Don Mexkal is not just a bar, it is so much more. If you have been there before, you need to go again as it has brand new menu! If you have never been, you are in for a real treat.
In past years this was traditionally a local’s hang-out was best known for its mezcal naturally, and late-night music and fun. This is the place where other restaurant and bar employees end up after their shift to relax. Don Mexkal is still all that, but under the current Covid rules, they transformed into an original restaurant and we are happy that they did. The vibe is still very much friendly and local, and they welcome everyone plus the staff all speak English.
Owners Jessica and Javier a few years ago. 🙂
Brother and sister team and owners, Javier and Jessica, are originally from Puebla and have brought with them the cuisine from their area. Puebla is world-famous for its cuisine. Javi and Jess have even imported Chef Ricardo, also from Puebla, to create their new menu. Ask about their daily specials which include cemitas, cochinita pibil and much more.
The cemita is a Puebla specialty made with a very special eggless bread imported from Puebla, Oaxacan cheese and lots of other goodies. It is not to be missed.
Now instead of just being a really fun bar, they are also a really great restaurant. You can still get the best shot of mezcal in town here too. If you aren’t familiar with mezcal, ask for Javi and he can give you a quick introduction.
Meet Christian, one of the masked waiters from Don Mexkal.
Don Mexkal is currently open Friday to Tuesday from noon to midnight. Soon they will be open 7 days a week. It’s a good place to watch NFL Football or just chat with old friends and new friends.
Photo from January 2019. Known for their music, we look forward to a time when we can all dance together again at Don Mexkal.
Don Mexkal is located on Ave. Javier Rojo Gomez just half a block north of the town square on the port side. You can visit them here on their Facebook page.
And of course, they also have a really yummy margarita with your choice of tequila and cold beer on tap.
This one time only we are offering a very special discount. Mention promo code SaveJan2021 and get 10% off weekly stays at Casa de los Viajeros or a 20% discount if you stay 3 weeks or more!
We have had a pretty quiet time here in Puerto Morelos. Normally, we travel and work up north, but not this year. Our vacation rental business suddenly ended in March and has not recovered yet. We have been forced to put Christmas and January on SALE!Contact us today if you would like to pay us a visit.
We’re not alone. All restaurants, shops and services in Puerto Morelos have seen their business fall off a cliff. In addition to Covid, we also had to face a very busy storm season, with three named storms, including two hurricanes passing through. Luckily, there were no injuries and no major damage, but a heck of a lot of cleaning up and repair was required and still is.
Some guests have found our town though and some regulars are returning, only slightly less recognizable behind their masks.
There’s always some news to share with you though. For one thing, a lot of new restaurants have opened recently. (Click any photo for a full screen view)
Itacate is a new venture from super-chef Karla Romo. You may already know Karla as the owner of El Pirata restaurant and her farm-to-table experience, Koox Ich Kool(read more about it on our blog). Itacate is a new restaurant, mostly focused on food that you take away. There is a daily “menu of the day” special, and also a large selection of tortas (sandwiches) and some tempting desserts. Itacate is conveniently located just outside the doors of the highway Chedraui location. Karla has promised that El Pirata will reopen very soon.
On the beach side of town, a new little place has opened called “Fit & Fat”. We certainly like the sound of it! They serve all day, starting with breakfast in the morning, snacks in the afternoon and dinner in the evening. I’ve also seen some delicious looking chocolate cake on their FB posts. They are located on Rojo Gomez, a block north of the square in the space formerly occupied by “On The Vine”. Here’s a map link.
Photo courtesy Lauro’s. Models by “We Need a Beer inc.”
Also beach side is Lauro’s. This place is all about music, and is owned by local sensation and guitar virtuoso, Hector. We stumbled into Lauro’s place at the right time and were actually their first customers! They are momentarily closed, but assure us that they will be open again soon.
The Colonia is bursting with new places. A new taco place has opened behind the Colonia square. It’s called “Taqueria El Rodeo” and they offer many types of tacos including arrachera, sirloin, chicken, sausage and pastor. They are open 2:00 PM until 11:00 PM every day. We will be checking them out soon as we adore arrachera tacos and find them hard to locate in town.
