Author: Natalie Smith

Baja Bites

Posted on by Natalie Smith

Known most famously for their mouth-watering fish tacos and tantalizing chili oil, Baja Bites has become quite a poppin lunch spot in La Ventana🤙🌶️🤤💥.

Paula and Alex, the owners, are both originally from different parts of Mexico and just like many of us, they met doing windsports in 1982 in Cancun. Quickly, they quickly fell in love and then with this town for its proximity to the outdoors. They now call this place home. Their favorite thing being that they can step out their front door to go biking and fishing. They are especially grateful for La Ventana’s chill vibe.

The two of them opened Baja Bites officially in 2017 out of a small trailer with a shark mouth painted on the front of it (see slide 4). You may remember that in the beginning there were just three taco options: yellowtail, shrimp, and marlin. Now, the menu features not only various taco options but also soups, salads, and baked goods. Although Alex can’t decide between the yellowtail or Tuna taco being his favorite item on the menu, he can confidently say that he is dedicated to serving good, fresh and local fish. 

Come and see for yourselves! Make sure to bring along your pup and Alex will surprise them with a generous serving of fish. The Baja Bites team is always ready to greet you with a warm smile and excellent service! 

⏰Open Mon – Sat, 11am-3:30pm

📍In El Teso next to KM0 & Diamanté reality. 

📸 Crew pictured above left to right: Roman, Angel, Paula, Alex & Mona.

Meet the Owners: Mariscos El Cone

Posted on by Natalie Smith

Announcing: Meet the Owner series! 👫

Join us as we share the stories of LV local restaurants and businesses. We will be interviewing owners over the next few months and finding out all about their choices to create these epic spots!

To kick start things off, we will begin with Mariscos El Cone! 🐠🍤🎣🐡🐟

Packed every night of the wind season with chatter of friends and families diving into the rich dishes, Mariscos Al Cone is known and loved by all. What some may not know is that the Mariscos Al Cone we see today is much different than the original restaurant Raymundo and Neyreda started eighteen years ago. Both born and raised in El Sargento, Raymundo and Nereyda have deep ties to this town and community. He is a longtime fisherman, and at the beginning of their gastronomic journey, they would catch goats on the island to sell the meat in Machaca burritos. Her goal was always to start a business, so they took what they knew and created this delicious seafood restaurant!

Their son, Hernan, is also an active part of this business and can be seen onsite more often than not. Hernan found it impossible to select a favorite dish, instead he let me know the most popular dishes: Camarones Rellenos, Pescado a la plancha and Tataki. A first stop for many expats and a longtime spot for many locals, there isn’t a disappointing dish on the menu.

Regulars may be familiar with William, their sweet 14-year old dog, who can be seen lounging out front (slide 4) or beside your table with eyes for whatever you have in front of you. Like William, Hernan loves that La Ventana is such a tight knit community, where people are familiar and deeply connected to each other. When stepping foot into their restaurant, we can see the strong community crystal clear. Come for a happy hour, stay for dinner and meet the whole town!

⏰ Open Monday – Saturday 8am – 9pm, Sundays 8pm – 8pm

📍 Located: on the main road directly across the street form Delfines mercado.
Try their new dish: Lobster 🦞

Road Runners

Posted on by Natalie Smith

With the stars, the weather, the reptiles, and the creatures of the underwater reefs all getting regular airtime on the Ventana View, I think that it is only fair that our feathered friends get some attention too. And I cannot think of a better subject to start with than the greater roadrunner! Believe me, they look nothing like that bird (Beep Beep!) featured in the long-running Warner Brothers cartoon series! In fact, they look a lot like a highly emaciated light brown chicken with a long skinny tail! Roadrunners reach two feet from sturdy bill to white tail tip, with a bushy blue-black crest and mottled plumage that blends well with dusty shrubs. While they occasionally take flight for short distances, boy, can they run! They have been clocked at speeds up to 26 miles per hour or 42 kilometers an hour, the fastest on record for any flying species on the planet. When they run, they place their head and tail parallel to the ground and use their tail as a rudder to help change direction. While we have had them the odd time showing up briefly in our backyard here in the Baja, I have not yet found a way to entice the little rascals with food. However, I do know they like human chow because I saw one hanging around a wee fast-food tent where the cook was throwing out scraps near the Cabo airport. These monogamous birds lay three to six eggs in thorny platform nests lined with everything from grasses to feathers to snakeskins. And yes, roadrunners do kill and eat rattlesnakes (sorry, Chance!). They usually work in pairs with one distracting the serpent while the second bird moves in for the kill. Their scaly legs and feather coat make it hard for the snakes to land any bites. However, roadrunners mainly subsist on a diet of insects, spiders, lizards, and any other small creatures they can catch. The oldest roadrunner on record to date made it to seven years old, but I suspect that they can live longer than that. They are one of my favourite birds down here in Mexico, always giving me a thrill when they dart across the road in front of me. david.bird@mcgill.ca