Eating Our Way Through Cartagena: Coffee, Tacos and the Best Sushi I've Ever Had

Breakfast

Nia Bakery, right in the heart of the historic centre, was one of my absolute favourite spots in the whole city. Clay coloured walls, arches, every corner looking like it was styled for a Pinterest board. We started our morning here with their famous cookies and a V60 coffee, rich, served with genuine flair, like being part of Colombian theatre for a minute. We went back a second day just for the takeaway pastries.

Nia Bakery, one of my favourite spots in the whole city.

Satio Cafe Bar is known for breakfast and brunch built on fresh local ingredients, we had mushrooms on sourdough with poached eggs and an omelette with avocado. South American avocado is just built differently, creamier, almost like a completely different fruit to what you get back home. The standout breakfast spot in Getsemaní was Manna though, light, airy, green, the perfect mid morning stop. We had eggs, avocado and proper sourdough with a cold brew, and after weeks without decent bread in South America, it hit harder than it probably should have.

Eggs, avocado and proper sourdough. We'd missed this more than we realised.

Snacks

On a walking tour through the old town we tried pandeyucas, a cassava, butter and sugar snack, a little sweet, a little chewy, almost meringue like. We also tracked down pandebono, made from cassava flour, cornmeal and fresh cheese, though ours turned out a bit bland and dense, more plain bread roll than the gooey cheesy treat I'd hoped for. Cone pizza in Getsemaní was a disappointment too, but we made up for it with a stop at Mochi Mochi for something sweet. The best street snack of all, though, easily, is the fresh orange juice sold everywhere across the city. Simple, but essential when the heat gets relentless.

Lunch

Sushi El Rincón, in the walled city, did a poke bowl and a lime fresh mango sushi that were both excellent, the poke bowl looked exactly like its photo on the wall, which is rarer than it should be. The real standout lunch though was Los Tacos del Gordo, tucked into Getsemaní, tiny, loud, full of energy and fresh tacos being made right in front of you. We started with a lime and spicy corn starter before going in on the tacos themselves, cheese literally built into the shell, more like a double taco than anything I'd had before. Genuinely the best lunch we had in the city.

Los Tacos del Gordo, the best lunch we had in Cartagena.

Dinner

El Bololo, right on the edge of Plaza Trinidad, is a Caribbean bowl spot that's lively simply because of where it sits, you can watch the whole square come alive around you, musicians playing, locals chatting, kids running past. La Mulata, in the historic San Diego area, does Afro Caribbean Colombian cooking, fish, seafood, local spices, and a coconut lemonade that was one of the simplest, best drinks of the trip. Simple food, but a really authentic taste of the city.

The dinner highlight, by a distance, was Pezetarian, a veggie friendly modern spot blending Asian and Caribbean food in the old town. We started with summer rolls and finished with what I'd genuinely call the best sushi I've ever eaten. Delicate, packed with flavour, not exaggerating even slightly.

Drinks

No trip to Cartagena is complete without Alquímico, globally recognised as one of the best bars in the world, spread across multiple floors with high ceilings and a different mood on every level. I had a smoked whiskey cherry drink I'd happily go back for, and it isn't cheap, but it's worth the splurge at least once. Best spot for a drink overall though is Café Havana, a legendary salsa venue in Getsemaní with live band after live band and everyone up dancing. It genuinely feels like standing on a film set.

Alquímico, one of the best bars in the world by most rankings.

Café Havana, the best spot in the city for a drink and a dance.

Coffee

There's excellent coffee all over Cartagena, including back at Nia Bakery, but Café San Alberto in the old town is a genuine must visit, Colombia's most awarded coffee brand. It's not cheap, a flight of different brews runs around 45,000 pesos, roughly twelve or thirteen dollars, but when you're already this deep into Colombian coffee culture, it felt worth doing properly. The Chemex version was smooth, almost tea like, and a good final chance to taste the famous Colombian brew at its best.

A coffee flight at Café San Alberto, Colombia's most awarded coffee brand.

It's a genuinely absurd amount of food for the time we had there, but Cartagena earns its reputation as a foodie city completely. There's plenty we didn't get to as well, so if you've got your own recommendations for next time, I'm always taking notes.