Eat, shop, and sleep well in San Miguel de Allende

Mercado de Artesanias
Dining at Rincon de Don Tomas at Jardin Principal
And the margaritas!

Quick Tips:

During Semana Santa, be sure to book ahead for accommodation. If you plan to go for a few days or with friends, think about renting an apartment. Weekly rentals start from around for a one-bedroom apartment. Here are some useful links:

www.realestate-sma.com/RentalDirectory.htm
www.san-miguel-house-rentals.com
www.sanmiguelguide.com/rental-agents.htm

The Easter Street processions are slow, so be prepared to either stop and watch for a while or find detours to get to destinations that require you to walk through the city centre. Also keep in mind that many shops and some restaurants will close over the Easter weekend, especially on the afternoon of Good Friday.

And one last thing – the air is really dry here, and I found that my nose was permanently in need of blowing, so it’s a good idea to take tissues with you when you go out!

Best Way To Get Around:

Walking - although be warned that uneven cobblestone streets make it tricky to walk and window shop at the same time! In addition, the pavements are barely wide enough for one person, often forcing you to walk in the road where cars rarely stop or slow down for pedestrians.

Staying in the centre of San Miguel de Allende may not be the best place for sensitive sleepers. Come sundown, the local community of cats and dogs are all out to exercise their vocal chords. But if you get used to the frequent howling and screeching, as we did, you’ll find that the centre of San Miguel is unquestionably the best place to stay, especially if you plan to stop in town for a short time.

We stayed in a one-bedroom apartment being rented by my brother-in-law for the week on Reloj, right by the Mercado de Artesanias. The apartment was very spacious, clean, and simply but beautifully decorated with dark-wood furniture, bamboo blinds, and the traditional brown tiled floors to keep your feet cool. We arrived on the day my brother-in-law was leaving San Miguel, so we commandeered his place for 3 days, enjoying the city views from the rooftop patio area, which included an ornamental fountain!

This rental accommodation also came with a water-filter system, television, DVD player, and a fully equipped kitchen. There wasn’t really anything lacking in this place. The location meant that we could run downstairs to the market and pick up fresh mangos, guavas, eggs, and bread for breakfast and beer for the evening to sip as we watched the sun go down over the rooftops.

To check out rental properties with RE/MAX, check out www.realestate-sma.com/RentalDirectory.htm.

This busy restaurant is in a prime location on Jardin Principal and has a full wall of open doors, allowing you to look out at the passersby in the square. The nonsmoking and smoking areas seem to merge into one, but if you sit by one of the doors, you’ll probably be able to avoid any second-hand smoke (we just got lucky, as no one lit up near us). Also try and sit downstairs rather in the dark upstairs balcony area.

The high, dark-wood ceiling and the old windows and doors would suggest that this is an older restaurant, although the new wooden bar and contemporary light fixtures don’t quite fit in with the original architecture. Despite this, the food, the drinks, and the location turned us into repeat customers.

Lunch starts at 2pm, and it’s a great time of day to visit. We had to wait awhile for a table (it’s a small place), but once you’re seated, service is usually pretty fast.

Whilst we were there, it was especially busy with Mexicans and foreign tourists in town for Semana Santa, but it’s fun to look past the waiters dashing around you at the outside world, which moves in comparative slow motion.

Every so often, people will wander in selling dolls, beads, and other souvenirs. One old guy stopped to play a serenade at the door on his guitar, so be prepared to contribute to the passing entertainers and vendors.

The menu offers many different options and is also translated into English. They also have an interesting dessert menu and full bar. We can recommend the lentil soup (sopa de lentija) at 37ps and the best chicken enchiladas my husband has tasted (enchiladas verdes rellenes de pollo) at 79ps. Seafood tends to be a bit more expensive, but it is also very tasty (camarones al mojo de ajo at 119ps), and a house salad (ensalada de la casa) is 12ps. This place also does one of the best margaritas in town (45ps). I stuck to lemonade (15ps), but they use freshly squeezed lemons and limes, which makes them a lot better than the average.

