Considering the amount of traffic that Otavalo gets, the choice of restaurants in the town is fairly limited. There are a few tourist-friendly places around the Plaza de Ponchos, plus the usual rice-with-everything Ecuadorian eateries on every other corner. For really good, international food try some of the top end hotels in town. Most of the higher end hotels and hostels serve up delicious, healthy food, often using vegetables grown in their own gardens.
Buena Vista, located on the second floor of a building on the edge of the Plaza de Ponchos, certainly lives up to the name (Good View). The vista is especially fine if you’re lucky enough to get one of the two tables on the balcony. The restaurant is a great spot for breakfast on a Saturday...
El Árbol de Montalvo is an eatery located in the back of the Hostal Doña Esther. The restaurant has a cozy bistro-like atmosphere, which is at least partly due to the big wood-burning oven in the middle of the space. Árbol de Montalvo serves Mediterranean food and, besides the variety of plates,...
The Ali Shungu Restaurant is an internationally renowned natural foods restaurant. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and cocktails are served in a room decorated with Andean art and the restaurant also has a fireplace and a garden patio with volcano views. The menu has healthy and delicious...
Pizza Siciliana’s warm atmosphere, famous pizzas and wood-burning stove have been enticing both foreigners and locals for years. Pizzas are expensive, averaging around $7 for a small (medium and large are also available), but other dishes, such as salads, hamburgers and sandwiches, are more...
Café Mundi is an Otavalo institution that is run by a charming local couple and their children. The café is a small place, with a few dining tables and one long, low coffee table surrounded by surprisingly comfortable leather benches. The windows are plastered with testimonials from former...