Gay Nagle Myers
The Zamas Hotel in Tulum focuses on local food, art and drink and the natural surroundings and nearby Mayan ruins.
When Susan Bohlken and Daniel
Vallejo McGettigan opened the Zamas Hotel in 1993, their goal was to create “an
ecologically responsible, nonresort hotel in the middle of the Mayan ruins,
jungle and beaches.”
To set it apart in the highly
competitive Cancun/Riviera Maya market, the property relies on its location
(the picturesque town of Tulum, near the Tulum Ruins to the north and Sian
Ka’an biosphere reserve to the south), its setting (two acres on the Caribbean
coast), its accommodations (18 beachside cabanas and bungalows nestled in the
jungle or a coconut grove) and its focus (local food, drink and art).
A big part of that focus, and
a mainstay of its promotional efforts, is the annual Taste of Tulum, a visiting
chef and bartender series that pays homage to the founders’ hometown of San
Francisco.
Chefs and mixologists from
the Bay area shop in local farmers’ markets and then prepare a dinner menu for
guests served in the open-air, beachfront dining rooms of Que Fresco.
“San Francisco has always
been at the forefront of the culinary scene. This year’s first event, in March,
featured San Francisco chef Anthony Strong of Delfina Restaurant Group, who
prepared a menu that blended Italian dishes with Yucatan specialties,” said
Bohlken.
Six more Taste of Tulum
culinary events are scheduled for this year; dates for those sessions are April 23 to 28; June 1 to 5; Sept. 29 to Oct. 1; Oct. 17 to 21;
Nov. 10 to 13; and Dec. 8 to 11.
To learn more about Taste of
Tulum, visit www.zamas.com/taste-of-tulum.