Gitano is a famous restaurant on the strip of Tulum, and is well known for its adventurous soul. Their motto is “live a little, be a gypsy, get around”. They served Michelle and me another memorable meal in Mexico.
The restaurant has a jungle setting, along with exceptional food and drinks. They claim to have the best food serving in all of Tulum, but we would give that title to RosaNegra hands down. Their cocktails feature mezcal, and have over 50 different flavors of mezcal available.
Ambience
The ambience of Gitano Tulum is very mesmerizing – they have an open bar and grill, along with a superb jungle room. The jungle room has a beautiful chandelier dangling in the middle and soft lights mounted on the walls.
Gitano has a checked tiled floor, with very innovative decorations like old candle effects and old wooden planks with single eye decoration. Their concept is beautiful and very effective.
The whole restaurant is beautifully decorated with chic brown tables, tasteful lights and lambs and bountiful green ferns. Their is a constant smell from smoke that is used to keep the mosquitoes away – it’s weird at first, but you’ll get used to it.
The staff at the Gitano professional, friendly, but somewhat slow. This could be due to how dark the restaurant is. They may not be able to see how empty your drinks are, or whether you’re done looking at a menu and are ready to order. This was the biggest downside of the restaurant.
Food
People swear by the food of Gitano Tulum, Michelle and I were no exception. They have a huge menu that comprises of a variety of food and cocktail options such as:
- JUNGLE FEVER: Mezcal, chili, lime, cilantro
- KISSES IN THE CAR: Mezcal, fresh passion fruit, tangerine habanero
- GYPSY DISCO: Mezcal, anejo rum, lime, in-house basil grenadine
- GITANO SWIZZLE: Mezcal, lime, in-house orgeat and orange zest
- STARDUST: Mezcal, dark rum, pineapple, papaya and special in-house coconut cream
- GITANO MOJITO: Mezcal, white rum hibiscus and mint
- GITANO MARGARITA: Mezcal, lime, cucumber
- EMERGENCY COCKTAIL: Prosecco and one ice cube
The juices at the Gitano are handmade, with different fruits and herbs. Their menu is as good as their cocktails, the menu includes:
SNACKS: Tostada, Quesadilla and lettuce wraps
LARGE PLATES: Roasted fish, Roasted Pork, Grilled ribeye and a variety of tacos, shrimp, Mushroom Camote, Beef Brisket
SMALL PLATES: Ceviche, Chilled soups, Green salad, Grilled avocado, smoked sweet potato
They also have a variety of different desserts for the sweet tooth that includes:
Chocolate with a variety of mezcal, banana and Dulce de Leche
Mango with a variety of Horchata, Almonds and chili
Gitano Carajillo with a variety of Mezcal, cold brew, honey and cacao.
Special Features
Gitano Tulum has a variety of features that are unique to its name. Some examples are as the open grill, wooden burners, the famous jungle room.
They have seating for over 300 people, and over 600 for wedding and parties. Gitano Tulum often gets booked, so make sure to have a reservation. They also have live performance by different bands and a dance clearing as well.
Live Performances and DJ Sets include:
- MOGO MOGO (Live)
- GUAJIRO CALENTANO (Live)
- SURPRISE ACT FROM LONDON (Live)
- ROBOSONIC
- LEO LEONSKI
Gitano Tulum – The Bottom Line
Gitano Tulum is an enchanting place to eat thanks to their jungle theme setting, open air seating, and brilliant food. It was even covered by the NYC journalist when she ate at the Tulum site.
With that said, it felt “too dark” for Michelle and me. Not only could we hardly see our food and drink, but the servers couldn’t see us either. It took a long time to order more drinks and food, and we didn’t even notice we were served the wrong drink because of how dark it was.
The staff definitely makes up for this though. We definitely recommend spending an evening here, just make sure your iPhone flashlight is ready!
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