Barbacoa venado in Mexico

This is the real deal: barbacoa venado in Mexico.

One of the things I love about traveling is finding restaurants that serve local food. That’s not always easy in a place like Playa del Carmen that is a tourist mecca. But you know when the maitre d at a restaurant refers another restaurant to you as the place to go for local, regional food that it’s going to be good.

The restaurant in question is El Faisan y El Venado, which specializes in the foods of the Yucatan. I ordered a very traditional Mexican meal, the Barbacoa venado (venison). I’ve been wanting to make it for a while and I thought eating it in Mexico would give me a good idea of what it should be. What was served looks nothing like all the pictures from recipe sites, so I don’t know what that’s about. It was also served with a bowl that appeared to be a broth soup. I had no idea if I was supposed to pour it over the meat or eat it like soup. Alas, nobody spoke enough English (and I don’t speak enough Spanish) for me to ask. So I did a little of both.

It was delicious!

Rick ordered the quail, which was actually even better. I’ve never had quail before. I want to go back to Mexico just for that meal.