouse space) has nothing on the menu I can eat, sadly.

Near the Cathedral downtown we like to eat breakfast (until 1 pm) at Panama.  This Sinaloa chain always prepares good food but lunch or dinner is not a good fit for me.  At breakfast though I love the Omelet Santa Anita, stuffed with beans, peppers & corn and served with potatoes and avocado.  I always ask them to hold the cheese and that little economy means I can splurge on either a limonjito (mint & lime) or a fresandía (strawberry and watermelon) drink.

If you like baked potatoes, there’s nothing better than one of Raymundo’s papas locas.  Most people have it with carne asada on top but there are enough toppings to satisfy me to have one plain.  This cart on Zaragoza opens around 7 pm and does a booming business.

Heading North… on the beach are lots of palapa restaurants, which for me mean nothing to eat or maybe guacamole.  That’s ok once in a while.  We used to go to Lupes Locos across from the Hotel De Cima pretty often for their BLT sandwiches (hold the B) but since they put up that awful blue tarp it has taken all the fun out of it so we haven’t been there in ages.

In the Golden Zone now… I love Zab Thai.  It’s hard for me to order anything other than Pad Thai with fried tofu because I love theirs so much.  And the hotter the better! Rico’s coffee shop makes a good breakfast waffle. Villa Italia by the entrance to El Cid has nice pizzas and pastas. Diego’s on the beach has such great ambiance – and a very nice salad and onion rings for me.  Baja Style has a nice burrito and lots of veggie options.

Continuing North… we seldom eat in the marina area, so keep on driving and head to Surf’s Up Cafe on the beach at Cerritos.  We always have a fabulous meal there and it is so wonderful to eat with your feet in the sand!

I’m sure I left out some goodies, but that just means I will have to do another post on the topic one day.  In writing this I did notice that I eat pasta a lot when we go out, but that’s fine because I do like good pasta!

The pictures with this post are random ones over the last several weeks. I hope our friends at The Water’s Edge don’t feel bad about the picture I included (below) from my meal last night!  I have been trying to remember to take a picture when I eat there but I am always so eager to dig in that I forget.  Sorry guys, next time. There’s also one picture included from a meal we had at Tabarka in Ajijic.  A seafood restaurant, I asked if they could prepare something vegetarian for me and I got my socks blown off.  It’s always worth while to ask!