Planning a trip and searching for the best restaurants in Cartagena? From fresh cazuela de mariscos in Getsemaní to rooftop cocktails in the Walled City, here’s exactly where to eat and what to order at some of the top Cartagena restaurants.
Cartagena is a vibrant city whose colorful, nuanced layers also extend to its food scene.
During my trip to Cartagena, I spent some lovely evenings wandering the cobblestones of the Centro Histórico and Getsemani, chasing down the best bites this city has to offer. What I found is that Cartagena’s food scene is truly underrated.
We’re talking Caribbean seafood so fresh it tastes like it was swimming an hour ago. Ceviche that will surprise you in several slightly different versions than you might be used to. High energy cocktail bars tucked into candlelit courtyards.
Whether you’re craving a casual seafood shack, a fun night out with friends, or a candlelit fine-dining experience, whatever your vibe, you can find it all in Cartagena.
And since I couldn’t make it to all of the best restaurants in Cartagena on my own, I’ve enlisted the help of a few other travel blogger friends whose taste I trust.
So whether you’ve got 48 hours or a full week to explore, consider this your no-fluff, eat-here-first guide to some of the top restaurants in Cartagena.
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What to eat and drink in Cartagena
We can’t talk about Cartagena restaurants without talking about the food itself. Here are a few classic Cartagena dishes you need to order before you leave.
Cazuela de Mariscos – This rich, coconut-milk seafood stew is the unofficial dish of Cartagena, and every restaurant has its own spin. Some lean heavier on shrimp and lobster, others go deep on coconut flavor. Order it at a few different spots and compare notes. I tried two different versions during my time in Cartagena, and loved them both!
Ceviche, Cartagena-style – Tangy, citrusy, and loaded with fresh catch of the day, ceviche here gets a Caribbean twist with coconut milk and tropical fruit that you won’t find in Peru or Mexico. I also enjoyed two ceviches that had seafood partially cooked, whereas it’s usually raw in traditional ceviche.
Posta Negra Cartagenera – A slow-braised sirloin in a sweet-savory sauce made from panela and a splash of Coca-Cola. It’s traditionally a special-occasion dish, which means ordering it on a random Tuesday feels appropriately rebellious.
Patacones and Arepas de Huevo. These carb-forward, can’t-stop-eating-them sides seem to show up everywhere in Cartagena. Patacones are fried green plantains that are often shaped as cups and topped with various meat or seafood toppings (see photo above). Arepas de Huevo are crispy fried arepas stuffed with egg. You’ll find these from street food vendors as well as in restaurants throughout the city.
Aguardiente and Pisco Sours – Cartagena’s nightlife runs on these two drinks. Aguardiente, an anise-flavored local liquor, is a rite of passage. Pisco sours dominate the rooftop bar scene, especially around sunset over the Walled City skyline.
Marlynn’s Tip
Foodie Tip
🇨🇴 Read our Traditional Food from Colombia article to learn more about the most popular foods of this South American country.
Alma
by Claire Zlobin, Life with a Baby
Alma Restaurant, located in the intimate Hotel Casa San Agustín, is a one-of-a-kind experience.
Entering the stunning property itself feels like stepping into Cartagena’s past. The boutique property is made up of three beautifully restored colonial homes connected by leafy courtyards and centred around a centuries-old aqueduct that somehow feels as though it has always belonged there.
Dinner at Alma felt special from the moment we sat down. The setting strikes that rare balance between elegance and comfort, where conversations seem to linger long after the plates have been cleared.
The menu draws inspiration from Colombia’s Caribbean coastline, and every dish felt thoughtfully prepared without being overly complicated. Fresh seafood, vibrant local flavours, and beautifully presented plates made it one of the standout meals of our Cartagena stay.
What I loved most was that Alma never felt like a hotel restaurant. It felt like the kind of place locals would choose for a celebration and travellers would happily return to for a second night. In a city known for exceptional dining, Alma still managed to stand out.
Prices: expect to spend approximately 160,000–280,000 COP ($40–$70 USD) per person for dinner with cocktails.
Address: Calle de la Universidad No. 36-44, Centro Histórico, Cartagena
Hours: Open daily for lunch and dinner, noon to 11:00 PM. Live music Wednesday through Saturday from 7:30 PM to 10:30 PM.
For more information, pleas visit the Alma restaurant website.
Cande restaurant
by Marlynn Jayme Schotland, Urban Bliss Life
If you’re looking for dinner with a show in Cartagena, book a table at Candé restaurant.
Regarded as the most traditional restaurant in Cartagena, Candé is nestled inside a lovingly restored Spanish Colonial-era building. The restaurant has been telling the story of this city through food for over a decade, making it a popular destination restaurant for tourists.
The menu is packed with fresh seafood, traditional rice dishes, wild meats like ram and rabbit, and iconic soups like mote de queso and higadete. Many of the recipes here have been passed down through generations.
