Had breakfast at the nearby Embajadoras Hotel. It was a chilly morning by GTO standards, around 52.  So we huddled at our table (since the dining room doors to the patio were wide open) and ended up ordering French toast for me and an egg scramble for Paula. We were headed for the bus station after breakfast since this was our planned two-day excursion to San Miguel de Allende which is about an hour and fifteen minutes on the comfy Primera Plus bus. We had visited SMA before on our other GTO vacations so we knew the city somewhat and had specific places and things we wanted to re-visit. 

    This tale of two cities is interesting.  GTO is definitely more authentic Mexico since there are far fewer ex-pats there and hence, much less English spoken. It also has not been "gentrified," which seems to be the biggest knock against SMA.  But even though gentrification is definitely happening in SMA (prices of everything keep rising as more and more wealthy gringos move in), I have to be honest and say after being here just an afternoon so far this trip, gully gee whiz this is an incredibly beautiful place!  It really is a Disney World version of Mexico. Everything seems just a bit more well repaired, a bit more sparkly, a bit more renovated than GTO. The streets are more cobbly, the buildings are more freshly painted, and the restaurants are, well,  everywhere!  You can't walk half a block without seeing and smelling the variety of amazing food options.

    Our apartment is very centrally located, being about a block and a half away from the main basilica, the Parroquia of San Miguel Arcangel.  It's a stunning neo-Gothic 17th-century church with soaring pink spires and a very ornate interior. SMA has many options for the devout: there are 40 well known churches and close to 100 if you count small neighborhood chapels. This probably would equal the number of bars in your average American town.

     We were both ready for an early dinner and while buying more cough syrup at a nearby "farmacia," we bumped into a woman who was a friend of the owner of a place across the street called...wait for it..."The Restaurant." It did not disappoint.  A wonderful menu with Mexican-Asian options. Paula had tacos with marinated cucumbers over tandoori chicken, and I had (see below) a plate with rice, arrachera chicken, potatoes, ginger, edamame beans bathed in a ginger-soy-tahini sauce.

This is the view of the church from our rooftop terrace

The courtyard of our apt has an "ofrenda" or Los Muertos altar to the owners' beloved deceased pets 

Inside The Restaurant

Chicken fusion

Our digs--roughing it in SMA


The Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel with its pink cantera stone











Comments

  1. Elizabeth JeanNovember 6, 2025 at 11:37 PM

    Wow! I have heard SO many good things about "SMA" and it seems they are all true!! Looks gorgeous! I'm so glad you got a chance to go there :) :)

    ReplyDelete

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