I recently went on a delightful little girls trip with my sister Jena. Because we love trying new things, we stayed at two all-inclusive resorts during our week in the Cancun area. The first was Panama Jack in Playa del Carmen. I have celiac disease and must eat a very strict gluten free diet with no cross-contamination, which makes traveling tricky and very stressful.
The staff at Panama Jack went above and beyond to ensure I had a safe and delightful stay. While there is no dedicated kitchen, they do have very specific cross-contamination protocols in place with specific space in their kitchen for those preparations.
The staff is also very well trained; every waiter knew how to handle an allergen situation, and the restaurant managers went above and beyond to ensure that I was not only safe, but also getting food I enjoyed. They honestly made my sister and I feel like royalty!
Here’s a review of each of their three specialty restaurants, along with the buffet that is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Brazilian Steakhouse (Ipanema)
Our first meal the evening of our arrival was at Ipanema, the Brazilian Steakhouse. The waiter seated us and immediately summoned the restaurant manager, Gabriel, to address my celiac needs.
When I explained that I could not eat from the buffet due to risk of cross-contamination, he walked me around the buffet and asked which dishes looked good to me, and then he brought me safe food from the kitchen. As a side note, all of the gluten free dishes are marked as such, so if cross-contamination from a buffet is not a concern for you, then you may find this very helpful.
Gabriel quickly brought all of the side dishes I requested, along with a few Brazilian breads with a wonderful dipping sauce. All of the food was fantastic. And then it was time for the meat!
All the meats brought to the table are gluten free, so it was such a great feeling to enjoy food just like everyone else. They serve it in a way that the meat or utensils never touches a plate, so I was diligent and observant but not concerned about cross-contamination. And oh my goodness, it was soooo good! We ate everything from chicken wings to stuffed chicken to steak and grilled pineapple. We were stuffed!
After dinner, Gabriel asked me what I wanted for breakfast and notified the breakfast buffet staff that I would be coming. He sent numerous messages like that during the week and even sent bread from the steakhouse to another restaurant one night! We enjoyed Gabriel’s company and smiling face so much, we returned every night for a drink and dessert!
Zarape
Zarape is the resort’s Mexican restaurant. It is open air and is situated on the front of the resort, facing the street. This provided some interesting ambiance, including a loud mariachi band and karaoke-style performer, which were quite loud and a little distracting. But the interior of the restaurant is charming, and we enjoyed getting to know the wait staff and bartenders as well.
I was delighted to find that Gabriel had sent over the little Brazilian breads I liked. I ordered a corn and cheese appetizer along with a roasted cheese dish, which were both excellent. For my main course, I chose the enchiladas and beef tacos. The enchiladas were some of the best I’ve ever had! The food here was absolutely fantastic.
At the end of the night, we were surprised to see Gabriel from Ipanema come to our table, along with Carlos, the food and beverage director. He asked for our feedback regarding our gluten free experience, and he also brought out Chef Armondo to talk with us. And when the Chef learned that my sister LOVED a particular dessert he made the night prior, he quickly whipped up a new batch to surprise her with. That’s one thing I loved about this place – they took special care of not only me, but my sister too.
Bella
The only experience that we didn’t enjoy was at Bella, the Italian restaurant. This is the only specialty restaurant that requires a reservation, so we got all fancy and were excited for a special evening.
But. No one there was very friendly, especially the waiter and sommelier. We actually found them quite rude. While the waiter seemed to understand my gluten free requirements, he very much dismissed them and didn’t want to discuss it at all. I asked to speak to the chef directly but the waiter clearly didn’t think that was necessary.
The food was only so-so. I had a caprese salad and zucchini dish followed by a flank steak with risotto. Nothing blew me away, and we couldn’t wait to leave!
We did let them know we were celebrating my birthday that night (it’s in January, so it was a belated celebration!), and to his credit, the waiter brought me out a pretty panna cotta for dessert, and it was delicious.
Ventanas Buffet
Ventanas is a buffet that’s open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and we ate there each day for both breakfast and lunch. As I cannot eat from a buffet, the manager simply asked me what I wanted to eat and then worked with the chef to create a safe version for me.
We really became friends with both Antonio, our waiter, and Aaron, the restaurant manager. They quickly learned what we liked and anticipated every need. They were absolutely stellar in making sure I received safe food from the chef rather than the buffet. I truly ate like a queen!
At breakfast, I had pancakes, french toast, and the most amazing chilaquiles I’ve ever had. I tried both the rest and the green, and I preferred the green with bacon on top. Such a pretty presentation!
The french toast was fantastic. They used a sweet bread, almost like a cornbread but not crumbly. And move over maple syrup – Antonio showed me how amazing french toast is with sweetened condensed milk on it! Paired with sweet plantains, it was a very decadent breakfast treat!
At lunch, I typically requested grilled veggies and seafood, which were so fresh and prepared perfectly. I also had beautiful salads and a few special things I requested, like sushi. The rooftop bar at the resort prepares sushi, but the rice is not safe. They made me sushi with diced jicama instead – so very creative, and beautiful!
I also asked for chips and guacamole one day, which was a bit of a feat because they have to fry the chips in a fresh fryer to make them safe. They were amazing! And when I asked for a grilled cheese, they knocked it out of the park! I loved the variety of breads and “normal” foods they were able to provide to me.
Other Resort Tidbits
Here are a few other things I want to share about the resort, which are not necessarily food-related:
- The standard rooms are SMALL. And they face a shared outdoor hallway, so there’s not really a window in the room. I struggled with this a bit, and if you like to have a lot of light, I’d recommend you upgrade to a jr. suite.
- The pool area is beautiful, but there’s only one main pool, so it was always very full with kids, and the activities can be loud. That said, it was beautiful and we never struggled finding chairs.
- The rooftop pool by the sushi bar was much quieter and adults-only. There’s also a hot tub area on another rooftop one level up from the adults pool. We enjoyed this area for a quieter experience.
- This resort is truly in Playa del Carmen. I was a little surprised that you can literally step out of the front door and into the hustle and bustle. It was super fun, but just beware of that as it’s not for everyone.
Summary
I would absolutely recommend Panama Jack for anyone with a special diet – celiac or otherwise. Their allergen protocols are sound and the staff is well trained. Once I explained my needs, I was very well taken care of and I did not have to continually advocate for myself, except for the one poor experience I had at Bella.
Thank you Panama Jack for making our stay so enjoyable! You treated us well and we were very sad to go. I’m looking forward to a return trip someday soon!