I used to have a friend here who I thought was a good cook because she knew how to pick up a pair of tongs and cook red meat. For this stupid reason, I trusted her restaurant recommendations when really, status has always been at the top of her mind. Here are two restaurants in Medellin where that was the case:
678 Korean BBQ in Poblado
This place was ok. I’m personally not a fan of restaurants where you have to pay to cook your meat but if a group of friends wants to go, I won’t be the pariah and say, not for me. I always go with the flow and our friend took over. She chose most of the meat cuts. She cooked it all for us. In the end, my soul felt like an empty barrel of Jack Daniels Whiskey: tipsy, disoriented, and neglected. The thing was that taste-wise, nothing stood out. And it was expensive! Between the two couples we paid over 250,000 COP for our share, so the bill was over 500,000 COP. And while that included beer and a decent jug of sangria, it wasn’t worth it. This restaurant has a nice vibe, I love that it’s outdoorsy, the chairs are comfortable, and it’s located near La Linde of Poblado. If you feel like splurging on some mediocre meat that you have to cook yourself, by all means, go.
La Provincia near Rio del sur
Now, this is fancy! And you’ll need to make a reservation in advance to dine here. Contrary to what Google maps will tell you — that they open at 6 on a Wednesday night — they actually open at 6:30. I added this restaurant to my bucket list because the then-friend recommended it to the world when she posted pictures of her meal on Facebook. She was dressed up and I thought, well, the next time I feel like dressing up, I’ll make the reservation. But that’s not what happened.
Instead, my husband and I were at a bar nearby, drinking, and we didn’t feel like dining at Kuelap (a decent Peruvian restaurant). We felt like trying something new and La Provincia was next door. We arrived at 6:18 hoping to score a table, “Let me check,’’ said the host. I showed up in my I-don’t-give-a-fuck blue Cleveland Indians jersey and he had his grey hoodie on. Hey, at least I made the last-minute decision to not wear flip-flops. Twenty-two minutes later, they sat us! And the decor was romantic. The lights were dim, the ceiling hung with giant fluffy dehydrated flowers, and you can hear a hint of city life bustling beyond the balcony. Everyone that walked through the door was either dressed to impress or meeting some friends after work. We had checked out the menu an hour before so we knew what we wanted.
For an appetizer, we ordered the beef carpaccio. Would this carpaccio be as good as the one we get at Black Pepper? Or at least better than Olivia’s Pizza? We’ll find out! I ordered the risotto with seafood and he got the fettucini with langostinos and mushrooms. The waitress gave us a complimentary bread basket and a shot glass of bland orangey-wtf-is-this sauce. The carpaccio was not great, not good, not terrible. I squeezed an entire wedge of lemon and, eh. The arugula side salad was at least, good. Next, the risotto. In my first bite, the most empowering compound that flooded my mouth was NaCl, also known as sodium chloride. The ocean called and said, “Hey, we want our salt back.”
How’s yours? I asked my husband.
“Salty.”
Ugh. It wasn’t the first time where food was this salty. I get it that it’s what the majority of paisas like. I picked through my risotto hoping to bite into something to balance out the salt; I engulfed the cherry tomatoes. I’m not the type to send anything back so I asked the waiter for more cherry tomatoes and she insisted on fixing my plate. I said, fine. And they actually did a good job of returning my plate back quickly. How did it taste? The ocean called back and said, “That’s it?”
I don’t have much experience with risotto but if I had to guess, it soaks up any flavor that you surround it with. Sea crawlers like scallops and shrimp spend their lives in the ocean. Why not let the scallops and shrimp release their natural salt? And what’s up with the table salt? Was that a joke? I don’t hate salty foods. In fact, at home, I use the salt shaker every evening.
Before we got a table we waited outside the restaurant for 12 minutes where we met a voluptuous woman from California who also didn’t make a reservation. On the way out, I decided to check in on her.
I asked, “How was your meal?”
She loved it. She had a vegetarian ravioli dish and it was not salty. She was also having a good day.
So, that’s positive. Here are some other positive things about La Provincia:
The dry martini was good.
The rose was good.
The service was excellent.
Dinner for two with drinks costs about 230,000 COP with tip. Was it worth it? Yes because now I can say that I’ve been there but I will most likely never return.
