Carmen Cartagena

El lugar imprescindible para estar en Cartagena. Excelente ambiente, servicio y comida! Ojalá pudiéramos venir la primera noche de nuestro viaje y no la última. Prometo volver para disfrutar de una experiencia más deliciosa.

¡La mejor comida, servicio y experiencia en general en Cartagena!
Fuimos allí para el almuerzo de 7 platos del cumpleaños de nuestro amigo.
Fue el más caro pero también el mejor

El ambiente y el servicio fueron geniales. El filete de lentejas estaba demasiado salado, pero el resto de la comida estaba buena.

No sé a qué se debe tanto alboroto. Fui con mi pareja ahora en dic/23. El cangrejo picante estaba realmente bueno, pero eso fue todo. Para nada sorprendido con mi plato principal ni con el desierto. Sorprendentemente, ya que en Cartagena cobran precios de Londres y esperaba algo mejor. No fue terrible, pero no volvería.

¡Experiencia gastronómica de 5 estrellas en el corazón de Cartagena! La comida es verdaderamente única e increíble. Todo se basa en deliciosos sabores colombianos pero con toques modernos y con una sensación de buena mesa.

El servicio fue impecable y el ambiente del restaurante es muy fresco y relajado, sin dejar de sentirse de alto nivel. Hay asientos tanto en el interior como en el exterior. También nos dieron degustaciones gratuitas y excelentes recomendaciones de nuestro camarero.

Platos destacados fueron las empanadas de cangrejo y langosta, las salchichas de pescado y el chicharrón. ¡Los cócteles también eran geniales!

¡Este lugar está en el extremo más caro de Cartagena pero vale cada centavo!

El lugar es muy bonito, todo muy limpio, la atención es excelente y la comida estuvo muy buena

Uno de los mejores restaurantes de Cartagena, un servicio excelente y unos platos muy deliciosos. El ambiente muy agradable, con música en vivo, y un patio muy acogedor.

Un menú delicioso, con un servicio estupendo todo el tiempo atento y un ambiente tranquilo y muy relajado para que disfrutes con tu familia, pareja o tu mismo puedes disfrutarlo

Nice dinner at Carmen. Ensure to book reservations in advance and refer to the dress code. English speaking servers, great decor and cocktail. Thank you Juan Carlos for a wonderful evening!

A nice spot for dinner in Cartagena, but limited vegan options.

The menu isn’t labeled with vegan options, which would be a great improvement! Regardless, the options are limited and I only had the choice of the lentil steak in green sauce. Despite my apprehension, I was pleasantly surprised- both the lentil patty and the green sauce tasted great.

I also ordered the coconut limeade to drink, which I highly recommend!

This place is a bit on the pricier side for the limited dishes available for me, but the food and drinks are still pretty great.

A truly incredible experience. We had the seven-course tasting menu (we sat in front of the chefs and made them laugh a few times so they added an eighth). Service, quality of food, wine pairing, atmosphere (there’s a rumor they’re shutting down the tasting menu room, please don’t…at least not until after I come back and bring my mom) all world-class. Total came out to just over $100USD/person. In the States, this meal would run you 4X+

Hands down the most incredible tasting menu I’ve ever had, (which I had with the wine pairings). Every single dish was so sophisticated and delicious. Highlight was the beef with avocado dish. Also the service is amazing I cannot wait to go back to this gem

Had higher hopes for Carmen. We waited over 20 minutes for a table, even with a reservation. The crab app is very good & the live music is lovely. But it was the worst espresso martini I’ve ever had: (

We celebrated my husband’s birthday here and our meal was excellent! The restaurant and ambiance is chic and gorgeous. The food was the best we had during our trip!

Incredible food - the red snapper in coconut curry was one of the best dishes I've ever had and Juan Carlos was excellent in his service

I was slightly disappointed by our meal at Carmen. We had the 7-course tasting menu (no wine pairing), and most of the courses were nothing to write home about. The one exception was a sea bass on a bed of coconut rice, which was delicious. There was a lobster and pork dish, both of which were very tough, and an empanada which was just okay. The prices are very reasonable for New York City standards ($150 for two people with two glasses of wine between us) but expensive for Cartagena, and we ate much better meals for a fraction of the price at other establishments.

Excellent service, great atmosphere, live music. They even have vegan options which are fantastic! Try the vegan ceviche and the lentil "steak. "

After unsuccessfully going in both Medellin and Cartagena various times, I finally made it on my last trip to Cartagena and it did not disappoint. The cocktails and food were exceptional and excellent service - lives up to the hype!

