Best of Bario de la Presa
When we first bought our land here in Guanajuato City in 2014, La Presa was an up-and-coming neighborhood.
Now, it has arrived. There are new restaurants, bakeries, and cafes opening all the time, while still keeping the beauty of parks, hiking trails, and many historic buildings. The neighborhood is mostly residential but also contains many state government offices.
The main attractions are all easily walkable along Paseo de la Presa, until you reach the mountains- from there it’s a lovely hike!
Jump to:
Places to Eat
Things to Do
Essentials
Highlight of La Presa: Presa 97
Presa 97 prepares to reopen after social distancing
Presa 97 was the first trendy place in the neighborhood and combines a lot of what makes La Presa great into one location. The old Art Nouveau house has beautiful architectural details and inside has a variety of local places to eat, shop, and do. Follow them on Instagram to see what is happening daily.
Inside, check out Ma deli for yummy desserts and ready made sandwiches.
One of the top- rated bars in Mexico is on the second floor, Parlamento, open Mon-Sat night with high-end cocktails.
Best Places to Eat in La Presa
Cafes/Bakeries
Aside from Ma deli (see above), there are two other cafes and a bakery in La Presa that are worth visiting.
Cafe Tal has been long known for the best coffee in town, and also has great hot chocolate. Not many food options here, people come for the drinks. You will find it busy from morning til late night. This is one of their several locations.
The yellow building is Cafe Tal. The bus stops directly in front.
Citrico has a trendy atmosphere with a mix of Mexican and International food. Facing the park, it also has nice views.
El Gregario
Restaurants
Amaxti is consistently rated one of the best restaurants in town and one of the top 100 in Mexico. Mexican-Spanish style dishes with an upscale atmosphere and nice presentation, and also has a kids’ room! Good place for a special dinner - a little pricier than other places but well worth it.
La Burgesa de la Presa is directly under Amatxi, which has burgers, salads and pasta. See the hours and menu. They also have an ice cream window, the best place to grab a cone to take to the park.
Mexico Lindo y Sabroso offers everything you’d expect at a typical Mexican restaurant. It is good quality and large portions. We recommend the micheladas.
Mexico Lindo y Sabroso
Bardom Pizza isn’t the best in town (my vote would be Chiquito Cafe - they deliver until 6pm, Whatsapp for menu and ordering), but it’s ok pizza and conveniently located!
Bardom Pizza, next door to Santander ATM
For lunch there are also taco stands outside of Presa 97, and on weekends there are several small restaurants serving local food above La Presa.
Delivery
Most restaurants in the neighborhood will deliver, it is best to contact them directly through their FB or Whatsapp accounts. Uber eats and Rappi also deliver.
La Presa Food Truck Saturday
Once a month on Saturdays, there are various food trucks parked in the tower side of the Presa in the afternoons and evenings, worth checking out! See details on their Instagram or Facebook page.
Bars
For clubs and loud nightlife, you need to go downtown. However, there are a few places in La Presa to have a relaxing drink. Many people hang out at Cafe Tal in the evening (no booze, just coffee!), and the restaurants in Presa 97 serve alcohol, plus the Parlamento bar upstairs.
You can see the fancy Hotel Villa Maria Cristina by visiting their two bars: La Union, a contemporary cocktail bar with sushi on the weekends, or El Caballo, a horse-themed bar located in what locals call “The Witch’s House.” You can enter both through the main entrance to the hotel. There is also a restaurant, nice food but small portions and the most expensive in town.
The Witch’s House, which houses El Caballo bar in Hotel Villa Maria Cristina
Best Things to Do in La Presa
Aside from browsing Presa 97 and the Spa at Villa Maria Cristina, most activities in La Presa involve outdoor activity.
For little kids, there is a small playground on the top of the car side of San Juan de Dios, plus some exercise equipment for adults.
Once you pass the restaurants, it’s park after park until you hit the mountains.
Parque Florencio Antillon is full of trees, leafy plants, benches and walkways
At La Presa you can feed ducks. When the reservoir is full, late June or early July, there is a festival where the dam is opened.
Rent paddle boats at the top, with more ducks.
Families picnic in this park on the weekends
After that park is another reservoir. Take the stairs on the right side and follow signs to climb up to the inland lighthouse. The trail is steep and not well maintained, so be careful and bring lots of water.
Hike to La Bufa
To reach La Bufa and get great views of the city, follow San Juan de Dios up, cross Panoramica, and veer to the right. You will pass a gate to nowhere, walk through on the sidewalk then turn to the left, climbing up and up until you reach a dirt road. Turn left to get to La Bufa via Cueva de San Ignacio de Loyola, or right to walk down to the power substation on Panoramica then follow the road home.
It is becoming more common to have muggings past the Cueva heading up towards the Bufa, so be cautious and do not bring valuables.
Essentials
Groceries
OXXO has beer, milk, other drinks, and staples like eggs, sugar, packaged tortillas, etc. They also sell SIM cards, phone credit, bus tickets, and many other services.
There is fruit and veg shop towards town across from Comex, as well as a nice cheese and charcuterie shop (map).
A 15-minute walk towards downtown will bring you to Embajadoras. There is a covered market with greater variety open daily (you go through the stalls and up a large flight of stairs). On Sunday there are more stalls and more crowds.
Outside of the main city is La Comer, a large supermarket in a mall (also has a movie theater). It is easiest to take a taxi there. The Presa bus route stops at the roundabout outside of the mall right before stopping at La Presa, which makes it quick to get home but long to get there. You can also order for home delivery for 49 pesos, on the website or download the app La Comer en Tu Casa - our store is La Comer Guanajuato Pozuelos. This works well for basics, less well for specialty items their shoppers are less familiar with. You can ask they call you to confirm any switches if what you order isn’t available. Best to pay cash on delivery so you can confirm you have what you wanted.
ATM
Santandar next to Bardom Pizza (map).
Pharmacy
Isseg is at the corner of Paseo de la Presa and San Juan de Dios (map)
OXXO and the fruiteria