Mercado Municipal

Top choice in Villa de Leyva


On its way to becoming Boyacá's most interesting dining experience, this chef-driven restaurant in the gardens of a colonial house (1740) has resurrected ancient techniques of cooking meat in a 1m-deep underground wood-burning barbacoa (barbecue). Among the specialties are rich pork ribs in apricot barbecue sauce – the tender meat slides effortlessly off the bone.

But the varied menu goes beyond meat. There's a risotto made from cebada perla (a locally grown type of barley), fresh palm hearts from the Putumayo region and some wonderful desserts, including coconut-caramel pie. Buen provecho!

It's also a fine place to stick around for after-dinner drinks; the bar staff make good cocktails and there's a wide range of spirits.