Salento, Colombia

A tiny but vibrant town, Salento sits atop the mountain above the Valle De Cocora, and is filled with artisan shops, restaurants and cafes. There is a mirador (lookout) at the top of the hill that is worth the hike up a long set of stairs. And of course, there is a swing. 🙂

Downtown Salento is tiny, but teeming with locals and backpackers alike, all in search for good food!

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Three Great Places to Eat in Salento

We found Salento to be a great town for good food! Being a backpackers town, it caters more to the international palate rather than serving strictly Colombian food. So, where are all the best places to eat in Salento?

1) Brunch Diner– American food run by an older gentleman from Bend, Oregon who moved to Salento five years ago to start his restaurant. Travelers write on the walls with sharpies, which gives it lots of character and makes meals quite entertaining because there is a lot of wall-reading material. The staff paints over the walls to start fresh every so often and they are immediately filled yet again with eager travelers excited to spread their message, leave their Instagram tag, leave an inspiring quote or draw a funny picture. This place is known for their home-made peanut butter (the brownie is out of this world and we may or may not have had one every day while we were in Salento – don’t judge us) and burgers using fresh meat from local cows. The Holy Guacamole will have you slipping into a serious food coma. They give a heaping generous portion of guac atop a juicy burger with grilled onions and mushrooms on home-made bread and special sauce with a side of fries. Have I convinced you yet? Here’s a photo if you need further motivation:

2) Bernabe – Local fusion cuisine. Outdoor patio and covered courtyard seating available. Lovely ambiance and excellent food! We dined here for dinner where I ordered two huge medallions of filet mignon for $8 USD…EIGHT DOLLARS!!! The quality of meat was outstanding. You would never find filet mignon in America for under $20. Mind blown. For lunch I ordered the salmon with lime-coffee-triplesec glaze.

3) Jesus Martin Cafe (pronounced “Hey-zoos Mar-teen”.) They had great coffee but terrible pastries. Don’t order the chocolate cake, it was a disappointment. All their coffee is made from first-grade beans (the highest quality).

We thoroughly enjoyed our three weeks in Colombia, a resilient country teeming with pride for their cities. The coastal people are vibrant, loud, open and friendly, and the mountain towns are authentic and filled with character and life. Our favorite thing about Colombia was the fresh produce and temperate climate, making way for a very easy pace of life.

We are already thinking about when we can come back to see everything we missed (Tayrona National Park, The Amazon, Los Sierra Nevadas, etc.) but for now, we will cherish the memories and vibrant colorful photos of a place where we left a little piece of our heart.

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