Mercagán

Top choice in Bucaramanga


Often touted as serving the best steak in the whole of Colombia, this traditional parrilla (grilled-meat restaurant) run by a team of brothers is all it's cracked up to be. Perfect slabs of meat from the brothers' own farm come in 200g, 300g or 400g (good luck!) sizes, served on sizzling iron plates.

It's all about the lomo finito (tenderloin). Don't let them butterfly it – you want it en bloque! Another location at nearby Parque San Pío should be open on the nights this one is closed.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Bucaramanga attractions

2. Museo de Arte Moderno de Bucaramanga

0.31 MILES

A bright little museum with two exhibition rooms with rotating exhibits of modern paintings and sculptures. There's also a garden with sculptures and a…

3. Catedral de la Sagrada Familia

0.74 MILES

Facing Parque Santander is Buca's most substantial piece of religious architecture. Constructed over nearly a century (1770–1865), it's a massive,…

4. Mercado Central

1.01 MILES

Buca's colorful, well-organized central market is worth a stroll, especially for its 4th-floor food court with all manner of local eats and mountain…

5. Casa de la Cultura

1.14 MILES

One of Bucaramanga's best preserved colonial mansions, the Casa de la Cultura is currently occupied by an educational institution, but visitors are free…

6. Museo Casa de Bolívar

1.15 MILES

Another piece in the historical jigsaw of Simón Bolívar's life (Colombia is full of them), this slightly musty museum is housed in a colonial mansion…

7. Iglesia de San Laureano

1.22 MILES

This twin-towered, pale-yellow, colonial-period church dominates the east side of Parque García Rovira.

8. Capilla de los Dolores

1.31 MILES

In Parque García Rovira, this diminutive chapel is Bucaramanga's oldest surviving church; it was erected in stone from 1748 to 1750. Its simple…