So amazing! We did the seven course option and the Pulpo and pargo were definitely standout dishes. Super accommodating with out food restrictions. Overall great service and outstanding food.

Great experience and service. Octopus, fish, empanadas everything from the 7 course menu was great and fresh.

I can happily call the meal I had here the best of my life. I had the pleasure of eating here last night with a party of 4 foodies. The restaurant decor, live music and excellent staff all lend a hand to the art, yes…. ART coming from the kitchen. Hats off to the chef and their team, excellent, excellent food.

Appetizers; empanadas, pulpo, spicy crab, and Al pastor tacos

Entrees at the table: no me llamas cazuela, Cordero, and la posta

Desserts: Degustación de helatos, strawberry shortcake, Cholao

Es un lindo lugar para tomar bebidas y pasar la noche, las entradas son muy pequeñas pero los platos fuertes si soinde un buen tamaño

We had a wonderful time tonight at Carmen. Every plate was outstanding. They have a delicious, innovative contemporary menu with the best local ingredients. Our server Keinmar was superb tonight. Excellent service. Great ambience and beautiful decor. My favourite contemporary restaurant so far.

Modern dining, exoticism, attention to detail, and stunning presentation, located in the heart of downtown historical Cartagena. Exquisite seafood menu made from fresh local ingredients. The cocktail menus receive the same attention to detail and creativity.

This restaurant promises and delivers a quality high-end dining experience. Highly recommended.

Note: Try to book ahead.

This place seems to be a victim of its own fame: the atmosphere is basically Cheesecake Factory: incredibly loud with large groups of yelling, clapping diners

Muy mal servicio. Además se les fue el agua y no nos sentaron al llegar y nos cobraron el depósito de cancelación. Ni siquiera nos ofrecieron sentarnos.

This is really good food for the money, also add the wine to your courses since it is relatively cheap. People who rate low here dont know anything about food

Nos habían dicho que no podíamos ir a Cartagena y no cenar en Carmen, pero cuando intentamos hacer la reserva estaba completo, aún así nos dijeron amablemente que nos podían hacer un hueco si no nos importaba cenar en la barra, aceptamos, que gran decisión! No sólo por poder probar Carmen, el sitio del que tanto nos habían hablado, si no por ser atendidos por Lucaz! Nos atendió, aconsejó perfectamente, explicó todos los platos y estuvo muy atento de que estuviéramos lo mejor posible. Nos encantó! En resumen, comida exquisita y atención espectacular!

I can't say enough about our expectations here. The experience was superb. Some of the best food we had while traveling in the world. I would fly back to Cartagena just to dine here. The only drawback is that we felt slightly rushed during the 7 course tasting. We couldn't finish thy wine paired before the next plate and glass was being placed on the table.
All is all, I fell in love.

We had the seven course menu which was a lot of food and big portions for 301,851+ pesos. Some of the food was quite salty. The pork was the best part. Service was friendly but unfortunately they served me something that was part of my dietary restriction and didn't apologize or fix it. However they remembered the birthday request and provided an extra dessert with singing! Total bill including two drinks was 408,629 pesos per person. Pacing was very slow on a Tuesday night. The couple beside us ate the same meal in half the time.

El restaurante tiene cucarachas en una de sus materas, no me imagino la cocina como estará. Pésimo servicio y además de esto no hacen nada cuando se dice algo. Definitivamente restaurante de turistas.

Fantastic meal, one of my favorites of our trip. Fantastic cocktails as well and a fun atmosphere (live music!).

We had an absolutely phenomenal experience at Carmen, not only were the drinks amazing and the food beyond delicious, but the service and dedication from the staff was in a different league. Not to the mention the restaurant itself is beautiful. Highly recommend.

La comida está bien, pero nada del otro mundo para el precio. Pero lo peor es la “música en vivo”, a mayor volumen que cualquier club nocturno en Cartagena. Ensordecedora. Según donde esté ubicada la mesa, es imposible comunicarse durante la cena con el resto de comensales. La propia mesera tenía que gritar los platos del menú degustación dos veces, en ambos extremos de la mesa, para intentar hacerse oír (pese a que éramos sólo seis personas). Y cada vez que gritaba se bajaba la mascarilla. Poco higiénico y poco agradable. Una pérdida de dinero y una oportunidad perdida de tener una buena cena en Cartagena, que está llena de restaurantes mejores.

