In the quaint village of Sayulita, chef Nicholas Parrillo expertly prepares a wide range of Mediterranean specialties using only the finest ingredients. Chef Parrillo´s culinary style reflects a genuine understanding of classical methods and influences from Mexico and California. — Platinum

Well worth the 45-minute drive from Puerto Vallarta, this fun and very friendly restaurant and bar in atmospheric "San Pancho" is a delightful new North Shore option. Comfortable and unpretentious, the staff and music are great, the bar well stocked, and a multitude of twinkling lamps makes for a really pretty ambiance. But most importantly, the gleaming open kitchen turns out fabulous food, so good it can best be called "timeless cuisine:" French onion soup, vichyssoise, red snapper tartar, calamari, mussels and more. A melt-in-your-mouth arrachera comes with an incredible chimichuri sauce and the grilled vegetables, gnocchi and risotto are absolutely outstanding!

For years chef Roger Dreier has been cooking up incredible cuisine for a faithful following in Vallarta. Roger can now be found at his beachfront restaurant at Punta de Mita, serving many of those favorites dishes he is famous for, plus much more. — Readers Choice • Dancing Place

The innovative Japanese dishes here change regularly to keep things interesting. And you will enjoy some of the best sushi this side of Banderas Bay at this spotless second-floor venue located in the thriving community of Emiliano Zapata in Punta de Mita.

This casual restaurant is located 20 minutes north of PV in the quaint village of La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. Serving Italian specialties with a Tuscany flavor, antipasti, crunchy salads, homemade pastas and more hearty options as well as fine meat cuts, seafood and Norwegian salmon.

Established in 1991, it is renowned for providing a consistently excellent dining experience. Inspired by flavors from the Mediterranean and Asia, Jan and her team create food that is innovative yet refined, simply cooked and exquisitely presented in a lush, tropical indoor/outdoor setting. — Platinum

Sidney and Enrique´s former Mezzaluna has re-opened as Mezzogiorno, transforming their beachfront Bucerias house into a happening indoor-outdoor Italian restaurant. Enjoy fabulous Italian dishes that will keep you coming back: savory calamari-fritti, fresh fish, soups and prime cuts of meat and more. 

Fodor´s says, "For 14 years making the most delicious desserts in Mexico!" Pies, cakes, cookies and cheesecake tarts. Try our world-famous Beso, a molten chocolate-rich brownie. Now serving coffee, espresso, latté, and prebaked chicken pies, gourmet pizzas, empanadas, scones and ice cream in Bucerías and South Side.

Providing good food at fair prices at this happening restaurant, Italian-American co-owner and chef Paul Velser skimps on nothing – neither quality nor serving sizes. Enticing platters are presented along with menus for your perusal and eight wines are available by the glass. 

This restaurant offers only top-quality roasted steaks like the New York, the Rib Eye, the "arrachera", and the "vacio", an exquisitely tender Argentinean steak that you'll only find here. Other options include seafood, chicken and pastas.

With seating available both inside and outside, you can dine in stylish comfort, enjoying world-class service and food. With chef Govanni Denigris of Chicago, chefs Jorge Castellanos and Demberto Aguayo and their team bring you classic Italian cuisine with a New World touch.

Indoor and outdoor dining on the marina for breakfast lunch and dinner. This restaurant has been around for a long time, its loyal clientele appreciating the consistent preparation of its Mexican and international specialties and friendly service.

Everything about this restaurant is hip, with a chic European atmosphere and million-dollar views. Pareo-clad waiters keep the food and libations flowing, the exotic Oriental-Mediterranean menu a pleasure to ponder at tables indoors or out.

Torontonians Mario Nunes and Maurizio Pellegrini have been the owners of this elegant Italian restaurant privileged with a spectacular view of Marina Vallarta since 1989. Enjoy fine dining in a romantic air-conditioned salon decorated in Art Nouveau with soft pastels. — Platinum

When it comes to a fine cut, seafood or pasta, your best bet is Rincón de Buenos Aires. The wood-fire grill gives a unique flavor to the fine cuts and fish. The filled pastas, such as the ravioli and lasagna, are a delight. — Platinum

The menu is constantly changing for the better, and the service is always impeccable. The food is superb, from the terrine de paté to the coq-au-vin to the sensual soufflés. The choice of desserts is enough to put any gourmet in a quandary. 

The great thing about successful chain restaurants like the Outback is that you know exactly what to expect from the food, service and ambiance; and once you discover that they have just what you crave, the decision on where to dine is automatic. — Readers Choice • Family Restaurant

Chic and modern, this happening American-style steakhouse is yet another manifestation of chef-owner Thierry Blouet´s brio and French flair. And while steaks are the specialty, New York, porterhouse with potatoes: mashed, baked, scalloped, you name it- the menu is nicely rounded people pleaser.

Agave Grill is a beautiful old Mexican hacienda-style establishment where you can sample, buy and enjoy close to 60 brands of the selection of choice Cuban and Latin-American cigars and a wide assortment of coffee styles and blends.

Sip a Mai Tai Thai in an oriental garden as d´Rachael delights while you await a feast of tropical flavors. Archie, movie director John Huston's chef for many years, garnered the best elements of Pan Asian cuisine and gave them a Thai emphasis. 

Avant-garde gourmet restaurant in downtown Vallarta. Enjoy Japanese risotto with crispy squid, masago mayonnaise and avocado, as well as the crispy duck rolls in sweet soy sauce. The sky bar overlooks the sea, and boasts sand to curl toes in while enjoying a martini.