“La Penca” just opened in the little strip mall at the entrance to town across from the baseball diamond. They advertise barbacoa, quesadillas, tlacoyos, and mixiotes in the traditional style of the state of Hidalgo in central Mexico. They are open every day from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, closed Saturday.
Also near the Colonia square and opening soon is a new rotisserie chicken place. It is called “El Pechugón” and it will be opening on the north side of the square, about a block west of the Oxxo. El Pechugón is a fairly large Mexican chain of take-away rotisserie restaurants that started in Guadalajara in the 80’s. Now they have more than 360 locations all over Mexico. They already have locations in Cancun and Playa del Carmen, and soon Puerto Morelos.
Photo by Sazon de mi Corazon
A couple of other new restaurants also opened recently. Across from the new chicken place in the Colonia is “Sazon de mi Corazon“. They serve all kinds of choices for breakfast, lunch or dinner. They are open daily from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, closed Wednesdays.
Photo by Tulipanes Mexican Restaurant
Also, Tulipanes Mexican Restaurant opened recently in the Hotel Puerto Corcho which is on Calle Chaca, between the two main roads in the Colonia, Zetina Gasca and Timon. They are open every day from 8:00 am until 5:00 pm.
A new cafe also opened recently just east of the square in the Colonia called Elefantitos Rosas. We briefly mentioned them in our October Beach Reads Update. They are a cafe that bakes daily, so it always smells divine there. Last time we were there, I had a slice of banana bread that was practically the size of my head. They have a nice garden area to dine in, or you can chill in the air conditioning.
Not a restaurant, but we’re happy to report that after a long absence, the Wednesday morning market is back again. It’s a long-running tradition in Puerto Morelos and features fresh produce as well as locally-sourced food, baked goods and other treats. Well worth dropping by any Wednesday morning from about 8:00 am to 12:00 pm. We recommend getting there early for best selection.
The artisans from the square are back as well. You can find them on the malecon on Friday and Saturday evenings. The square remains under construction. Some progress has been made and they seem to have more workers going these days. No idea when it will be completed, but it will not be this month for sure.
Not only are the artisans back, the Marquesita family is back too! Hooray! (If you do not know them, check out our love letter to them on our Beach Reads blog.)
Opening soon directly below La Sirena, where the grocery store Casa Martin used to be, will be a new convenience store, Circle K. It has not opened yet, but the signage is up.
Congratulations to Tomas and the whole crew at Lighthouse Tours. They are celebrating 4 years of service in Puerto Morelos. A totally local success story, check them out for tours, fishing and anything fun you want to do. Bike rentals too!
Bonita Organic Nail Boutique has just opened in Puerto Morelos. They offer manicures, pedicures and more. They are located on the south side of the church, beside the paint store.
Live music is a little more rare in town these days, but we did manage to catch “The Nobodies” at Tanino’s recently. They will play regularly there on Thursday nights. Check out our new Music in Puerto Morelos page to learn more about our local artists.
El Campanario features sax music every night with Nacho who hails from Cuba Some construction is going on at the Posada Amor site. Not sure what the plan is.
Here’s a very Puerto Morelos story. This is a great fish restaurant in the Colonia that has been around for years. It has a name, you can read it on the sign, but everyone, absolutely everyone we know just calls it “the red chair place” because of the sea of red chairs in front of it. Well now they went and bought black chairs. Black chairs! They look very comfortable and all, but what do we call it now? We noticed they did leave a few stack of red chairs in front, hopefully a nod to their informal name. The real name of the restaurant is Cockteleria “El Sazon Jarocho” and they are open every day from 10:00am to 7:00 pm. Check out Google maps to see the old red chair look.
Does it still count as a coffee when it’s got whipped cream an caramel on it? We hope so! This masterpiece was served up by Lola y Moya south of the square in Puerto Morelos.
If you are planning to vacation in Puerto Morelos this year, please check out our vacation rentals. Normally our season is booked years in advance, but this year, we have prime time available. We have one and two bedroom suites, close to the beach and downtown Puerto Morelos.
We have a very special offer for you! As we all know, 2020 has been a very different year for us all. Our vacation rentals at Casa de los Viajeros are normally booked more than one year in advance. Not this year!
From December 19, 2020, to January 2, 2021, we are offering stays at the same price as our January rates when you book 7 nights or more during the holiday season.