Awesome place and great service. Gratitude already included at the end. Great drinks and awesome view too. Okay 100% recommend

Celebrated my Birthday Dinner at Carmen and it was phenomenal! The service, the food, drinks and atmosphere!

This was one of the most underwhelming tasting menus I've ever experienced. I do not recommend for anyone looking for a special occasion.

The setting is generally nice - a lovely courtyard. However, we and several other parties were put in a room off the dining area that was stiflingly hot. All members of my party got up at least once during dinner to try and get a breath of fresh air.

Next, the music was extremely loud. During our 11 course tasting menu, the music included bruno mars, avril lavigne, and Fun (we are young). It was so loud that we couldn't really talk, nor hear the chef describe the dishes he was serving.

We paid for wine pairings. They were certainly high volume- 10 half glasses of wine, by my estimation. That said, they weren't really very high value. The best pairing was the dessert wine. There was 1 red and 9 whites. The one red was a malbec, opened at the table and served immediately. It was followed by a chardonnay.

Service attempted to be good, but missed pretty basic steps. Flatware was never exchanged until dessert (9 courses with the same fork). Staff was repeatedly confused about which wine glasses were used and which were new (because all the glasses were the same, and one person dropped off new glasses while another person was responsible for pouring wine).

Finally, the food. The food was generally very nice. Easily the best part of the meal. A couple courses were decidedly too salty (which is something I *rarely* say). Dessert was exceptional - 2 "courses" served at the same time.

I think this restaurant is way in over its head offering a tasting menu, much less one of 11 courses. Go for a nice meal and a drink. Don't expect a world class experience.

Truly one of the best dining experiences I have ever had. To start, the restaurant is absolutely gorgeous and very comfortable. The live music really set a wonderful ambience. The staff is incredibly knowledgeable and so personable and friendly. The food, wow. We came for the seven course tasting menu with pairing and I highly recommend! Everything was thoughtfully presented and the drink pairings were fantastic. All the flavors were absolutely incredible and I will come back every time I am in the city. So impressed and loved every second of my dining experience.

Anti consumidor. Trasladan el riesgo de reservaciones incumplidas al cliente. Algo que muy seguramente esta prohibido por la superintendencia de comercio. No pierdan el tiempo reservando. Si no llegan les cobran 300mil pesos.

Restaurant is beautiful. Staff was welcoming, attentive and helpful. They give you two samples to taste; one before your meal and then a dessert. Both were delightful. I ordered the lentil “steak” which could have used a bit more seasoning. The dessert was amazing. I enjoyed my experience and would recommend anyone to go if they are in Columbia.

Amazing dinner experience, probably Cartagena’s best restaurant! Lovely ambience with live musicians playing the guitar. Food was great! I highly recommend the fish with risotto and the brisket. The chocolate mousse dessert is a must. Perfect place for a date or a night out with friends. Prices are on the higher end but totally worth it. Service was very friendly.

Chef Carmen, let me tell you thanks for such a great creations, every time I go there I enjoy it so much. Great food great service and the hostess is a diamond.

Regresaría a este restaurante miles de veces. De plato fuerte pedimos cordero y la posta; ambos estaban deliciosos. De entrada: empanadas y langostas. De postre: cholao. Todo bastante rico y muy buena presentación. Además la atención y el servicio fueron excelentes. El mesero explica la preparación de cada platillo. Somos visitantes extranjeros y sin duda regresaremos cuando visitemos Colombia nuevamente.

My favorite restaurant in Cartagena! Will always recommend, the food is so well taken care of and the waiters are top notch! ️

Delicious food! Nice atmosphere! Drinks have room for improvement. You need to make a reservation in advance.

Uno de los mejores restaurantes de Cartagena, un servicio excelente y unos platos muy bien elaborados, deliciosos y con materias primas de calidad y frescas. El ambiente muy agradable, con música en vivo, y un patio muy acogedor. Recomiendo reservar con antelación, ya que está muy demandado. El plato "No me llames cazuela", super recomendable, al igual que todos sus entradas. Volveremos!

La comida buena, la musica exelente, el ambiente y la atencion valen la visita, el mejor spritz que me he tomado

Un restaurante con excelente ubicación en el casco histórico de Cartagena. Comida fusión con gustos diferentes y novedosos. Cada plato y sus postres muestran el trabajo y la investigación gastronómica del chef. Sabores colombianos y productos nuestros! Obligatoria visita.

