Mansion Alcazar

On Monday, we were in pursuit of a unique dessert we've heard about here in Latin America called "maracuya", which is a passion fruit creme brulee. Mike went on the internet and found it on the menu at the fashionable Mansion Alcazar Boutique Hotel on Simon Bolivar between Tarqui and Juan Montalvo. Their website is: http://mansionalcazar.com/.

We had business in town so we walked to the boutique hotel from the post office. Here are pictures taken during our trek to the hotel.

Flower Market
















Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception






























Indigenous woman on a cell phone!



















When first arriving at the hotel, you know you're in for a treat by the rich-looking entrance way and the requirement to be let in after ringing the door bell. Upon entering the mansion, we are greeted by an English-speaking hostess who ascertained that we were not looking to stay there but were looking for the Casa Alonso Gourmet Restaurant.

We were escorted through the mansion's parlor into the restaurant area, as the following pictures show.







































































These pictures are taken from our table as we look at the view outside at the lush landscaped grounds.































We decided to have appetizers, soup and dessert. The following pictures show my appetizer which was a shrimp-stuffied ravioli with mushrooms and spinach, and Mike had the house salad.
































The next course was the soup. I had the quinoa soup with bacon,and Mike had the locros de papas soup, which is an Ecuadorian potato soup with cheese and avocado. Both were very good.





























The last course was the desserts. I had the apple pastry, and Mike had three different creme brulees, which consisted of the standard vanilla version, a guayaba brulee, and the best of all the maracuya brulee (passion fruit). The guayaba was sweet, and the maracuya was sweet and tart at the same time, and was his favorite.























The following pictures show the outside grounds, which are very lush and beautiful. Just imagine what the mansion must have been like when the Alcazar family lived here. The boutique hotel has eleven rooms, all decorated in a different theme.