Welcome to Part 3 of our Ultimate Tulum travel guide! In this post I'm going to go over food options in Tulum. Where to eat, what to eat, and everything in between!
There is no dearth of good food in Tulum, and the Zona Hotelera in particular is loaded with international cuisines and luxury food experiences.
My personal recommendation is definitely to focus on local and Mexican cuisines, as Tulum is of course in Mexico. I found that the Zona Hotelera has the more expensive (often too much so) options as it’s geared towards a more luxury clientele and vibe, but there are a few places where you can find affordable options, such as La Malinche where you can also order cricket tacos (crickets are a local delicacy and are an excellent source of protein, as well as being environmentally friendly!) which my brother says don’t taste like anything in particular (he doesn’t recommend them if you’re looking for something with a different taste or texture, but does if you’re looking for a different food experience). The prices are pretty decent for the location as they’re a bit lower than the rest of the strip.
For a truly local experience, there’s a taco truck located right outside the PEMEX gas station on the other side of the sidewalk every day except Monday. They offer multiple options for tacos, including vegetarian, and they’re only 80 pesos (about 50 cents USD when we were there; check apps like xe or xe.com for up-to-date exchange rates), which is by far the cheapest you’ll find any food. There are also a few local sit-down places that are excellent. If you need change, the guy running the coconut cart can generally break your larger bills for you! This leads me to another important point: cash is king. Most places in Tulum are still heavily cash-based, so it’s recommended you take out cash, either in Mexican pesos or American dollars, before you leave the airport. There are a few ATMs scattered around the Zona Hotelera and some banks in town will also give you cash, but I do recommend taking out about 2000 MXP or 500 USD to start and go from there. Places like El Capitán on the strip going into Aldea Zamá will allow you to pay with a card, as will a few other larger restaurants, especially in the Zona Hotelera, but you will still need cash for taxis and smaller restaurants. El Capitán is also perfect for large groups as they have the most space for handling families.
For another local experience that is not a food truck, Tulum has a few options that are very popular with the locals, such as Taquería Honorio, which certainly has some of the best food in the town! My family also spent a lot of time at Taquería los Chachalacos as it was within a 15-minute walk of our apartment complex and was also a more local experience compared to most of the other options.
I personally recommend the local places above everything else. After all, you’re in Mexico. Eat like a Mexican!
Stay tuned for our advice on what to do in Tulum!
Comments