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There are several very good restaurants in the historic city center of Santa Marta to choose from. On each of my trips there, I’ve had a hard time deciding where to eat, whether to stick with favorites or to try new places. There are many choices such as traditional Colombian food, seafood, burgers, Mediterranean, pizza, and pasta.
La Canoa
One of my favorite places to eat is at a French bakery called La Canoa. It’s set inside a house with interesting photography on the walls.
For starters, we like bruschetta del mar (bruschetta with shrimp and guacamole). I usually get the panini cyrano (chicken, cheese, tomato, and avocado) and a mixed mango and maracuyá juice. The ceviche is also decent. Too bad I never have room to try some of the fresh pastries!
Ouzo
A Greek and Mediterranean restaurant called Ouzo is located at Parque de Los Novios. The interior is decorated with whitewashed walls and flower boxes giving a visitor the feeling of being on a Greek island. There’s also outdoor seating.
The service is good and the food is delicious, but many of the menu items marked as authentic Greek specialties are not authentic at all. However, the menu is full of creative dishes that are worth a try. Also, if you’re looking to drink ouzo, it’s surprisingly not on the menu.
We had the midia saganaki (mussels) as a starter and the keftedes (meatballs – the closest authentic Greek dish on the menu) as a main course. Marisol had the gyros, which was good but definitely a different style than what I’m used to.
On another visit, I tried the grilled octopus starter and the Mediterranean salmon as my main dish. Both were excellent.
Donde Chucho
If you’re looking for a good fish restaurant, you can head to a place on Parque de Los Novios called Donde Chucho, which also has a branch in El Rodadero. We sat outside on the park and really enjoyed every minute of our meal. If you try one seafood restaurant in Santa Marta, make sure it’s Donde Chucho.
On my first visit, I started off with French onion soup and had salmón al ajillo (garlic salmon) as my main course. Anna had the róbalo (whitefish). Both of our meals were phenomenal.
On my second trip with Marisol, I had the lobster and she had the cazuela de mariscos. The lobster was a bit disappointing, so I would stick to the fish.
Lulo
Lulo is a restaurant that specializes in a unique twist on the Colombian staple, the arepa. Marisol and I started with a ceviche dish and each had an arepa. I had lula marina arepa (ceviche, mango, and avocado) while she had the lulita arepa (chicken filet and tropical salad). We each had a smoothie. The food was excellent and reasonably priced. It’s well worth a visit. In addition to arepas, there are several paninis and wraps on the menu.
Gnam Gelateria
To satisfy your sweet tooth, head to Gnam Gelateria, which is located next door to Lulo. They have a good variety of flavors including many tropical Colombian fruits.
Mi Oficina
For an early and cheap breakfast, we ate at Mi Oficina, just a block from the park. Scrambled eggs and orange juice were very reasonably priced. They also have great milkshakes. I tried the maracuyá (passionfruit) while my cousin Anna had the Oreo milkshake. They make decent mojitos as well.
Pame Na Fame (Permanently Closed)
This small Greek restaurant is located just a block from Parque de Los Novios, a bit away from where the tourists linger, but it’s worth seeking out.
They serve very authentic favorites such as souvlaki, gyros, moussaka, Greek salad, and baklava. I had an amazing platter featuring three different souvlaki skewers, fries, salad, and tzatziki. The next day I came back for a Greek salad.
The restaurant is owned by Petros, one of the partners from Grecia Café y Suvlaki in Cartagena, which is now permanently closed, but still has the same delicious flavor. Petros is from Thessaloniki.
Absurdo (Permanently Closed)
I took a tour group to Absurdo, which is located a half block from Parque de Los Novios. They serve grilled meats and fish, salads, and a couple sandwiches.
I had a pulled pork sandwich while my guests had salmon and chicken. The food was delicious and not heavy at all.
Hemingway (Permanently Closed)
Hemingway is a restaurant with a rooftop terrace overlooking Parque de Los Novios. While the setting and service were nice, the food was disappointing.
We started with the tomates caprese (tomato, mozzarella, and basil) and ceviche pescado (Fish Ceviche). Those were good, but it was downhill from there.
My main meal, camarones a la diabla (spicy shrimp served over a bed of mashed potatoes) came out cold and lacked the flavor I had expected. Anna had a pasta with pesto sauce. The pasta was a little overcooked. Maybe they were having an off night, but at the very least the terrace is a great place to enjoy some drinks.