Food

What to eat in Chacala

This is fishing-village food, which means seafood pulled from the water that morning, cooked simply, eaten with your feet in the sand. Don’t come expecting range; come expecting a few things done well.

The dishes worth planning around

• Whole grilled fish (pescado a la talla or zarandeado). The regional specialty of the Nayarit coast: a whole fish butterflied, marinated and grilled over wood or coals. This is the meal to build a day around. At the beachfront palapas expect a moderate sit-down price, often enough to share.
• Fish and shrimp tacos. Cheaper, lighter, and everywhere. The best value in town.
• Ceviche and aguachile. Fresh, citrusy, cold. Perfect beach food on a hot afternoon.
• Oysters and pescado empanizado. Whatever the pangas brought in.

Where to eat

• The palapa restaurants on the sand. The obvious pick for the grilled-fish experience. Aimed at visitors and priced accordingly, but the setting is the point.
• The stands and comedores a block back from the beach. Where the tacos, tortas and cheaper plates live. Better value, often better cooking, and where locals actually eat.

Honest notes

There’s no market hall and no supermarket, so groceries are limited to small tiendas; if you’re self-catering, stock up in Las Varas or Sayulita on the way in. Approximate prices: tacos and street plates are cheap, a whole grilled fish at a beachfront palapa runs into moderate sit-down territory. Bring cash, since most places don’t take cards.