Quito Food Guide

Eating out in Ecuador can either be dirt cheap or surprisingly expensive, as restaurants seem either to be holes-in-the-wall or high-end. Our favourite local dishes were quinoa soup and llapingacho (a potato, cheese and egg concoction), as well as arepas often prepared in hole-in-the-wall joints owned and run by the Venezuelan community.

Best Restaurants in Quito

We weren’t expecting to love the Quito food scene as much as we did. This under-rated city has a good mix of traditional Ecuadorian fare and local takes on international cuisine. We’ve included just our foodie highlights from eating out in Quito.

Casa Warmi (La Floresta)

Top pick! This beautiful restaurant in La Floresta serves Ecuadorian food with an upmarket twist. The “huerto verde” — grilled aubergine with roasted fennel, tomato and several local varieties of potato — gives you a flavour of what you can expect here. The white wine is also excellent, but hold off on the coffee. The best cup of coffee in town is just around the corner at Botanica.

De La LLama (Carolina)

Another excellent place to try traditional Ecuadorian food, you can try llapingacho, locra and mote pillo at this welcoming restaurant. Locra is a hearty potato, cheese and avocado soup, while mote pillo is a corn, cheese and eggs dish topped with veggies or meat. Both are rich options you’ll appreciate after a long hike at high altitude. It can get busy on a Friday night, so consider booking ahead if you’re a large group.

Super Foods (La Floresta)

At your limit with fried and cheesy foods? Your tastebuds (and your waistline) might well be ready for a meal at Super Foods. A bowl of quinoa with asparagus, mushrooms, avocado and cashew sauce, washed down with sugar-free lemonade and finished with a raspberry granita can be yours for $8.50. There’s also a health food shop here, where you can buy difficult to find items like sourdough and unsweetened peanut butter – but expect higher prices at this boutique food shop.

Soban (La Floresta)

This restaurant serves Korean and Japanese favourites such as bibimbap, donburi and donkatsu. The bibimbap can be made vegetarian by replacing the meat with tofu and vegan by removing the egg. Expect to pay around $12-14 per main.

Las Reinas Pepiadas

Top pick! Arepas are an absolute treat that you must not miss while in South America. The best come from Venezuela, so be on the lookout for Venezuelan arepa places like Las Reinas Pepiadas. Arepas are made from corn dough and filled with meats, cheeses, avocados and spicy sauces. They’re usually pretty cheap too, a large arepa from a fairly fancy place shouldn’t cost more than $3.75. This project also helps support Venuzeulan families. Don’t confuse this place with the similarly named Reina Pepiada.

La Hueca De Doña Anita 

Budget! This hole-in-the-wall is a great place to fill up on different varieties of deep-fried empanada for under a dollar each. Choose between maize, wheat or plantain empanadas and a wide variety of fillings. Wheat empanadas are known as empanadas de venta and plantain empanadas are known as empanada verde. As with the all the best eateries, more people want to eat than there are seats available, so you may have to take away.

Laboratorio Diseño Gastronomía

Laboratorio pulls off a difficult trick by serving up different foods from around Asia and lowering the spice levels for the Ecuadorian pallette. There’s Indoensian sambals, Chinese baos and Japanese ramen all available in a trendy up-cycled interior. Check the opening times before you arrive as they can be unpredictable. 

Formosa, (Vegetarian, La Floresta)

Great budget option! Formosa is an extremely authentic Taiwanese vegetarian buffet place located in La Floresta. We lived in Taiwan for a year, so this place brought back many happy memories. It’s also extremely affordable, with a main, soup and a drink costing $3.25. Vegans are well catered for here too.

Tandana (Vegan)

Top pick! Tandana is perched on the edge of a steep drop, with a wide glass front allowing diners to have an excellent view of the surrounding countryside. On a clear day, you can see snowy peaks in the distance. This romantic spot is a favourite with local couples, who can be seen arm-in-arm on the restaurant’s roof. The restaurant itself is a non-profit which serves typical vegan options like veggie burgers and Thai-style noodles with tofu. Expect to pay around $15 for a main and a drink.

HOPS Craft Beer Pub (La Floresta)

Craft beers are taking off in Quito, but I think it’s fair to say that a number of breweries have a way to go when it comes to quality brewing. HOPS Craft Beer Pub, however, have perfected their offering with a pleasing mix of craft beers, pub foods and live music. It’s a popular date spot on the weekend, so book ahead to be certain of a table.

Best Cafes and Coffee in Quito

Ecuadorians have been growing coffee since 1860, both high in the Andes and along the coasts. Typically, locals will brew coffee in a big iron pot on the stove. If you want a decent espresso, you should pick one of the options below.

Botanica (La Floresta)

Excellent coffee in a trendy environment: what more could you want from a lazy afternoon in sunny Quito? I recommend the delicious but deadly coffee bon bon (a strong double shot of espresso with condensed milk). You can also get tasty cheesecakes as well as savoury bagels. Note that Botanica usually doesn’t open until 3PM, which is unfortunately a bit late in the day.

Vegano de Altrua (La Floresta)

As the name suggests, this vegan cafe in Quito is a great place to get a cappuccino without cow’s milk.  The staff are friendly and you can get a reasonably priced lunch here too: a quinoa salad with pesto and cherry tomatoes, plus a homemade fruit juice, comes in at $5.50. 

Jervis Cafe (La Floresta)

Quito’s best espresso can be found in this tiny coffee joint in La Floresta. There’s room for about 6 people, including the barista, but seating does spill out onto the street in warmer weather. The lunch menu, which nets you a soup, sandwich, juice and coffee for $7.50 is an eye-catching offer, but while the food’s nice enough, the coffee is the reason to visit. Vegetarian options are available.

Custrum (The Old Town)

Located inside the magnificent but abandoned Bolivar Theatre, Custrum is a classy coffee joint not far from the Plaza Grande. Prices are a tad high, but lovers of abandoned buildings should come here for the entrance alone.

Cafecito (Mariscal Sucre)

This cosy cafe-come-hostel is a popular place with backpackers. Their espresso or French press are better options than the “cafecito”, which is an underwhelming filter coffee. The staff are friendly and accommodating.

Jurgen (Parque Carolina)

Jurgen is a Dutch bakery with an extensive menu of both sweet and savoury options. We tried the omelette on brown bread ($6.50) and the vegan toastie ($4.50). What’s nice about Jurgen is that it’s one of the few breakfast places in Quito that opens at 7AM, even on a Sunday. You can also get brown bread which isn’t too sweet, something that’s not always possible in the supermarkets. There are several branches of Jurgen in Quito; we tried the one next to Parque Carolina. 

Cassave (various locations, chain)

Whilst not a place we stopped for coffee, this Ecuadorian chain is perfect for a quick bite. Cassave serves pan de yuca, small bread balls made from yuca dough, and yoghurt. You can grab a hot pan de yuca to go for $0.80.

Do you have any other restaurant recommendations in Quito? Share with us in the comments!