Mexico is one of the most popular travel destinations right now because it is one of the few places in the world that you can travel to with relative ease since Covid. Puerto Morelos is no exception.
When you arrive by plane you will have to fill out a Health Declaration Form, but there is no legal requirement to quarantine.
Quintana Roo has been working very hard to stop the spread of Covid-19. Case numbers are posted at noon daily (local time) here on Twitter. As we write this, Puerto Morelos has had an official total of 30 cases. Most of the cases occurred in the first few months of the pandemic.
Our state has been handling Covid on a stoplight system. Under “red” everything except grocery stores and pharmacies were shut down. We then moved to “orange” which loosened a few things. On September 7th we moved to “yellow” which was very good news for us, because it meant we could go to the beach again and other restrictions were lifted. You can read more about that big day here.
Here’s what you can expect when you visit Puerto Morelos during Covid:
You must wear a mask that covers your nose and mouth when you are within 1.5 meters (5 feet) of other people.
You must wear a mask when you enter and are inside any business.
When entering a business you will have your temperature checked, gel your hands, and wipe your feet on a disinfectant floor mat.
You should practice social distancing as much as possible
You must self isolate and get tested should you come down with any of the symptoms of Covid-19.
You must wear a mask inside public transport (ie Taxis, buses, collectivos)
The number one question we get is… “Do I have to wear a mask when I go to the beach?” You should wear a mask when you are walking to the beach if you are near people. Once you are at the beach, most people take their masks off as long as they stay at least 1.5 meters away from other people, outside of your family/group. Our beach is very large making it very easy to social distance.
Do you have to wear a mask when you are walking around the town? You are supposed to wear your mask anytime you are off your own property, but most people only wear one when other people are nearby. Note: You can be fined for not wearing a mask. I have not heard of anyone in Puerto Morelos being fined.
Vacation rentals and hotels must clean for Covid. We recommend that you check with your accommodations and make sure that they have an enhanced cleaning regimen for the virus.
Restaurants and cafes are allowed to be open up to 60% capacity. You must wear a mask when entering or walking around a restaurant. You must also have a temperature check and walk through a disinfectant mat when entering an eatery. Bars are not allowed to be open, so many of the bars in town have transitioned to restaurants so that they can keep their businesses going. You will be required to order some food with your booze, it is a law that bars are following so that they can open. Many of the bars/restaurants have come up with low-cost menu items so that you can enjoy a drink.
When you visit a restaurant you must wear a mask when entering and leaving. You must also put your mask on when you get up to use the restroom or if you walk around for any other reason. All of the staff in restaurants must and are wearing face masks and some have also added visors on top of that.
When you go shopping, you MUST wear a mask inside ALL grocery, convenience, and produce stores. You will not be allowed inside the store without a mask that covers your nose and mouth, having a temperature check, using hand gel, and walking across a disinfectant mat. You must stand 1.5 meters apart when lining up at the cash registers.
You must also wear a mask when you are taking a taxi, collectivo or bus. Also, there is a maximum of two passengers allowed in a taxi. Buses and collectivos are only allowed to operate at 50% capacity. And only a maximum of four people are allowed in a private vehicle, so if you are a family of more than four, you will want to prepare for this.
Now you know what to expect when you arrive in Puerto Morelos. We think you will find that it is probably not much different from your hometown. Being a small town, with lots of wide-open spaces and fresh air, we do believe that you can have a very nice vacation in Puerto Morelos this winter. We & and the whole town will be very happy to see you!
Make sure you always purchase travel insurance before you leave home. Some airlines are even including Covid insurance with your ticket.
Having said that, we must let you know that we have openings at our usually fully booked vacation rental Casa de los Viajeros. Many of our clients are Canadian (who do have to quarantine upon return) or high risk. Because of this, we have had some very good dates available that were booked one year in advance. We encourage you to contact us about a place to stay this winter. We look forward to hearing from you and even better, seeing you in Puerto Morelos soon.
Good morning from Puerto Morelos! We are waking up to a post-Zeta morning in your favourite town in the Caribbean.
It was a long night. Our electricity quit at about 7:00, in the middle of dinner I might add, and just came back this morning at 8:00. Most of Puerto Morelos and all of Cancun that I heard from kept their electricity and internet all night.
It looks like we weathered the storm in typical Puerto Morelos fashion. There are some tree branches down and some green debris, but overall your town is fine.
