Antigua Restaurants and Dining

(Antigua, Central Highlands, Guatemala)

Antigua is best known for its cafes and eateries and is also loaded up with restaurants, both of the local and international variety. There are wide-ranging dining options here, with the top-end hotels being hard to better. The best thing is that dining out in Antigua need not be expensive, and many reliable eateries are just minutes from the Parque Central.

All budgets are catered for in Antigua, as is everyone's taste, since the city is more touristy than elsewhere in the country. The only real problem is hygiene at the bottom end of the dining scale. Making sure that street food is freshly cooked and hot throughout is a must. Ice-cream can also be a problem and is often best avoided.

What to Eat, and Where

Antigua is fairly close-knit and going out to eat is seldom a problem, with the city centre loaded with eateries. You can enjoy all kinds of dining, from traditional Guatemalan food to Mexican cuisine, Asian food and international fare.

Food in most places is inexpensive, with dirt-cheap eating available at the main market. Top-end dining with international cuisine can be found if you are looking to splash out, and upscale restaurants in Antigua are based along roads such as the Calle 6a Poniente and the Calle 4a Oriente.

Typical Guatemala dishes are one of meat, poultry, and the ever-present rice and beans that are a part of every meaningful dish in this part of the world. The city is especially noted for its excellent beef and has loads of steakhouses, plus seafood here is also high on the list - the ocean is only a couple of hours away.

Upmarket restaurants in Antigua include the cosy French-style eatery Bistro and the similar Nokiate, while Nicolás (on the same street) is also right up there, serving local, continental and international fare. There are also many eateries that fuse Guatemalan classics with familiar flavours.