Dinners here are lively and loud, with nightly live music on stage, folkloric dance performances, and cultural entertainers woven right into dinner service. It’s not the place if you’re looking for a quiet romantic, intimate meal, but it’s perfect for groups looking for a full dining experience.
Must-orders include the ceviche, lobster bisque, and the signature Tamarind cocktail. Candé also earned Wine Spectator Awards of Excellence in both 2020 and 2022, so the wine list here is no afterthought.
Prices: 134,000 COP ($40 USD) to 234,000 COP ($70 USD) per person with drinks. Reservations strongly recommended.
Address: San Diego, Cra 10, Cl. de la Serrezuela #39-02, San Diego, Cartagena
Hours: Monday through Wednesday 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM, Thursday through Saturday 7:00 AM to 11:30 PM, Sunday 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM.
For more information, please visit the Cande website.
Carta Ajena
by Marlynn Jayme Schotland, Urban Bliss Life
Carta Ajena restaurant is tucked inside OSH Hotel in Getsemaní, one of Cartagena’s hippest neighborhoods. Serving up classic Colombian dishes with Italian and Asian influences, the restaurant is modern, spacious, and equal parts stylish and unpretentious.
The kitchen focuses on natural, less processed ingredients, creating flavors that feel light, fresh, and easy to enjoy. If you’re a guest at OSH hotel, breakfast is included, and their buffet is one of the best hotel breakfasts I have experienced while traveling. Outside of the buffet, the breakfast menu features standout dishes like hearty shakshuka eggs (pictured above).
But don’t sleep on dinner at this hotel restaurant, too. I absolutely loved my cazuela de mariscos, which is a classic Cartagena seafood stew. The seafood was fresh and plentiful, and the broth was so flavorful.
Service is consistently friendly and attentive. I found most of the waitstaff going above and beyond to make restaurant guests feel at home.
Prices: expect to pay approximately 67,000 COP ($20) to 134,000 COP ($40) USD per person for dinner. The breakfast buffet is included for hotel guests.
Address: Calle 31, Cl. de la Magdalena #10-77, Getsemaní, Cartagena
Hours: Open daily for breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm. The breakfast buffet is open daily from 6:00 AM to 10:00 AM.
For more information, please visit the Carta Ajena website.
Casual Bistro Local
Don’t let the name deceive you! While the atmosphere is friendly and relaxed, the food is anything but boring at this restaurant located in the trendy Getsemani neighborhood of Cartagena. Right away, you can see that everything is prepared with care and a little bit of whimsy. Staying at the Osh Hotel around the corner made it an easy pick for lunch or dinner (or both!).
The space is the brainchild of husband and wife team Chef Jaime Galindo of Sambal Bistro fame, one of Cartagena’s top restaurants, and Jaris Julio, the CEO of their other venture Jaris Market, an agro-ecological market. And this small but mighty bistro brings local coastal flavor and creativity to every dish.
Jaris’ roots and deep connection to the land are evident in the ingredients she uses. The taste of the purple sweet potatoes her grandmother cooked for her when she was a child growing up in the Montes de María area was such a favorite that she wanted to use them in the menu.
The trouble was that this beautiful mountainous region about 90 miles south of Cartagena became a battleground during the long internal armed-conflict in the country, displacing tens of thousands people, including Jaris’ family and farmers on the land.
When the conflict ended in the early 2000s, she began a decade-long hunt to find the same variety of potatoes her grandmother used. A lone farmer had stumbled upon them on overgrown land and was using them to feed his pigs. Now, they have a partnership so the potatoes can be grown for and used at the restaurant and also sold at Jaris Market.
Other ingredients are fresh and not nearly as hard to find. In fact, they take great pride in supporting local, sustainable farmers and fishermen in the region, and all the ingredients are chosen with care and prepared with passion and creativity under Chef Jaime Galindo’s guidance. While most of the dishes are a nod to Colombian Caribbean cuisine, there are some surprising dishes on the menu too. It’s one of the few places you can get a Vietnamese banh mi sandwich in the city!
Whether you are looking for some of the best local ceviche, the catch of the day, crab or braised beef rib, you’ll get a dish that is rich in flavor and perfectly balanced.
The presentation is also not an afterthought. Edible flowers are used as garnishes on just about every dish, including on the drinks! Is this a nod to Florentino who, as a character in Love In the Time of Cholera (a book set in Cartagena) ate flowers to internalize his passion for Fermina? Perhaps. Regardless, I was smitten!
Prices: per person you can expect to spend approximately 67,000 to 134,000 COP ($20 to $40 USD). Starters run 45,000 COP ($14 USD) to 57,000 ($17 USD), and main courses range from 57,000 COP ($17 USD) to 89,000 ($27 USD).
Address: Calle de La Media Luna, cl. 10 #104, Getsemaní, Cartagena de Indias, Bolívar
Hours: open daily from 12:00pm to 10:00 pm
For more information, please visit the Casual Bistro Local website.
Mar y Zielo
by Michelle Marine, Simplify, Live, Love
Vibe: If you’re heading to Cartagena, make a reservation at Mar y Zielo (Ocean & Sky). Located inside Casa de la Escribana, the historic office of the colony’s first official scribe, this restaurant is as rich in history as it is in flavor.
