Six Tips for Memorable Restaurant Week Dining Experiences: Year after year, we receive positive feedback from diners that dine out during Restaurant Week. That said, there is always room for improvement! Here are some tips we’ve assembled to ensure that your Restaurant Week experience in Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Nayarit will be amazing.

Edible Flowers in Jalisco: While we usually consider dried hibiscus flowers as the main ingredient in agua de jamaica, a refreshing beverage, they can also be used as a savory taco filling! Learn more about them, along with other savory flowers available locally.

Tequila!: Considered North America's first indigenous distilled spirit, tequila production originated in the 16th century near the town of Tequila, Jalisco. It is made from agave, a plant considered sacred by the Aztec, who used it to produce octly, a fermented beverage now known as pulque.

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 7-7): Restaurant Week 2012 began three days ago, as we wrap our preview of the 45 participating restaurants. We present you with the final six restaurants that are participating in Restaurant Week for the very first time. Welcome newbies! And if you've missed previous installments, the links to our Countdown articles can be found at the bottom of the article page.

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 6-7): Here are the newbies! Thirteen restaurants are participating for the very first time in this year’s edition of Restaurant Week, offering foodies all over the bay excellent reasons to try out new restaurants and explore their enticing discounted menus, May 15 - 31. We present seven of them here, and wrap up our countdown next week.

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 4-7): Without counting restaurants participating for the first time, this year’s Restaurant Week, May 15 - 31, will feature 12 restaurants offering three-course menus at $189 pesos per person. In the fourth of a seven-part feature, we focus on the first group of $189-menu restaurants, wrapping up the series with all restaurants participating in Restaurant Week for the first time.

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 3-7): In the third of a seven-part feature, we focus on the final group of $299-menu restaurants that will participate in this year’s Restaurant Week, May 15 - 31. We will continue with the $189-menu participants and wrap up the series with all restaurants participating in Restaurant Week for the first time. Did you miss the previous installments? Look for a link at the bottom of the page!

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 2-7): In the second of a seven-part feature, we continue focusing on the $299-menu restaurants that will participate in this year’s Restaurant Week, May 15 - 31. We will continue with the $189-menu participants and wrap up the series with all restaurants participating in Restaurant Week for the first time.

Countdown to Restaurant Week 2012 (Part 1-7): In the first of a seven-part feature, we take a closer look at the 45 restaurants that will participate in this year’s Restaurant Week, May 15 - 31. We begin with the $299-menu participants, continue with the $189 participants, and wrap up the series with all restaurants participating in Restaurant Week for the first time.

Puerto Vallarta: Three Essential Cocktails: Regardless of the food specialties you choose to savor at the local restaurants you visit during your Banderas Bay vacation, we recommend stopping by the following three eateries, where we found cocktails that were unique, surprising and absolutely memorable. ¡Salud!

Craving • Michelada: Meet the michelada, a popular Mexican beverage made by combining cold beer with freshly squeezed lime juice.

A Visual Guide to Corn Tamales: Believed to be at least 5,000 years old—they were served by the Aztecs to Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez—tamales are one of Mexico’s most beloved comfort foods.

Craving • Tacos al Pastor: An indisputable king of popular nighttime Mexican cuisine—for some reason, you can seldom find them anywhere before sundown—tacos al pastor  are made with thinly sliced pork that has been marinated for a couple of days and stacked on a vertical rotisserie.

Cottage Industry Treats in Puerto Vallarta: Mmm ... from freshly baked cinnamon buns to savory sausages to canned chutneys and salsas, the sight, scent and taste of edible treats made from scratch have captivated our senses for generations

Craving • Chilaquiles: Few traditional Mexican cuisine staples are as versatile as chilaquiles (chee-lah-key-less). For some, this humble treat is the best cure for a hangover.

Painting with Frosting: For Zulem Angel Mendoza, each cake is a painting, a work of art where the canvas is the cake, the brushes decorating tips, and the paint colored frosting.

Craving • Shrimp Cocktail: As the temperatures begin to rise, nothing beats a refreshingly cool shrimp cocktail. But interestingly enough, in some restaurants in this region of Mexico, it is not uncommon to serve it warm!

Craving • Fish Tacos: While fish tacos are not as widespread in Mexico’s inland cities and towns, they are quite popular at sea-level destinations such as Puerto Vallarta.

Sculpting with Food: In culinary parlance, the garde manger, or keeper of the food, is the person responsible for preparing and presenting cold foods.

La Palapa 50 Years of Restoring Guests’ Spirits: On December 31, 1958, La Palapa held its inauguration. And since January 1, 1959, this famous restaurant has been serving locals and tourists alike.

Slow Food Gains Speed in Banderas Bay: Slow Food is finally gaining speed in Banderas Bay.

Craving: Sushi: Curiously enough, it is believed that sushi began as a fish-preservation method, rice fermentation preventing it from spoiling.

The Pleasure of Drinking Wine in Puerto Vallarta: Enjoying a glass of wine with your dinner at a Puerto Vallarta restaurant some 15 years ago could be boiled down to a basic, often crude choice: red or white. Wonderful how things have changed through the years!

Cravings: Plátano Macho: Not to be confused with bananas, their sweeter and smaller counterparts, plantains are a staple food in many tropical regions of the world.

Cravings: Churros & Hot Chocolate: There’s nothing like the smell of deep-fried churros with cinnamon in the evening air.

Molecular Gastronomy: Culinary Art Meets Science: Having dinner at a gourmet restaurant, seduced by the flavors and aromas of the spectacular dishes before you, it’s easy to forget that cooking is, fundamentally, the result of a series of chemical and physical processes.

Discover Ceviche: Step into just about any restaurant in Puerto Vallarta or any oceanfront destination in Mexico, for that matter, and chances are you will find this delicious citrus-marinated seafood salad on the menu. Commonly served as an appetizer, ceviche is prepared by combining chunks of raw fish, sliced or chopped onion, chopped tomatoes and cilantro with limejuice.

Pescado Sarandeado:
A few minutes before the fish is finished cooking over the wood fire, the cook adds the final touch: a secret red sauce that gives the fish its special flavor. This traditional dish, which originated in the fishing region of Isla de Mexcaltitan, Nayarit, is usually prepared with pargo (sea bream), a fish that does not readily dry out when exposed to heat because of the fat content of its skin.

Cravings: Sopes & Huaraches: As clay is transformed into amazing artifacts in the hands of a ceramist, the dough used to make corn tortillas, known as masa, can also result in these delicious traditional treats commonly found in mercados and other casual eateries throughout Mexico.

Homemade Ice Cream: While most of us have been succumbing to this sublime favorite for eons, producing ice cream at home or in small quantities has been a labor-intensive task until recently. Smaller, electric ice cream makers that rely on small canisters that can be placed in the freezer ahead of time to facilitate production have taken the place of old-fashioned hand-cranked machines that required ice chunks and salt for cooling.