Friday, August 26, 2011

SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE

(includes Atotonilco)

BAKERIES, COFFEE, ICE CREAM, JUICE & TEA
La Ventana Café Organico de Chiapas – 11 Diez de Sollano y Davalos; 011-52-415-154-7728; take-out window on side of faded yellow hacienda; breakfast; organic coffee & juices; fresh pastries; can take to “El Jardin,” for example, which is city’s central plaza.
Cafe San Agustin – 21 San Francisco; 011-52-415-154-9102; facebook.com/pages/San-Agustin-Chocolates-y-Churros-San-Miguel-de-Allende-Gto/114592555282251; primarily known for Churros con Chocolate and its owner, Argentine actress Margarita Gralia (hugely popular in Mexico for her performances in telenovelas, as well as stage plays and appearance in Spanish-language Playboy); churro is sweetened dough extruded through fluted tube into hot oil and deep fried, then drenched in sugar and sometimes cinnamon, served hot, traditionally with hot chocolate); serve 3 kinds: Mexican, sweetest, served with cinnamon sugar; French, not quite so sweet; and Spanish, least sweet; opens early and stays open late; try to grab table farthest from door at open window for San Francisco church view; set in 19th Century townhouse with beamed, high ceiling; on weekends, lines often snake out door and halfway down block.



BARS & NIGHTCLUBS
La Azotea – 6 Calle Umaran; 011-52-415-152-8275; azoteasanmiguel.com; rooftop bar above restaurant Pueblo Viejo; laid-back lounge and tapas bar; gay-friendly, less-touristy crowd.
Berlin Bar & Café – 19 Calle Umaran; 011-52-415-154-9432; chill and trendy bar and café; jazz at night.
La Cucaracha – 22 Calle Zacateros; 011-52-415-152-0196; after-hours bar decorated with faded pinup posters and yellowing area maps.
Limrick – 2 Calle Umaran; 011-52-415-154-8642; busy bar in soaring hacienda that takes cue from Irish pubs; cozy booths and darts; soccer on television.
Martinez – 80 Mesones; 011-52-415-152-4343; hotelelmeson.com; martini bar with live music.
La Sirena Gorda (La Manantial) – 78 Calle de la Barranca; 011-52-415-110-0007; facebook.com/pages/La-Sirena-Gorda-Manantial/261618817281912; hole-in-wall cantina; try tamarind margarita.
Z Club – 6 Lupita (on corner of Col. La Estacion); 011-52-415-154-9575; zclubsanmiguel.com; avant garde and sophisticated.



HOTELS
Casa de la Cuesta B&B – 32 Cuesta de San Jose; 011-52-415-154-4324; casadelacuesta.com; highly reviewed.
Casa Luna – 117 Quebrada; 011-52-210-200-8758; casaluna.com; easy walking distance from town center.
Casa del Parque – 2 Calle Santa Elena; 011-52-415-152-7040; former 17th Century fort and silver trade outpost.
Casa de Sierra Nevada – 42 Hospicio; 011-52-415-152-7040; casadesierranevada.com; 6 renovated Spanish colonial mansions dating from 16th Century; 37 large rooms and suites; elaborately landscaped gardens with swimming pools and lounges.
Hacienda Las Trancas – Plaza Tres Estrellas; 011-52-418-182-9500 or 828-712-9910; haciendalastrancas.com; rent house or single suite.
Hotel La Puertecita – 75 Santo Domingo; 011-52-415-152-5011; lapuertecita.com; beautiful, with lovely pool.
Hotel Matilda – 53 Aldama (Centro); 011-52-415-152-1015; hotelmatilda.com; innovative boutique.
L’Ôtel Oasis – 1A Chiquitos; 011-52-415-154-9850; l-otelgroup.com; 4-room hotel in 18th Century building; eastern themes (Moorish); Nomad Suite is best, with terrace and French doors that open on waterfall that flows over stone wall.
Portal 8 – 8 Portal Allende; 011-52-415-152-8889; portalocho.com; very modern but affordable; smells like cleaning solvent.
Rosewood San Miguel de Allende – 11 Nemesio Diez (Centro); 011-52-415-152-9700; rosewoodsanmiguel.com/en.
Susurro – 78 Recreo; 011-52-310-943-7163; susurro.com.mx; easy walking distance from town center.