The Hollywood Casino in Colombia
After our dinner at La Provincia, we went downstairs to play roulette at the Hollywood Casino. Ever since I got the hang of playing roulette in Vegas earlier this year, I looked forward to trying out my luck in Medellin. What could the minimum bet be? 5,000 COP? ($1.33 US) It turns out that it was 1,000 COP. Yeah.
We each betted 100,000 COP and within minutes lost about half of our chips. It wasn’t fun and it wasn’t like Vegas where the dealers are friendly. This dealer at Hollywood was just fast. I have a set of numbers that I place my chips on but I could hardly cover them because the dealer would immediately wave her hand over the table to signal, no more bets.
In Vegas, after I covered my numbers, I usually threw in a few more chips from an uneven stack. But, it was impossible to do that here with this lady; several times as I was about to place a chip on the table, she waved her hand over, in front of my chest even, literally blocking me from gambling, to signal, no more bets. It was annoying. Then another lady meandered over and asked if we wanted arroz con leche, rice pudding. Uh, yes, but how would I eat it? I was struggling to place all my chips on the table and the idea of trying to sneak in a bite of dessert in between was obscene.
The only reason I stayed in the game was to watch a man put 3,000,000 COP on his credit card. At one point, he was up about $2,300 US but then lost half of that in minutes. I don’t know what became of him because we left. We played for about 20 minutes. I cashed out and recouped 42,000 COP.
My husband said that it was different the last time he played there with two of his friends. We plan to check out a different casino on our next date night.
Favorite restaurants in Medellin
I’ll leave on a good note because I love Medellin. The food scene isn’t quite there yet so you need to temper your expectations (especially when it comes to Asian food). The best international gastronomy in the country is in Bogota. For now, here are our favorite places.
Zaaika Indian food in Poblado — We can’t get enough of this place. I have them on Whatsapp and they know who it is when I text, “Don’t forget the raw onions.” Granted, we’ve only dined there a handful of times so we usually order it through the app (Rappi). Zaaika is so good that we order from them twice a month, sometimes more. Be forewarned that the spice level is real. My favorite entree is the Manchurian Cauliflower and all the lentil dishes.
Home Burgers — Want a spicy chicken sandwich without the politics? Do your research then because I have no idea who runs Home Burgers and don’t ruin it for me by telling me that it’s owned by Scientology zealots or any of the sort. The spicy sandwich here is actually spicy and it comes with coleslaw and some goddamn pickles. I skip the coleslaw and I wish the Rappi app had an option to ask for extra pickles, but they don’t… Unless you went in person and demanded it as I did once. Home Burgers is a chain so you’ll find them throughout Medellin. I usually wash it down with their kombucha.
Taco House — It’s like a Chipotle. There are many other chains that are similar and are just as good.
Tepitos Mexican Restaurant — They moved to Sabaneta from Envigado. Their tomato soup and tacos are decent. There is an even better place for tacos in El Centro but I don’t know the name of it. It’s a really small hole in the wall where the walls are scribbled on.
Black Pepper Steak House in Envigado- This has become our favorite date night spot in Envigado. They have the best beef carpaccio and their mac n’ cheese is not to be missed. It can be a little loud but not so loud that you can’t have a conversation there. It’s not vegetarian-friendly.
Lucios in Envigado — Fancy steak house in Envigado that’s on the same street as Black Pepper. They once left an eggshell in my side of scalloped potatoes and I forgave them. I would dine here more often if Black Pepper weren’t a stone’s throw away.
Eduardo Madrid Bakery— Hands down the best place for bagels in Medellin. I buy their focaccia bread for special occasions. Their carrot cake and chocolate chip cookies are also great.
Ikigai sushi in Envigado — This is a new restaurant and it is by far the best sushi we’ve had in Medellin. They actually have rolls without cream cheese and their sashimi is decent. It’s super small but I’m sure that you’ll have no trouble finding a seat. We’ve eaten there about six times and even took some friends there.
Saludpan in Laureles — This is my favorite vegetarian restaurant in Medellin. It’s cheap and the portions are decent. They have poultry and fish options as well.
About me
I’m a serial expat working from my laptop since 2015. I gave birth to my daughter in Medellin, Colombia, in 2019. My husband and I have been living here since the summer of 2018. I write about ADHD, cosmetic procedures, and mom-life in Medellin. Check out my other stories!
