Puerto Ayora, Galapagos, Ecuador
Finding a budget place to eat in Galapagos, especially if you’ve given up on cooking in hostels, was tough.
Still reeling from the price tags of the waterfront restaurants of Puerto Ayora, we stumbled across this eating place on a street called Charles Binford, 3 blocks inland.
Sharing the cramped eating space with a group of local cops and taxi drivers confirmed what our $5 lunch bill told us: This street, is the place to eat on a budget in downtown Puerto Ayora.
Charles Binford Ave at night
We ate here for almost all of our meals.
Give the local’s favorite, encocado de pescado (fish in coconut curry) a try. For $6, it’s not cheap by the mainland standard, but compared to everything else in Puerto Ayora, it’s a steal.
And it’s delicious.
Then again, coconut milk makes everything delicious.
Of the many restaurants there, one stood out
Our favorite restaurant is this gem called K.F. Williams.
Remember the restaurant with an identity crisis in Cartagena? Well, we might’ve found one that tops that. Check this out: the owner has murals of himself painted on the walls of the restaurant.
A mural at K.F. Williams of K.F. Williams' head
Not only that, when I asked for a menu, the girl pointed to the wall behind me.
William, William's portrait, and I
He’s got the menu painted, PAINTED, on the wall of the restaurant, complete with prices. Not painted on a board that hung on a wall, but actually on the wall itself.
I imagine they probably don’t change the menu and the prices too often there.
And who do you think prepared encocado de pescado? Nobody but William himself. We recognized him right away (how could we not?). And of course we had to drag him out of his busy kitchen to take pictures.
Is it just us or is the whole thing just simply hilarious? Not to mention a great marketing stint? We can’t seem to get over it.
Just came across this story and loved it. I ate many meals on this street last May during my 2 weeks in the Galapagos. I had a lot of fun meeting the locals there; and like you state, the prices were very decent for the islands.
And weirdly enough, we actually had some of the best seafood meals there during our time in Ecuador. In Galapagos of all places 🙂
Love that menu!!! love it! I love places with a little kitsch and sincerity and even moreso, the fact he makes ordering easy. =)
Love it! Such personality. Fun menus and places like this are awesome
Aren't they? I love finding the quirky little things of a place like this.
Awesome- you guys made it to Galapagos! You guys found the place. I thought that KF Williams was pretty trippy since the place looked more Carribean. I forgot what the drink is called but they serve it in Puerto Ayora. It's an alcoholic bevarage made from fruits of a local tomato tree.
I'll definitely have to bookmark this one as we've been planning a trip there for years. I think next Spring we'll finally make it!
YUM! I agree- anything with coconut is delicious!
I love restaurants that have photo menus. All restaurants should do that. I like to pick my food based on how delicious it looks 🙂