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Normally, when I'm staying at a motel, and I wake up in the morning and my windshield is plastered with a flyer, advertising someone's fine wares, I get mad, as I consider it an invasion of privacy, and generally a pain where it hurts. I remove the flyer, wad it up into a ball, and attempt to score two points in the nearest trash can. End of story. Such was my fist inclination of Tuesday, September 30, 2008, as I was about to leave Guerro Negro, but something on the flyer caught my eye: MEX $25.00 breakfasts.
Photo: My Ford truck is parked in front of Puerto Viejo Restaurant. Note their sign advertises the $25.00 breakfasts, which are a fantastic deal. You enter the restaruant through the palapa on the right. Call me a doubting Thomas, as I firmly believe that you don't get something for nothing, and I really wondered what you'd get for the small sum of $25.00, which is just over $2.00 in U.S. funds. But, nothing gained, nothing lost, and if I wasted $25.00, it wouldn't break the bank. So I made the short two block drive east to Puerto Viejo Restaurant, parked my truck in front, and walked in the front door. When I say walking in the front door, it's more like walking into a courtyard, as you stop on a flagstone patio, that features many potted plants and palm trees. To the left you'll notice screened dining, under the shade of a palapa. To get to the dining room, you cross the patio, open a door, and then you enter the small dining room. Quite an odd arrangement, but when it comes to unique Mexican restaurants, I hold no preconceived ideas.
Photo: Note the blue on the wall that represents waves, which makes the decor of the dining room quite attractive. The TV on the wall is tuned to a Mexican soap opera, naturally, as that seems to be the de facto standard in most small-town Mexican restaurants. The decor of the dining room is quite unique, as the walls are painted a combination of a rich vermilion, and a azure blue, which alternates to suggest waves against the sky. The ceiling of the restaurant is of wood, open beam construction, and it's also painted vermilion. Photos and decorations hang from the wall which suggest a nautical theme, which seems quite appropriate as Guerro Negro is located near the bay. A television was mounted on one of the walls, and it was playing the obligatory Mexican soap operas, which seem to run 24 hours a day. I picked a table, sat down, and bid a cheery "Buenos dias" to the pretty girl who placed a menu on my table. Yes, it is true, Puerto Viejo's menu offers three MEX $25.00 breakfasts, of ham and eggs, Mexican eggs, or chorizo and eggs. I asked my attractive server what the breakfast included on the side, and she told me that I had my choice of fries, hash browns or refried beans, and each meal came with a stack of corn tortillas on the side. Oh boy, what was I waiting for? Sign me up... I ordered chorizo and eggs, refried beans, with a stack of tortillas on the side.
Photo: My friendly hostess has placed my breakfast on the table, and graciously allows me to snap a photo of her. I love to take photos of friendly waitresses... I gave this gal a good tip. As I was waiting for my breakfast to arrive, I got a chance to look over their menu. They have a complete breakfast menu that features common breakfast dishes favored by the Guerro Negro locals, including menudo and pozole, combination breakfasts and omelets. Their menu even features "hot cakes," which is a rarity in Mexico, and especially in a town like Guerro Negro. Prices are reasonable, with all breakfast items under MEX $55.00. The menu also features lunch and dinner favorites, with lots of seafood dishes. I got a kick out of the slogans printed on the menu, such as "Cafe Gratis," "Desayunos y Comidas Economicas," and "El Mejor Precio." Puerto Viejo Restaurant likes to advertise their low prices. But can their food pass the muster? Read on... My order arrived in a timely manner, brought to my table by the pretty, smiling waitress. For the small price of MEX $25.00, you get a generous helping of scrambled eggs and chorizo, a side of delicious refried beans, a stack of six lightly toasted corn tortillas, and a bowl of runny red salsa on the side. To me, a restaurant is judged by the refried beans they serve, and the refried beans must contain lard, health police be damned... I could smell the lard in the beans, as the steamy aroma rose from the delicious plated of food set before me. The chorizo and eggs were cooked perfectly, scrambled together, just the way I like them. The beans were tasty and flavorful; you could taste the earthy flavor of the lard, but it wasn't greasy or overpowering. The corn tortillas were lightly toasted, and arrived warm, chewy and delicious. The fresh, in-house runny salsa rounded off the meal, as it made an outstanding condiment for the eggs.
Photo: The two gentlemen in the kitchen were hard at work when I stuck my head through the door and snapped this photo of the kitchen staff in action. Their menu states that the restaurant is open from 07:00 in the morning, until 10:00 at night, which seem to be pretty common hours for restaurants in Baja California. I didn't see a bar, nor did I ask if they had one, as at eight in the morning, a bar didn't interest me. Puerto Viejo Restaurant serves a delicious breakfast at an unbelievable price. Obviously, it's a loss-leader, but their loss is your gain, as the food is delicious, the portions are generous, and the price is unbeatable. Think at what you'd get for a little over two bucks in the 'states, then imagine enjoying a delicious breakfast at Puerto Viejo Restaurant.
Photo: My delicious MEX $25.00 breakfast of chorizo and eggs, refried beans, topped with shredded cheese and garnished with a half orange, and a stack of warm, corn tortillas. Such great food for so little money! Great food, nice dining room, large portions, friendly service by a good-looking waitress, all at an unbelievable price... you can't beat Puerto Viejo Restaurant. Puerto Viejo Restaurant Copyright(c) 2008 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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