The Beloved Hotel and Resort with lizard.

My son was married on April 27 of this year at the Beloved Hotel and Resort in Cancun Mexico. I would have been pleased if they got married on the back of a pickup truck in a feed and grain store parking lot. My son is an amazing young man and he married an outstanding young lady. We couldn’t have been happier.

Having said that, the resort they chose was stunning in every aspect. It was an impressive place with great restaurants, pools; superb white sand beaches with knock your socks off service. The Beloved takes the amenity of great service and takes it to a new level bordering on art. I could give example after example of great service but I will give just one that typifies. My wife and I had jumped into our private plunge pool right outside of our casita to relax. It was warm and relaxing and as we were luxuriating in the soothing water I said, “It doesn’t get much better than this”. My wife responded with, “Unless we had some guacamole and chips.” No more than 15 seconds later George (Hor-hay) walked over with a tray and asked if we wanted anything from the bar. We ordered the requisite guacamole and chips and ate them on the side of the plunge pool as we unwound. We were surprised at the service but it was like this for our entire stay. There was example after example of service above and beyond anything I have ever experienced or expected. Just wow!

I will end with the rehearsal dinner, but there was so much else to rave about. We got into the habit of having breakfast in the Aroma Restaurant. It is an á la carte restaurant but with a diversity and selection I have not experienced. If you wanted to, you could get the standard American breakfast of eggs, bacon and or sausage, white bread toast and coffee. It would be well prepared and would do the job. But right next to these offerings was an assortment of fresh melons, pastries of every description including local Mexican delicacies, plus European standards. I had one of the best tortes I have ever had in the Aroma. One day they had a variety of sliced cold meats with various cheeses and on another they would have pumpkin chili with black beans. It wasn’t bad, but I have never been a fan of pumpkin. One of the standout dishes was melon soup. It was creamy, cold and both sweet and with a bit of heat.  Well balanced and delicious.

There were some things I tried that I was not fond of. I have no need to buy a star fruit ever again as I tried one and I don’t need to try one again. I will also scratch coconut porridge from my list of things to try. Practically everything else was good to excellent. The chef at Aroma made the best eggs over easy I have ever had. He accidently broke the yolk for one customer. As the customer was saying that everything was OK, the chef turned the skillet over the trashcan and added two new eggs. He looked at the woman and said,  “I only serve an entree if it is perfect. You deserve it”. All of the service was like that.

There was a sushi bar that we did not have time to go to. From the comments of other guests it was very good and also with excellent service. It was an open setting and was visually attractive and relaxing.

The rehearsal dinner was held at the Lupita Restaurant. The setting was elegant and understated and like everywhere else, the service was impeccable. The cuisine of Mexico has been given UNESCO status as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. In the UNESCO citing they state, “The ingredients, the recipes and food-related customs of Mexico embody, ‘A complex cultural system of agricultural practices, traditions and symbolism imbued with religious meaning and steeped in ritual”. Lupita uses their fixed menu offerings to demonstrate the range and unique dishes of the various regions of Mexico. 
 The dinner started with drinks and they would mix any drink you wanted. As this was an all-inclusive hotel, alcohol was complimentary and refills were prompt; too prompt for a few of the wedding guests. Once everyone was seated we were served a dish called Seafood Xec. I loved it, but this was the single dish that many of the dinner guests passed on. It was their loss. It is thinly sliced sautéed shrimp and octopus with a combination of tomatillo, coriander and thinly sliced cucumber. I found it to be very good, not too strong, and perfectly cooked.
Next was a mango and greens salad including something called Chaya leaves. It was nice and everything was fresh. The mangos were fresh and perfectly ripe.
For the soup course we had Tlalpeño. This is almost like a gazpacho but the chickpeas are creamed and it is much simpler. It also has fresh avocado with a pureed cilantro accent in the center it was outstanding.
The main dish was a real highlight of the meal. It was an ample portion of El Norteño. This was a melt in your mouth beef tenderloin with pumpkin seed crust over mashed potato with corn and “Pasilla” chili sauce.  In addition there were two soft tortilla tacos with red mole sauce.  I am running out of superlatives, but no one went away hungry or upset. Desert was small but delicious and was a piece of crust with a small ball of homemade peanut butter ice cream.  It was way above average.  Overall, this may have been the best complete meal I have ever had.
So how could it get any better? Well I will tell you. Each morning as we left the casita Larry the lawn lizard a large and mature iguana, greeted us. He was well behaved and even dignified. He posed for pictures and he said good night as we closed the day. I would strongly recommend that you go visit Larry. He is waiting to greet you.