Page 164 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL MAGAZINE FALL 2023 DISCOVERING TURKEY

Fine Dining
Puerto Vallarta has long been a culinary hot-
bed, with restaurants serving excellent Mexi-
can, European and Asian dishes. Back in 1995,
a few of the city's standout chefs inaugurated
the first annual Festival Gourmet Interna-
tional Vallarta, highlighting six restaurants.
The upcoming 28th festival will run from No-
vember 9 to19th, 2023, and will feature more
than 75 local and international chefs at 32
restaurants. More than 25,000 fans are ex-
pected to attend.
I’ve never experienced the festival, but I
have tried dozens of eateries all around the re-
gion. This time, I visited two buzz-worthy
restaurants in the Zona Romántica. Longtime
favorite hotels, shops and bars make this area
the city’s most popular tourism zone, as evi-
denced by the crowds with backpacks and wa-
ter bottles wandering the narrow sidewalks.
Great open-air restaurants line the malecón
beside Playa de los Muertos, PV’s most popu-
lar beach and a perfect people-watching perch.
I chose to head inland a few blocks to Makal,
where Chef Diego Guerrero works wonders
with Mexican ingredients. I was early by Mexi-
can standards when I arrived at 6:30. The din-
ing room was nearly empty, which gave me a
full-on view of the wall-sized mural depicting
giant purple and orange cacti and Huichol-in-

164 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE FALL 2023