Another good food stop is Ole-Ole, tucked away on Loreta #66. The place is full of bullfighting memorabilia, including mounted bullheads – some that looked real and some not. During the Semana Santa, they had a very imposing display of Christ surrounded by dried flowers, oranges, and purple drapes at the entrance of the restaurant.

The rest of the place is very colourful, though, with bright orange and yellow walls and tablecloths. It’s nicer to sit at the back of the restaurant, where long skylights give the feel of an open courtyard when compared to the darker area at the front.

The quality and quantity of the food may have explained why the place was full of Americans when we visited. Four chicken fajitas, four margaritas, and two lemonades ran at about 400ps for four people (although it could have easily fed six).

We also spotted some huge kebabs coming out of the kitchen, and had we gone back, I would have definitely ordered one of their shrimp or chicken kebabs.

The complimentary chips and salsa were especially good, with a very spicy green salsa; a milder, smoky brown salsa; and a serving of sour cream.

With the big lunches we’d been eating, we managed to have only one evening meal out during our stay. It’s a shame then that we picked Tio Lucas at Mesones 103. Part of the decision was forced upon us, as it was Good Friday and many other places were closed.

As you approach, the effusive welcome from the owner, the lively atmosphere, and the promise of "Las Mejores Carnes" all promise a good night out.

On first look, the interior open courtyard, with its overhanging tree dressed with glowing red lamps, appears inviting, but the overall, quality of the food is very average, and again, the place is full of Americans. The only vaguely "Mexican" experiences to be had are the chips, spicy salsa, and excellent guacamole. They also serve an interesting but delicious pina colada.

There‘s plenty to watch as Caesar salads are carefully prepared by waiters at your table in oversized salad bowls (114ps for two people). Initially, it’s quite a display, but after 5 minutes (and the salad is still not complete), the novelty wears off.

I chose the pollo limon (92ps), which came with boiled vegetables and a jacket potato. I was starting to think that I was back in England eating a school dinner, such was the blandness and distinct lack of lemon taste. My husband had the equally unimpressive chicken fajitas (92ps). The red meat and seafood dishes run at around about 100ps, and perhaps they’re worth the extra money, but we didn’t stick around to find out.

Overall, it was just way too cheesy, with everyone around us (including the waiters) speaking English. Obviously, this is ideal for some, but it’s nice to experience something different to your native culture and cuisine when you travel abroad. The final insult was the crazy improv Jazz guitar trio who started up just as we were leaving thankfully.

Walking up Lucas Balderos, you’ll find the artisan market. It’s a narrow, colourful street that ends at the food market along Colegio. Along the way, you can pick up a wealth of souvenirs and can usually bargain if buying multiple items from the same stall or if you’re paying cash for something more expensive. We picked up some picture frames, glassware, and a painting on bark. There are also quite a few jewelry shops, especially around Jardin Principal, if you’re looking for silver pendants and earrings.

The food market is a labyrinth of stalls where fruit, flowers, and other produce are stacked high above your head. There’s also a food court area where you can buy snacks and fruit juices. We stopped at one stall selling freshly squeezed fruit juices - mango, papaya, melon, pina, fresa, manzana, mamey, guayaba, limon, naranja, and zanahoria (15 pesos for a large fruit smoothie), which are made on the spot. In the food market, they also sell a variety of bags with Mexican designs and photographs on the front (70ps). We got one to carry our gifts home in, and the bag itself is a great souvenir.

I’m not sure I could make much sense of the Semana Santa processions. I do know that it brings a lot of people into town, all of whom stand for extraordinary long periods of time outside one of the many churches – La Parroquia, San Francisco, Tercer Orden, Santa Casa de Loreno, San Felipe Neri – to catch a glimpse of the many effigies the processions carry in.

The processions consist mostly of old women and young girls: the girls dress in white and carry an assortment of icons, jugs, and thorn crowns, and the old women dress in black and carry purple drapes, flowers, and blood-covered pillars! I noticed one tiny old lady carrying a cup of water to cool her in the heat and wondered if just a cup would be enough, as the processions seem to last for hours. A drum band at the head of the procession keeps a slow beat, and the overall mood is extremely somber and serious.

As for the churches themselves, I didn’t find them that spectacular inside, as they are far more impressive on the outside, with remarkable facades, turrets, and spires.