Back to Tulum
Back in the beginning of summer, Boom Boom and I sat down to coordinate our calendars. Anyone with kids in this age of signing them up for all kinds of shit when school’s out for summer to keep them occupied which ends up with you spending your day in a car schlepping them around town while our parents were perfectly fine with just opening up the door and saying “go do something” but we can’t do that because we feel guilty…. would understand.
Anyhoo, we wrote in the calendar that the girls were to be at music camp with their high school in August. We then jotted down the two weeks our son was going to be at the YMCA camp. Then it hit us – there was a one week period when all of them would be gone at the same time. It’s like the skies parted and a heavenly light shone down on us.
We looked at each other and simultaneously said, “Tulum.”
When we got there, we noticed that it was considerably busier than it was the last time we were there – August 2014. There were a bunch of construction sites on the jungle side of the road and we could see that Tulum was really starting to catch on as a tourist destination. Of course a lot of that probably had to do with my posts about it…
I’m hoping that it remains this desolate
We stayed at Casa Violeta, where we took yoga classes last time.
Overall we loved how tranquil the hotel was and the location was great. Like our hotel during our last stay, everything is run off solar/wind power or a generator. At night there’s a wonderful breeze that comes through the cabanas that keeps you cool. The good news was our unit was at the edge of the property and gave us a lot of privacy.
The bad news was a tree and a building next door cut-off the breeze. So at night it was hot as balls. But our little daybed was a nice touch.
Random Food Observations
Be Tulum’s “Be Salad” is still incredibly awesome.
But maybe not as awesome as their grilled octopus tacos
I’m still amazed at how good Posada Margherita’s Acqua Pazza is, especially given how simple the preparation is – fish poached in sea water.
Their prawns were also very good
Last time I posted on Posada Margherita, I mentioned that I forgot to take a picture of their Al Pomodoro Fresco. Not this time
It’s such a cool looking property but, with how popular the restaurant is, I’m not sure how relaxing it is.
Hi Boom Boom!
H
The last time we went to Tulum, I described Hartwood as the best restaurant I’ve ever been to. I’ve often wondered if my memories of that meal were colored by the overall experience – of the night and of the trip. Was it really that good? Or was I just really, really happy?
So we went back to Hartwood on the second night there. It was pretty damn good. But was it the best I’ve ever been to? We went back again on the fourth night just to make sure.
Both times were pretty late at night and, since there aren’t many lights at the restaurant, I couldn’t get many good pictures.
We did eat these again (pix from previous visit)
Jicama Salad – w/ cactus preserves, mint cream, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds
Pulpo Asado – Roasted octopus with pickled onions, potato, purple basil, coriander, chili, mustard
We also had
A terrific salad that I forgot to write down the name but had smoked fish and hibiscus-pickled egg
Pickled mango and papaya, smoked watermelon, Mandarine water, lemongrass, basil, and candied walnuts
Roasted beet with avocado-habanero cream
Sour lime tart with lime caramel sauce
Sweet corn ice cream
OK, that last visit wasn’t to confirm how good Hartwood was. We just couldn’t get enough of their food. So yes, even after repeated visits, I’m able to answer with confidence about whether it’s the best restaurant I’ve ever been to – HELL YEAH!
Random Drink Observations
On our last trip to Tulum, we fell in love with Mezcal. On that trip we got introduced to David, a bartender at Hartwood whose uncle makes Mezcal and ships it to him from Oaxaca. We only bought one bottle – made from the Tobala wild agave – and instantly regretted not buying more.
He didn’t have any Tobala this time, but he did have some made with Tepextate, another rare wild agave. Like Tobala, it’s so incredibly smooth with lots of fruity notes – banana, pineapple, some peach. I wasn’t going to make the mistake of only buying one this time
Yes, they were also unlabeled.
While at Posada Margherita we discovered Nakawe, another small producer of Mezcal.
They have a lot of different kinds with single-varietal agaves and interesting blends. One that really stood out was their “Numero 9”. It’s where they took their standard Mezcal and infused it with juniper and other botanicals like gin. It may not have been as smooth as the wild agave Mezcals, but it was so intriguing to drink. We bought a bottle along with one made from another wild agave called Mexicano.
Notice there’s only one bottle in that pic? Yup, the Numero 9 broke on the trip home. Damn. The Mexicano was excellent – Rich, smooth, smoky, with plenty of earth and vanilla notes.
***
Remember how I said at the beginning of this post how parents are constantly signing up their kids for summer activities? Only to find themselves as a parental version of Uber? Here’s my advice – forget all the daily activities and let them make up stuff to do (as long as it’s legal). Then, save the gas money and sign them up for camps that will have them all out of the house for at least one solid week. That’s what we’re going to do from now on.
If you do the same, we’ll see you in Tulum.
About thefoodandwinehedonist
4 comments on “Back to Tulum”
Leave a Reply
Great parenting advice, I guess I lucked out as my kids must have been the last group of unregimented programming. Sounds like another great vacation.
It sure was!
Vacation envy! Hubby and I were supposed to go to Saint Lucia this summer to celebrate 20 years but darn leukemia spoiled our plans
Booo! I have a few people close to me dealing with similar. Wishing you the best in all that. Stay strong!
And congrats on 20! We just hit that mark, too