Dining at Lake Atitlan: Ganesh in San Marcos la Laguna

Dining, drinking and celebrating life at the lake in San Marcos just got even better. Five restaurants and a health food store, all under the same roof, are the heart of the Ganesh Collective. Located over Tienda 2012, Ganesh offers a wide range of cuisine, from breakfast through dinner, seven days a week. The dinner menu changes nightly and emphasizes smaller bites from Q20.

Five New Restaurants at Lake Atitlan

Mananitas serves breakfast and lunch daily from 7:30 AM until around 3 PM. They have the same superb Shakashuka, a spicy Israeli egg dish, omelets , crepes and sandwiches, plus a number of new items. Mananitas also offers Espresso, Cappuccino, Latte and other hot or iced coffee-based drinks, as well as a wide array of fresh juices and liquados.

Coco’s Kitchen is run by Colleen of Snack Shack fame. From 5:30 PM-9 PM on Sundays and Monday, Coco’s offers fresh, different fare every time, from gourmet slider sandwiches served with fresh grated yucca fries and curry salsa, to homemade gnocchi and pastas.

Vegetarian Restaurant in San Marcos

Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Nancy’s Vegan Kitchen is the place to go for innovative vegan meals such as Mediterranean flatbread pizza topped with freshly made humus, guacamole and almond meat, Peanut Curry Burgers, and Green Burritos wrapped in organic lettuce, plus raw desserts such as her famous Macadamia Nut Lime Pie.

If it’s real comfort food you want, head upstairs to San Marcos Soul Kitchen on Thursdays and Fridays, at the same time as above, for “to die for” dishes such as Bacon Wrapped Steak or Fall off the Bone Spare Ribs, served with mashed potatoes or rice, fresh tortillas or corn muffin and an organic green salad. Soul Kitchen is run by Balam, who headed up Sugar High Desserts at Snack Shack until both closed. On Friday nights, there is live music and dancing.

Guest Chef Night features a different chef from around the lake and other parts of Guatemala cooking up his or her specialties, from Asian to Italian to Americana to Tipico. That’s on Saturday afternoons through 9:30 PM.

Health Food Store

The Health Food Store is open daily from 7:30 AM-10 PM. It is a great source for certified organic products imported from the USA, as well as locally made products, such as Kombucha, Ginger Beer, fresh jams, aluminum free baking powder and much more.

Happy Hour, from 4-7 PM, features Q10 beers and other specials. Nargil pipes are available all the time at your table or the large bar, both with views of the hills behind San Marcos. You can even get a manicure or pedicure while sipping a glass of wine on Manicure Mondays.

The spacious dining area provides seating under the sun or beneath a covered roof, where a large water fountain adds to the ambience. Festooned with vines, flowers, wind chimes and bamboo, this unique place has a lush, tropical feel, which, together with the friendly and attentive staff , completes that enhances the dining experience at Ganesh.

Where: San Marcos, over Tienda 2012
When: Daily from 7:30-11 PM