Quito Restaurants

Motes de Magdalena is probably the best mall food I've had in the 6 years since I had bife de chorizo at the Galeria Pacifico in Buenos Aires. I'm sure this is a national chain appearing in similar upmarket shopping malls and maybe even freestanding locations in town. There is no ambiance at a mall food court, but what it lacks in atmosphere it makes up for in flavour. (I used a picture of one of the freestanding locations, not because I was intimidated by the rent-a-cop at the mall- I took that one before we had our little confrontation- but simply because I got a better shot of this one.)

Favorite Dish: I had the fritada which consists of pieces of fried pork. It came with ample helpings of corn, big beans called habas, and bigger pieces of pork served on the bone. Everything came with a side order of ají which accented the flavour of bland corn and beans. To wash all that down, I ordered a local drink called chicha. All that food and the drink came to less than $5.

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On Espejo, down from Plaza Grande, there are three neighbouring restaurants with outdoor tables on the pedestrian street. It was a nice day and I wanted to sit outside eating lunch, so I headed here. I found a table at the restaurant advertising almuerzos (lunches) for $2 (August 2011). As usual when you get the set lunch you will first get a soup, then a main course and a small dessert, and something to drink. The soup was okay, but the main course with a piece of leathering meat didn’t taste good at all. All set lunches I have eaten in Ecuador ,before this and after, have tasted better, even the ones for $2.
The food was not good but the location was good for people watching.

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Both Museo Guayasamín and the Capilla del Hombre are situated in the neighbourhood Bellavista so it is good to visit them both during the same day. As you will need quite a lot of time to visit them both it is good there is a café at each site. Both cafés have also got a nice view from their terrace.

At the café at Museo Guayasamín I bought a juice and a cheese toast. It was $2.80 (August 2011). And at the café at Capilla del Hombre I bought a small ice cream and a coffee. It was $1.50.

Jugo de la Sucre is a great place to come to, to have fresh fruit juices and batidos (juices with milk), and I visited several times while in Quito. There is a big variety of fruits to choose from and you can also mix them if you like. The juice is served in a glass, but you will also get some in a jar as more juice is made than what will fill a glass. A strawberry batido was $1 (August 2011).

Jugo de la Sucre is open between 7.30 - 18.

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I took a few Spanish lessons during my first days in Quito and one day we went o Mercado Central to practice words for fruits, vegetables and other things for sale there. Mercado Central is not only a good place to come to, to practice your Spanish or to buy fruits. It is also a good place to come to if you want to eat a cheap meal. There are several eateries serving traditional Ecuadorian food and fresh fruit juices in the market building.

Mercado Central is open between 8 - 16 (to 15 on Sundays).

Ceviches Pedro y Pablo is a restaurant situated at the courtyard of the Archbishop’s Palace. It is nice to sit at one of the tables in the courtyard, to be surrounded by this old building and to watch people.

I ordered a Bandera, which was advertised on a sign outside the restaurant. Bandera is an Ecadorian meal with rice, ceviche and guatita, a stew made of tripe (cow stomach). For this bandera I could choose between two different ceviches and I chose the one with shrimps and shellfish. The bandera was served with some popcorn and mote (maize) and a lemon drink (not a fresh juice). The price was $5.00 (June 2011).

On my last day in Quito I passed a restaurant on Flores where a man sold big warm fried empanadas. As I have tasted them elsewhere and liked them I bought one to bring with me. The empanada didn’t have any filling but was dough fried as I waited, and it tasted very good and it was very greasy. The big empanada was $0.50 (august 2011). The name of the restaurant was Restaurant El Pollo Pachanguero.

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Restaurant Viena is the restaurant in the same building as Hotel Viena Internacional. That is where breakfast was served if it was included in the room price (I paid $22 for a room with breakfast included and $20 for the room when I didn’t eat breakfast). I only ate breakfast here a few times, mainly because the coffee was very weak, more like coloured water. For breakfast you will also get a sandwich with cheese and ham, eggs and a fruit juice. One good thing is that they open early, earlier than many other places in Centro Histórico.

I saw that around lunchtime it was always busy in the restaurant. I didn’t eat here at lunch but once in the late afternoon (on my first day in Quito). I ordered the Combo 1 for $2.50 (June 2001). The Combo 1 was a plate with chicken, rice, French fries and some salad. A bottle of Sprite or Coca-Cola was also included in the price.