Today we went to Mariscos El Veneno because it was recommended to us on Facebook.
Hello, again. My dad and I, and sometimes my mom comes along too, have been going out on the town to find some of the best not so popular cheap eats, mostly family-owned, restaurants that we can find. We go out almost every day, finding some new little place, or big place, to tell you about and review the food and prices.
Today we went to a restaurant that a man that goes by Jose Ramirez, one of my readers, recommended. He sent a picture of tuna sashimi and told us that all the food there was delicious and fresh. He also told us he could get us a discount, since the owners were like his family, but we refused to take any discounts or promotions. We pay full price for all of our meals plus leave a good tip at all of the restaurants we review, so, instead, we got a discount for you guys! If you go and say Maya sent you, you can get Margaritas or Piña Coladas buy one get one free!! The restaurant is called Mariscos El Veneno, and is located on Milan #321 in La Vena, and the longitude latitude location is 20.633564119864648, -105.2247219729186.
El Veneno serves many different types of seafood, some of which I’ve never heard of before! They have a dish that is a pineapple cut in half and stuffed with cheese and shrimps and goodness, called Piña Rellena, though I didn’t order it since it was so much food. And it sounded delicious but was also a little pricey compared to the stuff I usually write about. In fact this place didn’t really count as cheap eats, so I was hesitant to write about it, but then I found out that it is all family ran, the owner had owned it for almost 30 years, and compared to the tourist zone it is decently cheap, and compared to US prices, it is extremely cheap, so I thought I might as well.
Before we even ordered they brought us two complementary tostadas, as they do to everyone, as well as a small bowl of habanero sauce. One of the tostadas was a warmed smoked marlin, and the other was typical Vallarta style ceviche. I’ve never had marlin before, but I was so shocked at how pink it was, and even more at the flavor! It was delicious, salty, and verrrrrry soft. My dad said that it was the first marlin he’s ever had plain that he actually liked. The ceviche was pretty good too, though I liked the marlin much better. The ceviche was fresh, nice and cold, juicy, and the fish in it was very soft too, though I’m not sure what type of fish it was. The habanero sauce that they brought was really shocking, because it was sooo spicy! Very yummy, but spicy nonetheless, so be careful with it.
I got myself a cold small shrimp cocktail and a naranjada, which, if you don’t know what that is, it’s like lemonade but instead of lemons or limes oranges are used. The cocktail had a shrimp broth base, and was perfectly salted and delicious on its own, though I did add a lot of ketchup, as well as some habanero sauce, to make it more cocktail sauce-y. The shrimps were all really tender and soft, and also had pretty good flavor, and all the vegetables in it such as cucumber and onion added a nice little crunch. Everything about it was really good, and the price, though not cheap, was very fair.
My dad got the tuna sashimi that Jose sent us a picture of, and it was just as delicious as my cocktail. The tuna was super fresh and cool, and the cucumbers were crisp. But what makes tuna sashimi tuna sashimi is the sauce, and this sauce was super interesting. It reminded both me and my dad of an Italian vinaigrette, and we agreed that the sashimi would go great on some big, fresh, and juicy pieces of lettuce. Even though it was not flavored the way that I am used to, it was still super good, though kinda hard to describe.
E Veneno is a very large place, and it’s very pretty too. They have dozens of chairs and tables on the bottom floor, and there are a few tables upstairs, which is a small area and doesn’t have the greatest view ever, but it’s nice to be up where there’s a breeze and fresh air. Also, the bathrooms are all very clean and pretty big.
El Veneno's WhatsApp: 322 225 0426
El Veneno's Phone Number: 322 353 0416
If you enjoyed this article, and would like to recommend a place that you know about, then please let me know. Or, if you are an owner yourself of a place that you would like to see written about, contact me.
And to see the rest of my food reviews go to the Dining Out section here in Vallarta Bay Times.