Expensive of course but the food is good. The wine, I wasn't a fan of the reds paired with my meal. Music was nice but wish they had asked if we wanted to be seated in a quite area or not. Overall great 7 course experience.

Buena música, ricos platos pero falta un poco de variedad y los precios son un poco más alto que otros restaurantes similares.

Cool ambiance, great bar, live music, friendly staff and amazing food.

Local, yet elaborated dishes mostly focused on fish and seafood. The spicy crab is superb, simply a must.

If you planing to go to Cartagena, Carmen should be on your top list.

Excelente lugar, excelente servicio por la atención, la preocupación y las sugerencias. Mi lugar favorito en Cartagena. El cerdo 2 veces una explosión de sabor.

Very nice place with good food and good service. We sat at the patio and the live music was awesome. We had the tasting menus.

Excelente, función de sabores en los diferentes platos, me encantó.
Linda decoración y buena atención.

Based on the need for reservations, to get in I don't think this restaurant needs any introduction. This place is firing on all cylinders. Best goat I have ever had.

Las bebidas terribles. La comida no amerita lo que cuesta, hemos comido a un menor costo y con una calidad muy superior. No lo recomiendo. Mi novio me llevó porque había ido antes de pandemiay le pareció excelente, pero ahora la calidad es muy pobre.

La comida deliciosa! Pero lo q más me gusto fue la atención y las recomendaciones del mesero. No se pueden ir de Cartagena sin visitar este lugar

Amazing restaurant that is our favorite in Cartagena! The food was incredible, so delicious and beautiful presentations. My husband and I shared all the dishes and they were wonderful to share! Our server Juan Carlos was friendly and so helpful! We can't wait to return and highly recommend!

The restaurant has a really fun and good vibe. The play live music, the service its beyond friendly, the lobsters roll its insane, while its not as the classic its indeed delicious. The rest of the food was fine, but more than the food its the place.

In love with this little gem. From the service to the way the food was presented. This place was sold out for dinner on our trip every night so we had a late lunch here and was not disappointed. We were a party of 6 on a birthday weekend trip and I really appreciate they read the notes on this and came out with a desert with candles at the end of lunch. A must when in Cartagena. Thank you for a great afternoon Carmen!

La Posta, foi a minha pedida do prato principal.

1°) Apresentação deixou a desejar. Sabor nada agradável, carne muito gordurosa, grãos andinos muito torrados e hiper salgados.

2°) Como não sou especialista, pedi um prosseco, não recordo o nome. A bebida é muito doce, acredito que seja necessário rever a carta, pois esse que bebemos acredito ser mais recomendado para sobremesas.

3°) O garçom Maurício perguntou a minha esposa se ela tinha alguma restrição alimentar (alergia), informamos que não. Quando ela perguntou sobre se o POLLO poderia vir sem pimenta, respondeu que não. E se ela fosse alérgica a pimenta? Cabe rever a abordagem.

Raul Seixas, músico brasileiro tem uma frase em uma de suas músicas que resume o restante Carmen de Cartagena: "É muita estrela para pouca constelação".

La atención, el lugar, la comida y las bebidas, un sitio donde podrás disfrutar de una fusión de sabores

Si este restaurante quedara en Europa tendria una estrella Michelin. Excelente en todos los sentido. No he probado la nueva carta todavia pero imagino que es igual de buena que la anterior.

Excellent food with creative combinations and flavors in a modern restaurant setting. Little disappointing that you can only chose between a 8 course degustation menu or 3 course a la cart dishes. We found out why when we took the a la carte option as we were brutally told we needed to move and go by the restaurant host when we ate our MAIN course. It is all about the number of dining guests in this place. I literally was finishing my bottle of wine at the restaurant exit. The worse part was finding out that no one was actually waiting for our table!

Must eat in the bar!

Walked in without reservations (a must if you plan to dine in the restaurant) and was told we couldn't dine. Walked back to the bar which is surrounded by glass and air conditioned. Got there about 7: 30 and was lucky to get 2 chairs together.

Lucas took care of us and was 100% awesome! The drinks are out of this world. Not just the taste (doesn't matter what your choice of alcohol is) but the presentation. We watched drink after drink be crafted. They employ some of the best mixologists in the city that have mastered the craft.

Lucas started us off with some apps that we didn't even order, completely blown away. The flavor and visual beauty of each plate that followed was incredible.

If you are looking for jet fuel drinks and endless buffet then go else where, if you want possibly the best food/drink in the city then go to Carmen's.

