Jose Ignacio is the laid-back, ultra-sophisticated part of the Punta del Este area. There's not much there in the way of restaurants, especially since famed chef Francis Mallmann's ridiculously expensive place, Los Negros, closed its doors this year after a 35-year run (to be turned into a multi-million dollar seaside mansion). But one restaurant makes the trip to Jose Ignacio worth the time and distance -- even if you're coming all the way from another continent. This is La Huella, planted right on the first sand dune from the ocean. No picture does it justice, no description captures its charm. My wife and I were lucky enough to be tipped off to it when we came to Punta del Este in January 2005 to close on our house. We knew after one visit that we had found our perfect place for regular fish lunches and occasional special evenings. At that time, La Huella was about three years old, and its fame was on the verge of exploding. Since then, it's received accolades in all the best places. The self-same Francis Mallmann in 2006 called La Huella both the best place in Punta del Este to eat fish and the best place to meet for a drink in the late afternoon. Conde Nast Travel wrote it up in the May 2005 issue. And, to top it off, in 2007 it has been touted in Gourmet and in an ultra-jet-set blog as the best seaside restaurant in the world. Meanwhile, my wife and I still eat there at least once a week whenever we're in Punta, and it just keeps getting better all the time. Whatever else you miss when you visit Punta, do not miss La Huella. And definitely come as you are for lunch: much of the international crowd walks the 25 or so yards from their beach chair to snag lunch with nothing more than a see-through shift over their thong bikini, if that much. At night, wear your best "sophisticated casual" outfit.
La Huella's Web Site:
From Conde Nast Traveler (U.S. Edition)
From the jet-set blog:
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