Uruguay Day 7 – Cat Café, Good Mexican Food, and Date Night

We started the day at Pausat (of course), then got pedicures at Estilo & Arte, dropped off dirty clothes at a fluff & fold (Lavadero Pa’Lavar), then headed for a cat cafe called Cafelindo Café and Adoption Center. The café (and cats!) were adorable.

Cafelindo Café and Adoption Center

You can see the cats through the floor-to-ceiling glass walls, but if you want to play with them, you must make a purchase. We had coffee, kombucha, and light snacks (cheese scone and empanada) before heading in to play with the cats.

They had 8 cats and a kitten. All but one came out to play, and enjoyed getting scritches and pets and playing with various toys. The kitten was particularly playful. The one dissenter was happy to sleep high up in a wall hammock.

After the cat cafe, we set off to find beach towels, which had so-far eluded us. We figured the more touristy part of town, Ciudad Vieja, would be our best bet. We were striking out at shop after shop until we spotted a beach chair in the window of a tiny mini mart. That was a good omen, because tucked away in the very back of the store were a few beach towels. Success! (Honestly, why is it so hard to find beach towels in a city surrounded by miles and miles of beaches?)

Lonely Star Mexican Restaurant

Our luck got even better when we spotted Lonely Star Mexican Restaurant directly across the street from where we bought the beach towels. A quick search found it has 5-stars. Could this make up for the horrible tacos from yesterday? The answer is a resounding YES!

The tacos al pastor were not only delicious, they were authentic! The enchiladas were also very good, and the salsas were tasty. We were told the green salsa was “picante”, and they weren’t kidding. It was F-I-R-E. My mouth was numb for a while. The restaurant has two main levels plus a rooftop bar (that was currently closed). They had posters on the walls with various bands/musicians, including The Cure, Billy Bragg, Susana Baca, and Miley Cyrus.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Date Night at Jacinto

We had early dinner reservations at Jacinto (7pm, which is when they open), which is a good date night spot. It’s not overly fancy, but a step up from the more casual spots we’d been to so far. Anthony Bourdain went here on his 2nd visit to Montevideo, and he loved it. So did we.

I had lamb topped with a zucchini relish, and a side of ratatouille, plus a glass of wine. Teresa had grilled polenta on a bed of romesco, topped with blistered tomatoes, prosciutto, caramelized onions, and basil, plus a side of mashed potatoes, all washed down with a crisp beer.

At first we were the only diners, but before long it was about 2/3 full. People generally eat later dinners (8pm to 10pm), so 7pm is usually a good time to ensure a table. We made a reservation, just in case, but probably didn’t need to. For a slightly more upscale place, it was very reasonable. Out the door, with tip, was only $60.

4 out of 5 stars. They lost a half-star because my medium-rare lamb, though very tasty, was much closer to medium than rare.