DRIFT San Jose

I found out about this hidden away boutique hotel from my friend Linda, who has been coming to Baja for over 15 years.  She knows all the places to go, and I always know what she recommends, I will like.

My first visit to Drift was actually with Linda on a Thursday night.  Thursday night in old downtown San Jose is called ArtWalk.  All the shops, restaurants and galleries stay open late, and everyone walks from shop to shop while listening to street music over Mezcal and Tequila.   We stopped at Drift for a quick drink before heading to check out ArtWalk and grab a bite to eat.   I loved how they presented my drink – you can make it as strong as you like….

Drift is actually a small  boutique hotel – I believe it has 6 rooms, and is located just steps from all the bars and shops of old town San Jose.   The decor is Mexican industrial and has a cool but not overly trendy vibe.   Reviews about the staff seem positive “friendly and helpful” and everyone seems to enjoy the daily continental breakfast (especially the coffee).   This might not be everyones taste to stay the night, but it’s a fun stop for a drink around the fire-pit.  Check out booking.com for the best photos and reviews.  Drift also has a website which I found to be very limited with information and photos.  “Drift”

They feature a Tequila and Mezcal bar (they do serve wine as well) and a food truck on Thursday night.  The courtyard, and nearby pool area is quaint, and seemed to be the gathering spot.  I have been on other nights of the week and it was empty.

 

 

 

 

 

Casa Calavera

We recently went to dinner at one of the many hotel restaurants here in Los Cabos.  The hotel is called Vidanta, which is located in San Jose del Cabo quite close to where we live.  Hotel Vidanta has several restaurants, and we dined at Casa Calavera, (website here “Calavera”) and is part of the Hakkasan Group.

The hotel itself is a very large scale-Vegas style hotel, and is architecturally very well done.  Here is a glimpse of the entry of the hotel.  While I am not actually writing about the hotel, this has given me thought to perhaps in the future write about about each of the different hotels here.  Obviously, my loyalty is with the Montage, but there are a lot of great hotels here.

Casa Calavera is all about SKULLS (thus the name), and the decor of the restaurant is fabulous!  The menu is Mexican fare, and they did a great job with both flavors and presentation.  We had a variety of items on the menu  – the tortilla soup was delicious and so were the tempura shrimp tacos!  They have a great bar area and the both the bar and restaurant are located beachside.

A little background on the Calavera

The Calavera (skull) is used for the Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead (Día de Los Muertos) and All Souls Day.   For these celebrations the skulls are often made of sugar (which are edible), clay or any other artistic representation.

 

If you are interested in learning more about Mexican traditions and Día de Los Muertos, I suggest watching the Pixar film called Coco.  We watched it and loved it, and actually both found ourselves crying over this computer-animated film.  Here is the trailer “COCO”

12 Grapes at Midnight

Happy New Year!  Xavier and I rang in our first new year in Mexico.  Of course, Xavier was working – the Montage did their first new year’s eve celebration, which was amazing! They had 3 dinners throughout the property.  One diner was in Mezal, the upscale Mexican restaurant, one dinner in Marea, a more local seafood fare, and one dinner in the ballroom which was featuring Xavier’s food.   I was lucky enough to attend the dinner prepared by Xavier – of course it was DELICIOUS!

Here is Xavier’s menu

Kaluga Caviar Parfait
Pomme Dauphine, Crème Fraiche, Red Beet Horseradish Root

Celery Root & Black Truffle Velouté

Wagyu Short Rib & King Crab
Baby Heirloom Carrots, Hen of the Woods Mushrooms, Purplette Onions,
Sauce Bordelaise

New Year Chocolate Surprise

After dinner there was a band called the Shadowboxers – so much fun, followed by an amazing display of fireworks.  There were fireworks all over Cabos – poor Krug was at home freaking out….the dramamine didn’t seem to help one bit 😦

I learned a New Year’s Eve Mexican tradition which is “12 grapes at midnight”  Instead of kissing at 12AM, the Mexicans are busy eating 12 grapes (usually with each chime of the clock’s bell).  The 12 grapes “Las doce uvas de la suerte” are to bring good luck in the new year.  I hope this Mexican tradition proves to be true in 2019!