Afternoons / evenings (what should I do with my time?)

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I spend a goodly amount of my down time on Cozumel lying in a hammock with a beer just staring at the water. It's better than TV.
Just what I'm looking for at some point. Any recommended spots?

I suggest cabbing around or renting a bicycle. I occasionally rent a scooter but will never "recommend" that to anyone - pretty dangerous. You are very close to the downtown area and tons of nice local restaurants. I've attached my restaurant list but there are sooooo many good places. Go to the small hole-in-the-wall places were the locals hang out for the best (& cheapest) food. A couple higher end places not to miss are Kinta, Kondessa, Guido's & Sal del Mar. Nice beach bars are Playa Corona, Sky Reef & maybe even Money Bar. They are just a few miles south of town. An east side visit is a must, Coconuts is a must stop and might as well stop at a couple of the other east side bars. You could cab this, rent a car for the day or join one of the east side (or island) bar hop tours. There is a an OK Tequila tour on the highway to the east side also. Also use Pesos for cab & food, much cheaper.
Great stuff here. Thank you so much.

Thanks everyone! I'm liking all the options. And looking forward to some good local grub.
 
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Our Non diving time is spent eating. Cuatro Tacos was our new food find last week. 4 tacos for $7 and $2.50 beer. Your choice of about 8 taco variations plus a taco of the day. So good we ate there our last 2 days in a row. Steak, steak and sausage, green chille, and rib were probably my favorites. If your a guacamole fan, their Carribbean Guac is an entirely new twist on an old standard. We had it both days as well. CT is next to lobster shack behind the Thirsty Cougar. Same owners at Lobster shack, kondeza, and kinta, I believe. If so, that explains why it is so good.

Across the street is Cofee De Cozumel. Best coffee shop I've ever been in. Perfect coffee selections. Amazing desserts, don't miss the banana cake.

Guidos is a favorite for a white table cloth restaurant. The scallops are always good, the blackened Snapper and grouper were very good too. La Chef is a must stop for the lobster bacon sandwich. Unless you have a shell fish allergy, don't misss it. Try the lobster rolls at The Lobster Shack and make your own decision as to the never ending debate as to which is better.

It sounds like you will be close to Burritos Gordito and King Burrito, great quick lunch food and cheap. Also, Zermatt is our favorite bakery for breakfast pastries, cookies, and snacks. It's next to Both burrito places.

La Choza has lots of fans...but I'm not crazy about it. Good food no doubt....but the lobster at La Perlita is cheap,and our hands down our favorite place to eat. The coconut crusted lion fish or lionfish ceviche is amazing...but...the population check on the lionfish has made it difficult to get in volume on a regular basis. We ordered LF at 2 restaurants last week and both were out.

For drinks, we usually hit The Thirsty Cougar. Christian is one of the best bartenders and Neko is an amazing waiter. Once the cruise ships leave, it's a great place. On the weekends, the House band Deja Vu plays and they are great. Kind of a cross between the Spanish guitar of the Eagles doing modern American rock. You just have to hear it to understand. Be warned...listening to Deja Vu will lead to a longer night than you planned. Between the music, the sea across the street, and great Mojitos....it's a great way to kill a weekend evening.

If you go East from the SE corner of the square, you will come across Michoacán. They make their own Jorchata like drinks and the pina colada is really good for non-alcoholic refreshment. My personal favorite is the vanilla ice cream bars. (Non chocolate dipped)

We have always wanted to go to the east side, the tequila tour, pearl farm, I believe there is a chocolate company as well, not to mention look at real estate....but it seems diving and eating is all we manage to accomplish. Still not a bad way to spend your days.

Other than the late night $1 hotdogs next to Casa Mexicana, ( we usually hi a couple every trip and have had no issues...they're pretty good and convenient for us when we stay there) that's pretty much all our high points. A brief search on this site, or checking out Christi's list at Blue XTSea divings site will lead to some other options. I'll save you the google search:

Christi’s Cozumel Restaurants List - Blue Xt Sea Diving

Good luck, safe travels.
Jay
 
Great stuff, Jay. Thank you for that detailed post. I now want to hit everything in your post.
And I will check out the link.


On a side note - assuming it's okay to drink the mixed drinks and avoid any stomach bugs? Do I need to verify these places are using purified water for their ice?
 
Great stuff, Jay. Thank you for that detailed post. I now want to hit everything in your post.
And I will check out the link.


On a side note - assuming it's okay to drink the mixed drinks and avoid any stomach bugs? Do I need to verify these places are using purified water for their ice?

Drink away.
Makes for bad press when patrons are discharging the contents of their stomachs and guts at random times and places.
 
Lol - fair enough. I've seen other boards make big deal about in other areas of the Yucatan.
 
Hammer down NayNayD!! Just don't drink cheap tequila, It will get you before the food bugs ever will.

Jay
 
Great stuff, Jay. Thank you for that detailed post. I now want to hit everything in your post.
And I will check out the link.


On a side note - assuming it's okay to drink the mixed drinks and avoid any stomach bugs? Do I need to verify these places are using purified water for their ice?
The ice is OK; the ice plants use filtered/purified water. I'm a bit of a weenie; I even brush my teeth and rinse my toothbrush with bottled water and compulsively keep water out of my mouth when showering, but I don't worry at all about the ice.
 
My personal favorites in the restaurants category: favorite local places for authentic Yucatan dishes: El Moro - way back at about 75 (75 bis, if I remember correctly - take a cab); Pescaderia San Carlos - not open for dinner, but a great place for a late lunch (closes about 4:00 or 4:30, I think), really fresh and delicious seafood; La Perlita, go on Thursday for Lionfish special, excellent Ceviche. Favorite nicer high end places: Kinta, La Cocay, Kondesa - all downtown in easy walking distance.
 

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