Review: Hartwood in Tulum Don't Believe the Hype

If you ask people (or Google) for restaurant recommendations in Tulum, you’re almost guaranteed to get Hartwood listed as the top restaurant. The place is so hyped, you will find it in basically every guide to the Quintana Roo region, including my map of where to eat in Tulum. But should you believe this immense hype? Can a simple jungle eatery stand out so much in the crowd? Admittedly, the story of Hartwood is intriguing. Eric Werner and his wife Mya Henry moved from New York to the Mexican beach paradise of Tulum in 2010 to open Hartwood. They had an idea about sustainable cooking and making food from local Yucatán ingredients. In this al fresco restaurant, framed by palm trees, everything is cooked over an open fire. Expect vibrantly colored dishes with fresh Mayan flavors served in a lush environment with a relaxed vibe. There’s only one problem: you can’t book a table.

Queuing at the door of Hartwood to no avail
Queuing at the door of Hartwood to no avail

Hartwood Does Not Reply to E-mail Reservations

Getting a table at Hartwood is almost impossible. Friends advised us to show up early at the door and get on the waiting list. However, on Hartwood’s website, we could read that they finally accepted online bookings as well! Thus, I sent them the first e-mail several months before our arrival. Weeks passed by with no reply. Another request mailed a few weeks before traveling went unanswered as well. Telling me to stop sending requests and get in line would have been better than having no idea whether or not the place was fully booked throughout May already. It was to no avail. Since Hartwood was recommended in New York Times, it seems they won’t need any more publicity for a good while.

Hartwood Encourages People to Queue for Hours

As we arrived in Tulum, on the first evening, I sent one final e-mail asking for a table the next day (assuming, perhaps, they only accepted next-day bookings). To no surprise, though, Hartwood ignored that one too. Thus, at 5.30 PM the following day (when the restaurant opened), we showed up at the door – only to find an already packed restaurant. Clearly, someone knew the unofficial opening hours (which meant lining up hours prior). “I don’t have any space,” said the man at the door with a stern face. That was rather obvious, though. “Can you put us on the waiting list, please?” I asked. “There won’t be any free tables today,” he replied with the same uniform voice. At least he made it clear that there was no point in hanging out and hoping for an opening. “Ok then, when is the next opportunity for a reservation?” I asked. “Friday,” he said after a glance at his list. Today was Sunday, and next Friday would be our last evening in Tulum. “Fine, put us down for two seats, please.” I couldn’t believe that a restaurant in a warm, humid climate like Tulum would want to encourage people to queue for hours to get a table. Why not just sort out a booking system that allows their customers to relax on the beach during the day, and prepare for dinner in the evening? To me, that is part of the dining experience as well. Queuing works for street food in Taipei, where you wait maybe thirty minutes for a quick bite, but not so much for sit-down meals.

Ceviche de Yucatan
Ceviche de Yucatan

Hartwood’s Flawed Booking System Causes Arguments with Guests

Almost a week later, we arrived at Hartwood for our reservation and the last meal of the holiday. An Australian man was arguing with the girl working the door this night. I didn’t listen to their full conversation, but it all ended with the man yelling; “you arrogant asswipes,” before he got into a taxi and slammed the door. His behavior was indefensible, but clearly, Hartwood is annoying many customers through their inability to cope with their own success (i.e. to get a working booking system). At least, unlike the stoneface we met last Sunday, our waiter this night was very friendly and welcoming. He showed us to our table, brought out the Hartwood menu written on a big wooden board, and explained each dish. We kicked off our meal with a ceviche de Yucatan. It looked tempting, but, unfortunately, it was way too salty (and that’s coming from someone who loves salt) and lacked spice. We found several fish scales floating in the Leche de Tigre, which didn’t help with the appetite.

Empanadas de Lechon
Empanadas de Lechon

Simple and Tasty Grilled Food

Empanadas de Lechon were much better! They looked delicious, with a crispy crust and tender, juicy pork meat inside. Served with spicy mayo, grilled pineapple, papaya, and squash. Salty, fatty, and sweet flavors at the same time. Since we were seated close to the bar, we could watch the bartenders as they mixed refreshing-looking cocktails. The bright colors of the natural ingredients were alluring. We placed an order for The Hartwood and a daily special. Unfortunately, the bartenders this night failed to balance the flavors properly. Our cocktails lacked acidity and were too sweet. We agreed that both Mur Mur and Restaurare made better drinks and decided to go with local beers instead.

