Fish Market

There is a good place to eat seafood in Bogotá El Dorado / Salitre area – and that place is Fish Market. Don’t get me wrong, you can also go there for a very nice steak, but be forewarned that you can have delicious meat everywhere in Colombia – and only a handful of nice sea food ones.

Salitre area, close to the airport, is the home of several multinational businesses, as well as some very nice business oriented hotels. And when you have this combination, then, naturally, good restaurants will ensue. Fish Market is located in a small, locked square, with other restaurants as neighbours, and surrounded by a Marriott and a Sheraton. It’s decoration is dark and modern (but really guys, this is still a business restaurant, let’s make it clear – you know that for something to be modern doesn’t need to be dark, right? You could make it a bit brighter…), mainly functional, and “well behaved”. Predictable, in a way.

The big nasty point for whoever is reading this comes next – you better speak Spanish! Like in most of Colombia’s, English is seldom spoken and that means you will only have a Spanish language menu. Not a problem for me, but mind this small point, ok?

But if you have been able to pass through this language barrier, then, you can start preparing your senses. Sea food here is incredibly good (and I come from a sea food country, so, believe me when I say it). Forget about the sushi menu (yep, that is another advice I have on Colombia), but prepare to face difficult choices. Because the Peruvian ceviches are amazing, the oysters are fresh and tasty, they have a very good choice of shrimps, the lobsters are skilfully prepared, and they have a very good portfolio of fishes – all of them worth a good bite (or two… or ten, actually!). Also, if you are particularly fond of meat, you will find very good entrées combining sea food and steaks, good “surf and turf” kind like a steak with lobster chunks and shrimps – and I really like this one, believe me! As well as my Mid-Western friends (I think this was the only time ever I have seen them eat something that lived in water)…

Fish Market is a very good choice for a business dinner if you are in this area. The food is delicious, waiters are very helpful (though their English is also very limited), they have a very nice wine list (especially Chilean and Argentinian wines, of course). I have been there a handful of times, and it never failed – so, I would say, this is a pretty safe option as well. You just need to love sea food to enjoy it to the max!

Where: Bogota - Colombia

Address: Avenida El Dorado, 69C – 03L 204

Phone: +57 2108587

Website: http://www.lafragata.com/

Expensive: Around 60.000 COP per person (around €25 for a very good meal)

Last visit: September 2012