Guido’s has what it takes to be a great restaurant. There are no courtyards on Cozumel that are more comfortable, few places with better service and they have a professional kitchen that runs like a finely tuned Porsche.
The menu has great standards that have kept people coming back for years. I doubt there are many regular visitors to Cozumel who don’t save at least one of their dining out nights for Guido’s.
There is another reason why this is a don’t-miss restaurant on Cozumel, less apparent to the casual visitor. There is constant innovation and new menu items that show up seasonally or as nightly specials.
We were fortunate enough to taste and photograph some new items at a special dinner for a food and wine group, La Chaîne de Rôtisseurs.
Guests arriving for the special evening were greeted at the door with a glass of Extra Dry Prosecco or a spritzer made with the same delicious Prosecco and Campari.
The five course meal featured outstanding Italian wines (look for them at Guido’s La Tienda). The white wine with the first two courses was from from the Collio district of Friuli in the north. It was nicely paired with the brandada de hauchinango con mango y alioli and the magret de pato curado con miso y naranja con frutos rojos y mesclun. A brandada is a French dish that is a puree of cod, but in this case it was local snapper. Next was seared slices of duck breast with fruit and salad. Great duck breast lands in Cozumel!
The pasta course of ravioli with stuffed with sweet potato and onion, was topped with smoked almonds, ricotta salatta (a drier, saltier ricotta than normal) and truffle oil. I hope this one ends up on the menu, because it was my idea of perfect ravioli. An outstanding balance of flavors and pasta cooked al dente. It was paired with my favorite wine of the night, Castello delle Femmine, a jammy red from Campania in Southern Italy.
After a perfect sorbet of lime, saffron, ginger and pineapple (may I have another, please?), it was on to the main course.
It’s been so long since I have seen lamb on a menu in Mexico, I had to ask “What is cordero?” It was so good I barely remember eating the sides, although the tostada de parmesano al pimentón was pretty. I love sangiovese and enjoyed the Chianti Classico by Fontalpino, but I kept looking around for the waiter with the Castello.
Not that anyone needed dessert, but the sopa de fresa con bombas de lychee, helado de mango was gorgeous. Terrific mango ice cream floating in a chilled “soup” of strawberry and lychee – what a concept. To take the dinner up the hill and finally “over the top” was a glass of a Brut Rosé Clelia Coppo from the Piemontese region. Made mostly from Chardonnay with a bit of Pinot Noir, it would work as an aperitif on a warm afternoon. It’s almost 5:00 and I could use one right now!
If this is any indication of what is planned for the Guido’s summer menu, we’ll see you there soon.
Guido’s Restaurant
Av. Melgar between 6th and 8th.
Reservations: 987-872-0946
Hours: 11:00 am to 11:00 pm Monday – Saturday
3:00 pm to 9:30 pm Sunday
