Rue 21 - Mérida

One of the best dining experiences I had in Merida in years. The food was magnificent, the wine selection was superb, the service was exceptional. This is quite simply a great restaurant,

My friends and I were excited because all the good reviews but...!The entrees were nothing outstanding.. Just average. From 1-10, I'll say a 4.Then the main course was served ONLY to half of the group and when they finished the other rest was served!! (They were asking us to order dessert and we were still waiting for the main course)The salmon was over cooked and dry! So much that you felt you were chewing gum! Plus! It was very expensive compared to someoutstanding Merida's restaurants.And ALL of us had stomach pain at the next day! I certainly will never come back to this place!

We arrived drenched from rain and having walked around looking for the chef's previous restaurant, El Punto Del Mar, after a visit to the dentist up in Altabrisa. When we got to El Punto a young man told us it was closed for the summer for renovations but if we still wanted to visit the chef, we should seek him out at La Rue 21. We were with our 9 year old and NOT dressed for a fancy dinner out but despite giving us cheerful, quizzical looks, the hostess and waiters welcomed us in with open arms and quickly made us feel more at ease. We explained we were there because of the chef and it was like turning a magic switch! He got word of this and suddenly all sorts of wonderful dishes made their way to the table for us. A roasted red pepper soup- smooth and flavorful, followed by mussels with wine and tomato sauce, an excellent house salad, good chilean red wine, a flan with a twist made with liquorice extract and a fantastic specialty of the chef made just for us- a panna cotta presented by the chef himself with roasted pumpkin seeds, passionfruit frappe and fresh basil puree...wow! To top it off he presented us with complimentary champagne and then called a cab home for us so we didn't have to get drenched on the way out. Impeccable service, delicious meal, most creative chef in Mexico I've encountered. Well worth the price and the experience. This is best though as a date night!! Next time we're back, much as we love him, we will leave our son at home with a fun babysitter! Enjoy.

We had been meaning to go to this restaurant but when we arrived one Monday evening it was closed. There was no mention of this on their website. We then made reservations for a Saturday night. We arrived early by our standards and found the restaurant and patio deserted, not one customer so we had our choice of seating. We had two smokers with us so chose the patio. As soon as we sat down we had three waiters descend on us who wanted to know what appetisers we wanted. We asked for a drinks menu but it never came so we ordered a bottle of Pinot Grigio, beer and glass of red wine. The waiters were quite intrusive, we kept saying we would order later. I ordered as a starter the bouillabaisse and the others salads. The bouillabaisse soup was tasty but the seafood was not very good, way too much rubbery octopus, the salads got a good rating. Our main courses were quite filling with very rich sauces. We had no desserts as the meals were very rich and filling but had a second bottle of wine and another beer. We left about ten thirty and the place was still almost empty with only one other couple on the patio the whole night. Inside about three or four tables had people seated. Including the tip, the bill for three of us came to almost MP$4,000 with one person getting a separate bill for about MP$400. So it is quite expensive and that may be a reason for it being empty on a Saturday night. Our group eats out on a regular basis so has a good feel for what is good and good value.

We found this place by accident. It is difficult to find this level of performance in Mexico! Service is also excellent! Prices are affordable!