The Hartwood lounge
The Hartwood lounge

One Short Hour in the Jungle Paradise

Our main course of grilled Amberjack was juicy with a firm texture. It came with a side of Mexican spinach, grilled pineapple, radishes, and a grilled sweet potato that would have been even better with more salt. For desserts, we ordered a lime tart and house-made ice cream. I wanted only one scoop of ice cream, but was told I would be charged for two anyway. Ultimately, I ordered two scoops but was served a third one complimentary of the house. I couldn’t help to wonder: if the waiter had the opportunity to give me a third for free, couldn’t he also have been flexible on letting me order just one? Sadly, the corn ice cream was crystallized but had a mild, sweet flavor. Both the cinnamon and queso fresco were tasty with a creamy consistency. Apart from a slightly dry base, the lime tart had a nice sour flavor. One hour had passed since we sat down. Our short time at Hartwood was over. We decided to leave instead of hanging out and gave up our seats to some hopeful ones in the crowd outside.

Lime tart
Lime tart
Three types of ice cream: corn, cinnamon & cheese
Three types of ice cream: corn, cinnamon & cheese

The Lesson for Guests at Hartwood

If you are spending only a week in Tulum, make sure to show up at the door of Hartwood on the first day of your stay and reserve a table before you have to leave for home again. Hartwood is an overall good restaurant, but it’s not a must-visit kind of experience in Tulum. If you can’t be bothered to go through the stress of getting a booking here, check out all the other great spots on my map of Tulum.

The Lesson for Hartwood

Fix your online booking or remove it completely. Write down accurate descriptions of your booking procedures online. Put up a sign by the door stating that all tables are booked – with no waiting list the same evening. That should relieve stress from the poor doorman/woman, who probably gets yelled at daily. Also, ask your staff not to talk negatively about the neighboring restaurant, Mur Mur. That is such an unflattering thing to do. Tulum is a small community. Help lift each other up instead.

The Hartwood ambiance
The Hartwood ambiance

Did you go to Hartwood? Was it worth the hype or not? Let me know what you think in a comment below.

Anders Husa

Anders Husa and Kaitlin Orr are food & travel bloggers and creative content creators. From their base in Copenhagen, they operate the largest and most influential restaurant-focused travel blog in Scandinavia.

8 comments

  • We went last week to Hartwood, to be honest I tried only one time and was enough for us. Food is good not great and cero service they always rushing you to finish your dinner. We arrived at 6pm they had a line of 15 people before us we all got it and had our dinner, it was very busy after the open at 6pm. There is more restaurants in tulum and you don’t have to wait. Is not worth it waiting or fighting to get in. Bottom line I won’t come back.

    • Agreed that it’s not worth queuing for, but we had a good dinner with pretty good service. Just sad that they had to talk shit about their neighbor – that ruined my experience more than anything. Thanks for sharing!

  • Have been eating at Hartwood for 6 years now. It is ALWAYS worth it.
    It isn’t just the food, but the ambiance and

    perfection of the setting.

    To be fair to Hartwood, they are not the ones doing the hyping; they’re a pretty low key bunch when it comes to singing their own praises.
    Have never experienced anything other than excellent food, and gracious service. The setting is something to behold, in it’s pristine maintenance and stylish simplicity. They’re very professional, and lots of work and love goes into their food. They support the local community, buying the very best ingredients from local farmers and fishermen.
    People get riled up because they can’t easily get in. But really, they are small, are staying small , there’s a limited number of tables. I do wonder about people’s sense of entitlement when they rant about having to make an effort to get in. Sour grapes never taste good.

    • Thanks, Linda. I agree – Hartwood is good. It’s just not as good as the hype, and I think it’s only fair to tune people’s expectations a little bit. Afterall, the place has a way higher demand than they can handle anyway. Being small and wanting to remain small shouldn’t be an excuse for not having to bother with a proper booking system. Why annoy your customer before they even enter your restaurant? They could just write on their website that they don’t accept bookings, or put up a note when it’s fully booked. People did act like morons in front of Hartwood, for which there is no excuse, but Hartwood should do themselves a favor and get a booking system that works and give people information in advance. It’s useful for everyone.

  • Agree with your comments 100%. I much preferred Mur Mur next door (the Yucatan Pork was amazing) and the pretentious attitude of the door staff made Hartwood a place worth passing on.

  • Most couples of Tulum manage to keep destination guest lists down to a few dozen attendees, focusing on close friends and family members. This dramatically reduces the price, even for extravagant nuptials.

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