Opened in 2019 after a full and thoughtful restoration, it’s a stunning space. Artifacts from the building’s colonial past are displayed throughout the restaurant alongside gorgeous murals, floor-to-ceiling wine racks, and lovely light fixtures. The main bar is a showstopper, and you must head up to the rooftop bar even if you can’t get a seat. The views over the cathedral and the city’s terracotta rooftops were among my favorite sights in Cartagena.
Every dish arrives on handmade pottery crafted by Colombian artists, which makes the dining experience fell that much more authentic. We were lucky enough to meet our chef that evening, Over Salgado, who began cooking with his mother and grandmother when he was 15 years old.
What to order: You can’t go wrong with much at Mar y Zielo. Their menu reflects Colombia’s flavor diversity and is fantastic.
One of my favorites included the smoked salmon montadito on corn bread, which is a fresh, elegant opener. And the Bocana Croquettes, local crab with coconut and lacto-fermented paprika, are crispy, creamy, and delicious.
Don’t even think about skipping dessert: the Chepacorina, a caramelized milk ice cream with cheese cookies, crumble, and buffalo milk caramel, is the kind of dish you’ll still be thinking about on the flight home.
Prices: Expect to spend roughly $120–$180 USD for two with drinks. Starters run COP 58,000–68,000 ($14–$16 USD) and mains COP 75,000–123,000 ($18–$29 USD). The creative cocktails are around COP 52,000 ($12 USD). For a special night out in Cartagena, Mar y Zielo is a must visit.
Address: Cra. 5 #34-63, El Centro, Cartagena de Indias, Bolívar, Colombia
Hours: lunch (closed for lunch Wednesday and Friday) 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm; dinner daily 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
For more information or to make a reservation, please visit the Mar y Zielo website.
Bar: Alquimico
After dining at one of these restaurants, keep the good vibes going by stopping at Alquimico.
Ranked #11 on the World’s 50 Best Bars list for 2025, Alquímico is housed inside a stunning restored colonial mansion in the Walled City. It spans three floors, each with its own vibe and cocktail menu. Think multi-floor party palace meets craft cocktail lab. Expect a crowd, great energy, and some of the most interesting cocktails you can try.
The ground floor, La Mansión, leans cerebral and ingredient-forward, which is where our party parked it for our visit. The second floor, El Balcón, focuses on reimagined classics. And the rooftop, Terraza, is full-on fun with live DJs, reggaeton, and tiki-inspired cocktails under the open sky.
They make all of the classic cocktails here. I ordered a Hugo Spritz that was absolutely fantastic! But you’ll also find unique flavor-forward cocktails that lean into normally savory ingredients like corn and fennel that you don’t find in many cocktail menus.
Alquimico is committed to showcasing local ingredients and supporting local farms and farm organizations. They’ve built more than just another bar, they’ve built a community space where the spirit of Colombia shines.
Price: You can expect to spend about 33,500 COP tp 67,000 COP ($10-$20 USD) per cocktail, which I think is reasonable for the caliber.
Address: Cl. del Colegio #34-24, El Centro, Cartagena de Indias
Hours: Open nightly from 6 PM to 2 AM, and until 3 AM on weekends. Walk-ins only; they do not take reservations.
For more information, please visit the Alquimico website.
Tips for dining in Cartagena
Tipping isn’t mandatory, but a 10% gratuity is customary at nicer sit-down restaurants and is often automatically added to your bill (look for “propina voluntaria”). Always check before adding extra so you’re not double-tipping.
You will need reservations for popular spots in the Walled City and Getsemani, especially on weekends. Book a few days ahead if you can. Walk-ins are usually fine at casual seafood joints and street food stalls, and at more popular restaurants during the less touristy seasons.
Yes, increasingly so. While much of Cartagena’s food scene is still meat and seafood heavy, restaurants have grown more plant-forward in recent years. It is becoming easier to find restaurants offering dedicated vegetarian and pescatarian menus alongside the meat-forward classics.
Generally yes, especially at stalls with high local foot traffic and visible turnover (a sign the food’s fresh). Stick to busy stands, watch food being cooked to order, and you’ll be fine — just use the same common sense you would anywhere.
Casual-chic works for most restaurants — think linen shirts, sundresses, and breathable fabrics given the heat and humidity. A handful of upscale spots lean a bit dressier in the evening, but Cartagena is overall a relaxed, resort-casual city.
Where to stay in Cartagena
During my recent trip to Cartagena, I stayed in the OSH Hotel.
Located on a quiet side street in the popular Getsemani neighborhood, this hotel is just steps from the action. Its modern design with warm wood and earthy green tones throughout the hotel makes it feel like a calm, welcoming respite from the busy city.
There are two pool areas, laundry service, and a large, beautiful breakfast buffet with fresh fruits, meats, and hot dishes that help make this a nice, relaxing home away from home.
More things to do in Colombia
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