Restaurants Locals Eat At in Cabo: Where We Go When Nobody Is Visiting

There are two Cabos. The one on the postcards is Medano Beach, a bucket of beers and a band at Mango Deck. The one we live in eats at 2pm on a Tuesday, orders the same thing every time, and knows which door on Morelos is the good one. This is the second list. Every place on it is one we go back to on our own dime. Hours and price levels are from our listings.

Downtown Cabo San Lucas

Los Tres Gallos

Leona Vicario at 20 de Noviembre. Traditional Mexican, $$, open 11am to 10pm daily, with live music and a 4.4 from about 1,500 reviews. This is where we take visiting family for the first dinner. Casual, a little romantic, and nothing about it feels like a show.

Salvatore G's

Italian on Vicente Guerrero, $$$, 11am to 10:30pm (from 4pm on Sunday), a 4.8 from nearly 2,000 reviews. The happy hour is the trick: drinks and food before the dinner crowd. Nobody holds a 4.8 at that volume on visitors alone.

Daikoku

Inside Plaza Nautica on Paseo de la Marina. Japanese and sushi, $$$, 1pm to 11pm daily, quiet, with a fireplace and a 4.5 from close to 1,100 reviews. Our sushi default when we want dinner without a production.

Outpost

Also on Paseo de la Marina, a cocktail and wine bar with a kitchen, open 8am to 1am. $$, 4.6 from around 1,140 reviews, rooftop seating, happy hour, late-night food. This is where we go when it is already 11pm and everything else has closed.

San José del Cabo

Jazmin's Restaurant

Morelos 14. Mexican, $$, open 8am to 11pm every day, so it covers breakfast, a late lunch and dinner. Live music, vegan options, a private dining room, and a 4.5 from about 1,900 reviews. The all-day hours are why it is a standby.

La Lupita Taco & Mezcal

On Morelos in the art district, noon to 10:30pm, closed Monday. $$, 4.6 from around 2,200 reviews. Tacos, mezcal, live music, a rooftop. It is the answer to "where should we go tonight" more often than any other place on the San José side.

Baja Brewing Company

The San José brewpub, $$, 11am to 10pm, live music, 4.5 from close to 1,400 reviews. Beer and bar food, no dress code, no reservation. Exactly what it should be.

Acre Restaurant

On Rincón de las Animas, outside the center. Farm-to-table, $$$, 11:30am to 10pm on weekdays; Saturday and Sunday it runs 10am to 2pm, then 5pm to 10pm. A 4.6 from about 1,600 reviews, a fireplace, a rooftop and great cocktails. Our splurge night.

Flora Farms

Las Ánimas Bajas, $$$, closed Monday. Tuesday to Saturday it serves breakfast from 9am, lunch from 11am and dinner from 5:30pm; Sunday is 10am to 2pm. A 4.7 from about 3,400 reviews. Yes, it is famous. We still go, on a weekday morning, for the first breakfast seating.

Todos Santos, when we need a day off

Jazamango

Farm-to-table on Los Naranjos, $$, 1pm to 9pm, closed Tuesday, 4.5 from around 1,140 reviews. Quiet, a fireplace for cool evenings, and nobody rushes you.

Oystera

Oysters and seafood, $$$, 10am to 9pm (noon to 8pm on Monday), 4.6 from close to 1,500 reviews, with rooftop seating and happy-hour drinks. Lunch here, then the drive home.

The places we skip, and when we do not

Mango Deck, The Office and Cabo Wabo Cantina are not on this list because you will find them without help. That said, The Office opens at 7am with tables on the sand, and breakfast there is a good one. Cabo Wabo on a live-music night is fun. We just do not go on a Tuesday.

Practical notes

• Eat lunch late, 2 to 4pm, and dinner after 8. That is when the rooms feel like ours.
• Monday closures: La Lupita and Flora Farms. Tuesday: Jazamango.
• Tip 15 to 20 percent, in pesos where you can.
• Book Acre, Flora Farms and Salvatore G's in high season, November through April.
• Small neighborhood fondas are worth a try too. Walk a block or two off the main strip and follow the full tables.

Off the beach, after 8pm, and the same order every time. The full list of where we eat is on our Cabo restaurants page.