I made a quick trip down to the beach and was amazed that everything looked intact. Ironically, after a storm the beach is always at its most beautiful. The sand has certainly been rearranged!
The town pier appears to be intact but definitely suffered some more damage. It was hurt by Delta too.
This photo by the early-rising Marco Gomez of I Wanna Pizza
Now it’s time for coffee and then we grab a broom. We’re relieved to be on the other side of this thing and we have definitely had enough of hurricane season 2020.
Hope to see you in Puerto Morelos soon! Please remember to check out our vacation rentals at our brand new site, www.VacationRentalsPM.com Find all the town info you could want at our constantly-updated www.InPuertoMorelos.com site. Saludos!
Starting to get dark here in Puerto Morelos. There was a break in the rain, so I ran up to the roof and shot a little video before we lost the light.
Not sure if you can see it in the video, but the waves breaking on the reef are an amazing sight. I’ve seen the Caribbean recently looking like a lake, it does not look like that tonight.
Latest intelligence has the storm hitting south of Akumal and north of Tulum. We’ve had some serious wind, some very powerful surge and a bit of sideways rain. We lost power for a couple of hours, not everyone in town did, but we have it back now. Hoping it sticks. Electricity, internet and cold beer make these things a lot easier to deal with.
It’s dark now, wind is coming up still more. Going to be a long night, but your town, and it’s many residents have been through this before…and recently!
Hasta pronto! We will do our best to keep you updated here on this FB page as the storm goes by. See you on the other side!
We just got back from a quick visit to the beach. There is a lot of surge and the waves crashing on the reef are huge. Zeta is now officially a Hurricane.
We just lost power, hopefully just temporarily. Here’s a new video we just uploaded…
We just got our electricity back, hope it stays! R&J
Hola all! We’re going to try to do live updates on this page as the storm approaches. We’ll update here as long as we have electricity and internet. If we can’t reach this page, we’ll update on our Facebook In Puerto Morelos page.
Monday 12:00 pm
The Governor has announced that everything will close at 2:00 pm so that people have time to go home and prepare for the storm. It’s still sunny right now, but the wind has picked up. Some cafes and all the souvenir stores are still open right now and a few tourists are wandering around.
The police and Protection Civil are getting people off the beach and the pier. I assume things will get pretty quiet this afternoon.
InPM’s mobile news cruiser parked in front of the lighthouse
Well, here we go again! We didn’t ask for it, but we got it. Zeta is a tropical storm now, but will be a hurricane when it hits us. It will not be as strong as Delta, but will likely give us more rain. The current path shows it basically slicing through the middle of Cozumel and making landfall south of Playa del Carmen.
10:00 am Monday morning. Water is a bit choppy.
Around town there is a general feeling of disbelief that we’re going through this again. Any storm requires a great deal of preparation including stocking up, boarding up and bringing outside stuff in. It’s exhausting, and we know we will do the reverse procedure after the storm passes. We should all be getting better at this as we’ve had three other opportunities to do this. Some people just got their internet access back in the last couple of days. There are still piles of green debris on the streets waiting to be picked up after Delta. Most people are more worried about losing electricity and internet access than they are about the storm.
Chedraui boarding up again Monday morning
The Governor cut off booze sales yesterday afternoon, taking some by surprise. I saw no big lineups at the grocery store yesterday, everyone is probably still pretty well stocked up after our last storm. Right now, the sun is shining. Earlier this morning we had gusty winds and a bit of rain.
Boats have been pulled from the water.
We will do our best to keep you updated here on this FB page as the storm goes by. See you on the other side! Rob & Joanne www.InPuertoMorelos.com
Here are the cash exchange rates for October 22, 2020 at CI Banco on the highway in Puerto Morelos. The peso has strengthened over the last month.
I post these rates on occasion so that you can compare them with what your bank or the ATM may offer. To see where the rates have been in the last couple of years, search “exchange rates” on our page at InPuertoMorelos.com
Cash Exchange Rates
Buy
Sell
US Dollar $
19.90
21.20
Canadian Dollar $
14.75
16.30
Euro €
23.70
25.35
Pound Sterling £
26.30
28.00
For more information on vacation rentals, please visit our new website www.vacationrentalspm.com and we hope to see you soon.