Me encanta todos los nuevos platos que sacan. Me gusta que sean extraídos de nuestro país (Colombia). Les doy cuatro estrellas porque mi última experiencia no fue tan buena como la primera. En ambas oportunidades pedimos el menú de degustación de 7/8 tiempos, en la primera oportunidad terminamos comiendo 11 tiempos de 7, los meseros estuvieron muy funny y fue más económico. La segunda oportunidad solo nos dieron los 8 que anunciaban y fue un poco más costoso. Sin embargo me encanta venir a Carmen. Tienen la mejor limonada de coco de la ciudad y sus cócteles son únicos. Experiencia recomendadísima.

Excelente comida, excelente servicio, los precios son más altos que otros restaurantes pero valen la pena

Dinner was good. Appetizers delicious but the main course's fish was overcooked and the coconut rice was overseasoned.
Foie Gras and chocolate amazing.
Empanadas amazing.

Great spot. Went for lunch and service was great. Portions a bit on the smaller side and prices are not too far off NYC, maybe similar to Chicago (lunch for two with wine was $100+). However, dishes were flavorful and interesting - also had beautiful colors and presentation. Ambiance was also pretty cool - nice patio with trees, vines, etc. The inside had art and nice vibe. Would go back.

The place is a little over hyped. The a la carte food was very good but very expensive for Colombian standards. The atmosphere is quite casual - the courtyard is pretty but the bar area is not very nice. Service was very friendly.

Comida deliciosa, ambiente tranquilo, amé el pulpo y la limonada de coco. Karen fue super atenta desde el momento en que reservamos hasta el final de nuestra visita

A comida é boa, os drinks são interessantes, mas a nota não foi tão alta pelo serviço. Cheguei cedo ao restaurante porque estava viajando só. Não havia absolutamente ninguém nas mesas e ainda assim a hostess me disse que não tinham lugar. Insisti e me disse que só tinha lugar no bar. Pensei "ok. Pode ser que tenham muitas reservas". Comi entrada, prato principal, 3 drinks, sobremesa, quase 1h30 no restaurante e as mesmas mesas que estavam vazias continuaram.
Essa ideia de que pessoas sozinhas te dão menos dinheiro e por isso você reserva a mesa para grupos maiores é do século passado! No final sozinho gastei uma grana para esse atendimento meia boca. Não diria que vale a pena ir aí pela atitude.

Only one word bests describes this meal: amazing. It's so nice to see a high end gourmet restaurant here. There are lots of great places in Cartagena, but Carmen is a cut above the rest.

We went for lunch and was greeted by very rude hostess who said nothing is available go somewhere else. So two days later we called to book a reservation for dinner and said nothing is available for tonight and hung up. Even though we could have made a reservation for another day. Whatever. The Carmen in Medellin is always nice to us and has never turned us away even when they are busy.

From Chicago and the food capital of North America: love this place. Do yourself a favor and make the trip

Just wandered in for lunch while touring the old town. What a find! Food was wonderfully prepared with great flavor and super friendly service. Absolutely would go again!

We were traveling with our toddler and made a reservation in advance for dinner. The hostess was unfriendly and rude (unlike all the other restaurants we went to). We didn’t end up eating at the restaurant because she refused to seat us indoors even though it was a very early reservation and there was no one at the restaurant! It was a hot night and she told us outright that there would likely be mosquitoes outside but we had to sit there anyways with our toddler! Definitely not kid friendly and given the service, we won’t be back, not even for a date night.

Good food, host was mindless. How embarrassing. My concierge made a mistake and booked a reservation for two, though I was travelling alone. Carmen was so highly regarded, I figured I could eat discreetly by myself. No such luck. The hostess trumpets out "But you have a reservation for two! " Embarrassing. The server did the same thing, and I am seated right in the middle of the dining room filled with couples and families. I had asked for a discreet table outside, as to not be made a spectacle of. The unpleasant server told me nothing was available, though I watched the whole time I was there, and there was one table out there the whole time. You need to learn to respect that some of us travel alone. I will not return, ever.

Great caribeen food option, the Posta Cartagenera its pretty good. The fish in coconut rissotto (pescado de palma) its a must. Forme entree the Taco Costeño its incredible. Good atmosphere and prices.

Excellent service and ambiance. Menu is extensive and for all tastes. Stay away from the Cowboy Steak if your idea of the item is as you'd have it in the USA. Otherwise, great place.