7 Best Restaurants in Southwest Colombia, Colombia

Altos de Yerbabuena Cafe Restaurante

$$$ Fodor's choice
Just outside San Agustín, this is the perfect place to stop after your tour of the Parque Arqueológico de Tierradentro's archaeological treasures. The perfectly cooked meat dishes are the best of the menu, particularly the local classic, lomo al trapo, where the fillet is salted and wrapped in a cloth before being tossed on the fire. There are some excellent vegetarian options, and the ingredients are all fresh and tasty, many coming from the backyard vegetable garden. The restaurant is perched right on the roadside and easy to miss; keep an eye out for the rustic red-and-white farmhouse.

Empanadas Obelisco

$ Fodor's choice

Although you can dine inside, try to snag one of the tables across the street on the bank of the Río Cali. Here, a tiny restaurant serves up the best empanadas in the city, some say, in the entire country. Get your empanadas with a lulada, a classic caleño drink made of crushed lulo fruit.

Mora Castilla

$ Fodor's choice
Popayán is famous for its local delicacies, and you'll find the best of them here, like the salpicón poayense (a drink of crushed ice and fresh blackberries) or empanadas de pipián (fried empanadas with a potato filling served with a spicy peanut sauce). Portions are small, so try a bit of everything.

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Platillos Voladores Restaurant

$$$ Fodor's choice
This elegant home turned restaurant is one of the city's smartest dining options, offering carefully prepared dishes with a contemporary twist. Seafood is the highlight, with dishes that brilliantly blend the main ingredient with local fruits or plantain; don't miss the risotto or creamy coconut-based soups that are a coastal tradition. Interior murals by artist Carlos Andrade add color, but it is the calm, leafy patio that is the prize spot. Service is excellent, but the place is hugely popular, so reserve ahead and don't be in a rush.

Restaurante Ringlete

$$ Fodor's choice
There's simply no better place to try local Vallecaucana cuisine than from the hands of talented chef Martha Jaramillo, in this colorful, restored home. Many of her recipes are built on those of her grandparents and are slow cooked with rich, wholesome flavors like the classic arroz atollado (sticky rice with various meats) or the cola endiablado (beer-braised oxtail spiced up with three local chilies). Wash it all down with a lulada.

Bosques de Cocora Donde Juan B

$$

If you're in Salento, head out to the Cocora Valley, where restored fincas now serve as country-style restaurants and guesthouses. The Bosques de Cocora is the pick of the bunch, offering sumptuous dishes of the local delicacy, trout, and set against a cloud-forest backdrop. At the restaurant, inquire about accommodation in their guesthouse, Finca San José.

La Cosecha Parrillada Restaurant

$$
There are plenty of restaurants in and around the center that have decent offerings, but La Cosecha stands out for quality and service. You can expect generous portions of well-cooked beef and some superb examples of local favorites like lengua a la criolla (beef tongue in a creole tomato and onion sauce).