HOUSES
Elegant Houses – casaselegantes.com (Casa Carino and/or Treehouse [4 Canadita de los Aguacates, #10]); 011-52-415-152-2110; vacation-homes-san-miguel.com.



RESTAURANTS
La Alborada – 11 Sollano; 011-52-415-154-9982; specializes in pozole and meat tostadas; affordable.
Antigua Trattoria Romano – 93 Hernandez Macias; 011-52-415-152-3790; Italian cuisine, with open wood-burning pizza oven; eating areas inside, on top-roof terrace, or outdoor patio.
Berlin Bar & Café – 19 Calle Umaran; 011-52-415-154-9432; chill and trendy bar and café; jazz at night.
Bugambilia – 42 Hidalgo; 011-52-415-152-0127; local favorite of many years; family run; very pretty.
Café Media Naranja – 83 Calle Hidalgo; 011-52-415-154-8629; housed in tiny shoebox café; organic coffees and quick lunches (vegetarian burritos and curried lentil soup).
Cafe de la Parroquia – 11 Jesus; 011-52-415-152-3161; breakfast place.
La Capilla – 10 Cuna de Allende; 011-52-415-152-0698; lacapilla.com.mx; beautiful, expensive, chapel converted into traditional Mexican restaurant.
El Correo – 23 Correo; 011-52-415-152-4951; 1st-rate, cheap enchiladas.
El Gallo – 97 Hernandez Macias; 011-52-415-150-0067; modern Mexican.
Moxi – 53 Aldama (Centro, at Hotel Matilda); 011-52-415-152-1015; moxi.com.mx; by Mexico City’s Pujol chef.
La Parada – 94 Recreo; 011-52-415-152-0473; laparadasma.com; Peruvian; try Leche de Tigre Ceviche; snug dining room with fireplace; also good are pork ribs and gnocchi with pecans and shrimp.
Restaurant – 16 Sollano (Centro); 011-52-415-154-7862; therestaurantsanmiguel.com; elegant, candlelit restaurant that serves international comfort food using local organic ingredients.
Restaurant DaAndrea – Carretera a Dr. Mora km 2.5; 011-52-415-120-3481; Italian (old church, beautiful, out of mainstream); favored by out-of-town Mexicans; considered San Miguel’s most authentic restaurant.
El Rincon de Don Tomas – 2 Portal de Guadalupe; 011-52-415-152-3780; sit under arched portico and have breakfast, like huevos otomi (scrambled eggs in bean stew) or huevos divorciado (2 fried eggs, separated by different sauces).
Cafe San Agustin – 21 San Francisco; 011-52-415-154-9102; facebook.com/pages/San-Agustin-Chocolates-y-Churros-San-Miguel-de-Allende-Gto/114592555282251; primarily known for Churros con Chocolate and its owner, Argentine actress Margarita Gralia (hugely popular in Mexico for her performances in telenovelas, as well as stage plays and appearance in Spanish-language Playboy); opens early and stays open late; try to grab table farthest from door at open window for San Francisco church view; empanadas, with various fillings, are delicious, with nice flaky crust; enchiladas suizas and tortilla soup are among San Miguel’s best; excellent tapas; set in 19th Century townhouse with beamed, high ceiling; on weekends, lines often snake out door and halfway down block.
De Temporada – 8 Camino a San Miguel Viejo; 011-52-415-151-0673; de-temporada.com; buzzy-new, farm-to-table restaurant; 10 minutes from centro; on actual farm.
Tio Lucas Restaurant & Bar – 103 Calle Mesones; 011-52-415-152-4996; dinner and live jazz; steakhouse; eat on patio.
La Ventana Café Organico de Chiapas – 11 Diez de Sollano y Davalos; 011-52-415-154-7728; take-out window on side of faded yellow hacienda; breakfast; organic coffee and fresh pastries; can take to “El Jardin,” for example, which is city’s central plaza.