Contemporary Mexican cuisine at lunch and dinner in a vividly colorful and super comfy open air ambiance. Daily specials and a constantly evolving menu, the almond-crusted garlic shrimp and Banana Cantina Martini made with tequila particularly popular.

Ideal for sharing as a couple or with friends, appetizer-sized servings of Spanish flavors prepared with the highest quality ingredients and a bird's eye view of the town and bay. Sea breezes refresh the charmingly casual terrace, while the dining room is air conditioned.

This is authentic Chinese food, the Chinese chef-owner taking pride in every dish. Maintaining 100% integrity in the kitchen, the restaurant recently updated its look, the patio's red-and-black theme now spiced by sparkling white floors and linens.

Thierry Blouet, Maitre Cuisinier de France and a member of the Culinary Academy of France, has what is considered by many to be the best restaurant in town, Café des Artistes. Now, with recent, dramatic changes, it's one of the best in the world. 

Here the artistic, modern Mexican décor in the air-conditioned, candlelit dining room is complemented by the soothing sounds of acid jazz playing in the background. And the Pacific Northwest menu with a modern Mexican influence is reasonably priced, creative and innovative.

For two decades, Peter and Tari Bowman have nourished Vallarta at their serene, if somewhat incongruously named, restaurant. What started as a beach-side eatery has been transformed into a sophisticated, world-class establishment, where service is attentive, yet non-intrusive, in a contemporary atmosphere. 

One of the hottest restaurants in town, everything about it inspired by authentic Mexican traditions. Explore this country's most amazing dishes with confidence, because they're all wonderful here. And we can't say enough about the duck carnitas! Even the cocktails are never to be forgotten. — 

Hacienda San Angel is a masterpiece restoration of three classic Vallarta-style houses set on the hillside overlooking Banderas Bay , almost in touching distance of the spire of the historic center´s landmark Guadalupe church. 

Since 1995, it has been a tradition for European and Austrian dining. The decor and portrait of Kaiser Maximilian transport you to the atmosphere of a Viennese café at the end of the 19th century. Dine in the dining room or at sidewalk tables. 

Haute cuisine and friendly service combine in this tropical setting at Los Muertos Beach for the perfect balance of fine dining and the charm of Puerto Vallarta. This is one of Vallarta's favorite places to enjoy excellent food in a casually elegant atmosphere. 

The tastes and aromas that have emanated from their kitchen since 1995 reinforce the notion that only a native Italian can truly know this sophisticated cuisine. An abundance of return patrons attests to Mimmo´s passion for the freshest, finest local and imported ingredients.

Everything about this intimate spot is superior, yet the prices are considerate. Its artistic earth-tone décor is a sophisticated backdrop for the presentation of "High Mexican Cuisine," with today's Mediterranean, Caribbean, Asian and Continental influences on its pre-Columbian and Colonial roots.

A smooth blend of ancestral and contemporary Mexican gourmet cuisine with the Mediterranean's hearty influence, this fresh and cheery restaurant in a colonial home is an oasis of calm in the heart of town, and the ideal spot for a romantic dinner in rustic elegance.

An exceptionally pretty restaurant celebrating the vivacious spirit of Mexico's most authentic cuisine in six different ambiances, including an ocean-view terrace, garden sanctuary and air-conditioned dining room. Everything is made from scratch, from tortillas to moles and sauces. Open daily for lunch and dinner, noon to midnight.

Named "the" number one restaurant for shrimp lovers by many pleased clients since it first opened, where the jumbo-size shrimp are prepared in many different ways to please the client, like the half coconut shell stuffed with shrimp with a mouth-watering dipping sauce.

On the Isla Río Cuale, The River Café has it all: great location, ambience, food and service. From its opening it has grown steadily in popularity to become a thriving new spot in Puerto Vallarta´s restaurant scene. Visit for casual but elegant dining. 

European chefs Bernhard Güth and Ulf Henriksson have become the favorites of locals and food critics with their hearty honest food. This cosmopolitan, multi-level eatery with an open courtyard, Tiffany-style windows and hand painted doors is top notch, the atmosphere always welcoming. 

What vistas this sophisticated venue is privy to, jutting terraces making you feel the views are yours alone. Despite the setting, the exquisitely prepared and presented food is really what this refined place is all about. Beef carpaccio and coconut shrimp two appetizing possibilities. 

Everyone is raving about this oceanfront bistro offering something completely different in Vallarta, classic and contemporary bistro fare in a casual European Riviera ambiance. This swanky but definitely unstuffy art deco space is sister restaurant to the popular Trio. 

The newest entertainment option in Puerto Vallarta has the town's largest wine cellar, great music, and fusion Pacific Rim cuisine served in three different environments — indoors in a semiformal ambiance, in a casual garden, and in a lounge that overlooks the ocean and the garden.

Lovers of authentic Italian cuisine will enjoy an unforgettable meal with fine ingredients at this South Shore location. The menu includes classic recipes of Italian gastronomy, featuring the world-famous Fettuccine Alfredo, created by the grandfather of the charismatic proprietor of the brand.

Paradise does exist. And this giant palapa is in the midst of it. Providing stupendous views, it's surprising that the food is so exquisite, too. Featuring fabulously fresh seafood as well as Black Angus steaks – you're invited to mix and match, as you like.