Life's a Beach | Expat Life in Playa del Carmen

It began with an impassioned invitation on Facebook a few weeks ago, a call to action from local celebrity Chef John Gray for all of us to wake up! Wake up and start really thinking about the food we put into our mouths. Where the vegetables and fruits are grown. How and by whom the animals are raised that become our steaks, hamburgers, bacon... Unless you have been living under a rock, you have seen the global trend toward eating local, making well informed responsible choices about what food we buy and prepare for our families. Organic, free range, hormone free, these are the marketing tags we now look for as we make our way through the aisles of our local supermarkets. But one wonders: When you go out to enjoy a meal in a restaurant, do you expect the same care has been given to the selection of ingredients that make their way to your well appointed, candle lit table? John Gray thinks we should demand it.

Rob and I made our way to Cancun for the unveiling of the menu and had a chance to talk with John about the direction he is taking this restaurant and the reasons behind the shift. When designing the new menu concept for John Gray's Downtown in Cancun, he made sure to maintain as much control over each element in each of the menu choices, offering more and more items created "in house" by Executive Chef Karl Mayrhofler and his team of budding culinary stars. Putting his customers' needs in front of ego, Chef Gray has re-conceived his menu to be more friendly to the working men and women in the city, creating a menu that can be enjoyed day ofter day for a reasonable price. While some were initially concerned that a lower price point would mean lower quality, those who have heard the call and stopped in over the past week to try out the new offerings have been pleasantly surprised with the resulting menu.

Featuring a much wider variety of dishes, everything from steak to salad and everything in between, the new menu caters to a lunch crowd short on time but keen on culinary creativity. The meat for the signature hamburgers and meatballs is all carefully selected then blended and ground in house. The hand cut bacon, sausages and hot dog....yes, that's right....hot dogs...are all made by hand in the kitchen and smoked out back in the restaurant's new stainless steel smokers. As it always has been, the meat, poultry and seafood are carefully scrutinized before they make their way into John Gray's kitchen and ultimately onto the plates of his discerning guests. Greens, fresh herbs and vegetables are selected daily to insure the very best quality and flavor. The Chef has now started making his own homemade breads, like a savory foccacia to accompany his new sandwich items, another step toward complete control of his ingredients.

The new chalkboard menu

Many busy hands in the kitchen

Lined up and waiting

And the meatballs are how big?

Getting ready for lunch service

The shiny new smokers, both hot and cold

Rob talks shop with Chef Gray

Mussels baked with blue cheese, white wine and herbs

For our lunch, Rob and I both selected new menu items. To start, we shared the crostini with pureed garbanzo beans, chorizo and spinach. This was followed by an almost traditional meatball sub with home made marinara and creamy garlic aoli and the mussels baked with blue cheese white wine and fresh herbs. Robs enormous sandwich was served with creamy coleslaw and potato salad, both offering up a little reminder of summer picnics back home in the northeast. Everything was delicious and the servers worked in good coordination with the kitchen staff, no small feat when launching a new menu.

Of course, the old familiar standbys from John Gray's previous menu are still available for those of you who can't make it through the week without "the Duck" and the restaurant has added a delightful series of breakfast items that will be offered throughout the day. Rumor has it, the granola mixed and toasted in house is sure to be a new favorite! Me, I think I'll opt for whatever has the most crisp smokey bacon on it!

John Gray's Downtown is located at #24 Avenida Xpuhil in Cancun. The restaurant hours are Monday - Friday 7am - 12 am Saturday and Sunday 9am to 8pm. Reservations are accepted and recommended for large groups 998-883-9800.