To understand why this blog starts with lunch, one must understand what we do each day in Puerto Vallarta. It took us a few years to get into the proper rhythm. While early on, we spent significant time shopping and exploring, we subsequently distilled our Puerto Vallarta experience into the essence of relaxation. We usually stay at the Fiesta American hotel. There are more fashionable hotels further north at the Marina and in Nuevo Vallarta, but we like the more authentic feel of the Fiesta Americana – plus, it's closer to town. We arise each morning and don our bathing suits. Marlene heads out to the beach and picks out two lounge chairs under the shade of a small palapa. I head to the restaurant and fetch two cups of black coffee. We then spend the morning sipping coffee on the beach, while surfing the web and reading on our iPads. It's paradise.
At 11:30 (I'm the timekeeper), we go up to our rooms and change into casual garb. We then take a taxi to Daiquiri Dick's for lunch – every day.
Daiquiri Dick's is located on the south side of Puerto Vallarta in the Romantic Zone, with its cobble stone streets and red tile roofed houses. Peter and Tari Bowman purchased the beachside restaurant from its original owners over 25 years ago. We discovered the restaurant on one of our early visits to Puerto Vallarta. For us, Daiquiri Dick's IS Puerto Vallarta.
It's difficult to adequately express what it is about Daiquiri Dick's that beckons us each day; we lament that we can't bottle it and take it home with us. It's partly the ambience, partly the staff, and partly the food – or perhaps we're a bit crazy. We sit at the same reserved table every day – ten days on this vacation – at the periphery of an upper covered area, overlooking a beachside patio.
We each order a margarita on the rocks, with salt; Daiquiri Dick's margarita is annually voted the best margarita in Puerto Vallarta. We're then brought a basket of tortilla chips and perfectly spiced salsa. After we order our lunch, we're brought a basket of warm, fresh-baked bread and soft, perfectly salted butter.
The Daiquiri Dick's website describes its menu as "Mediterranean Mexican cuisine with Asian influences." For lunch, we usually start with one of three soups, all excellent. The Mexican tortilla soup, with chicken stock and roasted dried chilies, contains chunks of fresh avocado; we order it without tortilla strips on top.
The Cuban black bean soup is puréed and rich; it tastes like it contains sherry, but to our knowledge, it does not.
The lemongrass scented gazpacho is cold and refreshing, the perfect companion to a heavier entrée.
Javier Gomez is the head waiter at Daiquiri Dick's; he's been there for almost 30 years. Our children immediately became fond of Javier's infectious smile, the twinkle in his eyes, and his gentle prodding – as did Marlene and I.
The lunch menu at Daiquiri Dick's includes various sandwiches and salads, and over the course of ten days, we sampled much of it. One of our favorites is the "Clipper" – an upscale grilled mahi-mahi sandwich, served on a fresh homemade bun, with lettuce, tomato, light mayonnaise and Asian slaw. The mahi is fresh and the entire dish is delicious; we ordered it more than once during our stay.
We tried the pesto chicken sandwich for the first time this year, on homemade bread with roasted red bell pepper, lettuce and tomato. It usually comes with French fries, but we substitute a side salad of fresh lettuce and tomatoes, dressed with a light balsamic vinaigrette. The grilled chicken was fresh and tasty in the pesto sauce; I ordered it a second time.
One of Marlene's favorites is the Caesar salad with shrimp; the shrimp are fresh and plentiful. The salad is served with a light Caesar dressing, but we sometimes use Daiquiri Dick's perfect pico de gallo (Mexican salsa) as our dressing, this alternative the creation of our daughter, Abby.
Another first time dish for us was the open-faced shrimp Louie sandwich, with lightly dressed slaw and avocado. Again, there were lots of fresh shrimp. Served with a small dish of papilla and pineapple, in a nice cream broth, it was wonderful.
I had the BLT with avocado one day; can there be a better way or place to eat a BLT sandwich? The sandwich comes with fries, which on this day I forgot to substitute. The French fries at Daiquiri Dick's are average, at best. (There had to be something we didn't like or you wouldn't believe the rest!)
Marlene twice ordered the quesadillas with chorizo, black beans, guacamole and pico de gallo. Since she never finishes it all, I usually get one or two. The quesadillas were stuffed with lots of tasty chorizo.
I tried the fresh mahi-mahi tacos in "kick ass" yellow mole for the first time. The tacos were messy, but delicious.
The second Sunday we were there, we decided to deviate from our norm and have brunch. We each had a Bloody Mary, instead of our usual margarita.
Instead of soup, we split the crispy wonton shrimp baskets, which were excellent.
And then we each ordered the Eggs Benedict over house baked bread, with Canadian bacon, hash browns and fruit salad. We agreed they were the best Eggs Benedict we'd ever had, surpassing the now closed Café des Artistes in Manhattan.
Daiquiri Dick's wonderful cuisine is not the only reason we eat lunch there every day. Much of the staff has been there for a long time; we greet each other as friends from year to year. Hnoi Latthitham has been Daiquiri Dick's manager and chef for the past fifteen years. She's originally from Bangkok, where her 82 year old mother still lives. Hnoi is an incredible chef and an incredible individual.
There's an ever-present breeze at Daiquiri Dick's, which baths us as we eat, drink and look out over the ocean. Marlene emailed the picture below to our daughter Abby, who wrote back that we have hundreds of pictures of this same scene. Perhaps we do; I keep trying to capture the essence of Daiquiri Dick's – and I can't.
After lunch, we attempt to walk-off the calories. We stroll the length of Puerto Vallarta's mile-long Malecón, which borders the sea. The walkway is lined with street performers, bronze sculptures, artists, vendors, shops and restaurants. It's a people watcher's delight.
At the end of our walk, we take a taxi back to the Fiesta American, change into our bathing suits, and return to the beach. We read and nap until it's time to shower and dress – and then take a taxi back into town for dinner. Copyright © 2013 TwoForTheTable.com |