SERVICES
Information – infosma.com.
Sazón – 42 Hospicio (at Hotel Casa de Sierra Nevada); 011-52-415-154-7671; sazon.com; cooking school.



SHOPPING
Altelier – 79 Relox; 011-52-415-154-7265; laurareyesfashionsanmiguel.blogspot.com; Laura Reyes boutique (tapestry coats and burlap vests).
Camino Silvestre – 43 Correo; 011-52-415-122-3157; caminosilvestre.com; home furnishings store; bird-feeders.
Casa Midy – 3 Calle Pila Seca; 011-52-415-152-0403; casamidy.com; designer furniture.
Fabrica La Aurora – Calzada de la Aurora (Colonia Aurora); 011-52-415-152-1012; fabricalaaurora.com; former turn of century textile mill that is now art and design center.
Galeria Manuel Chacon – Calzada de la Aurora (Colonia Aurora); 011-52-415-154-9119 or 152-7585; contemporary arts.
Juana Carta Textile Art – 5A Recreo; 011-52-415-152-6417; rebozos, shawls, and other textiles from 35 Oaxacan villages.
Mercado de Artesanias – between Calles Colegio and Loreto; vibrant mash of artists’ stalls.
Mitu Atelier – 3 Calle Pila Seca; 011-52-415-154-5203; mituatelier.com; interior design; custom furniture & fabrics; home essentials; antiques.
Mixta – 3 Calle Pila Seca (Centro); 011-52-415-152-7343; mixtasanmiguel.com; fine silver bangles and earrings, homemade cards, and aprons.
Namuh – Camino a Alcocer, km 2.2; 011-52-415-154-8080; namuhmex.com; home furnishings.
Galeria Quinta Irma – 21 Calle Conde de la Canal; 011-52-415-154-5694 or 011-52-415-152-2412; facebook.com/pages/Quinta-Irma-Pottery/161304447229738; Oaxacan ceramics.
Recreo San Miguel – 26 Recreo; 011-52-415-154-4820; recreosanmiguel.com; capes, ponchos, and serapes, made of cashmere, silk, etc.
UMA by Sami – 11 Cuna de Allende; 011-52-415-152-0888; imaginative jewelry designs.



SIGHTS & SITES
Centro Cultural Ignacio Ramirez “El Nigromante” – 75 Hernandez Macias; 011-52-415-152-0289; elnigromante.bellasartes.gob.mx; among city’s most beautiful buildings; 250 years-old; art gallery and community center; make sure to see David Siqueiros frescoes.
El Charco del Ingenio Botanical Garden – El Charco del Ingenio; 011-52-415-154-8838; elcharco.org.mx; 167 acre ecological reserve spanning cactus-lined canyons and spring-fed pools.
Escondido Place – Carretera San Miguel Allende Dolores Hidalgo, km 10 (Atotonilco); 011-52-415-185-2022; escondidoplace.com/Escondido_Place/home.html; hot springs; make sure to visit interior buildings, techados (bathing houses).
Fabrica La Aurora – Calzada de la Aurora (Colonia Aurora); 011-52-415-152-1012; fabricalaaurora.com; former turn of century textile mill that is now art and design center.
La Gruta – 6 miles outside San Miguel; slightly shabby waterpark and picnic spot with 2 small, mineral hot springs; grotto bordered by stone retaining wall and lovely plant life.
Mask Museum – 32 Cuesta de San Jose; 011-52-415-154-4324; casadelacuesta.com; by appointment only; folk mask museum; over 900 masks from all over Mexico in private residence; connected to art gallery that sells same.
La Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel – El Jardin; pink, Gothic parish church; among finest examples colonial architecture in Mexico; originally built in 1683; given facelift in 1880; crypt under main altar contains Felipe Gonzalez’ and General Anastasio Bustamante’s remains, both of whom are Mexican War of Independence heroes; sculpture of Ignacio Allende, city’s namesake.
Sanctuario de Atotonilco – Atotonilco (9 miles from San Miguel); 011-52-415-185-2050 or 011-52-415-185-2014; santuariodeatotonilco.org; over-top, ornate, baroque church; UNESCO World Heritage site; rope flails sold outside.

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