LeBlanc Cancun Restaurants: A Detailed Food & Drink Guide

SIIIIIGH…look at that view!  The five days I spent at the luxury LeBlanc Cancun resort were absolute perfection as I was dying for some sun and relaxation a couple months ago.  But as I’ve talked about before, for foodie travelers it can be a struggle to truly enjoy all-inclusive resorts since the food tends to be plentiful but just average.

That is NOT the case at LeBlanc, however.

I have a much deeper review post on the resort overall, rooms, pools, beach, service, and much more…and LOTS of pictures.  But as I mention in that post I wanted to do a whole separate post talking about the food and drink, different LeBlanc restaurant offerings, and what I enjoyed the most.

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Overarching review of LeBlanc Cancun restaurants

The food at LeBlanc is very good, and really excellent for an all-inclusive.  In my five days there, I was never bored or felt limited.  You can check out the menus here for a glimpse.

One overarching comment is that in many cases the portions were quite small.  This isn’t a bad thing because then you can try more dishes without wasting food (and since it’s an all-inclusive you can order as much as you want).

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Drinks were a little hit and miss.  Out at the pool they were generally quite good (I ordered your traditional “tropical vacay” drinks most of the time, like piña coladas and mojitos).  At the various bars throughout the resort (the fancier ones inside) I was underwhelmed.  It was rough to go off-menu, even for classic cocktails like a gimlet or old fashioned.  To be fair, I’m not a tequila person and obviously tequila is king here.

I would also expect a luxury resort like LeBlanc to have better/more top shelf liquors (including a decent bourbon like Makers Mark or Woodford).  Ultimately these are nit picks, but worth mentioning for a resort that prides themselves on being amazing.

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LeBlanc puts an emphasis on delicious things from the moment you arrive to the second you leave.  You’re welcomed with some delicious cold, sweet coconut milk while they get you checked in.

And then as you leave the resort, they give you a lovely little gift of artisan chocolate turtles…the chocolate work at the resort is really great…I looked forward the beautiful filled chocolates they left by my bed during turn-down each night!  (And stupidly forgot to take a picture of)

At a very high level here are some thoughts on the best and worst offerings of LeBlanc Cancun restaurants.

I think my best meal might have been my last night at Yama (my first night there was good but not amazing), and their cocktails were really delicious.  Lumiere was really good though I struggled since there’s a lot on the menu I can’t eat.  Bella was middle of the pack, good overall and the service that night was lovely and personal feeling.

My least favorite dinner was Terraza (not much on the menu that I was excited about).  The breakfast options at Terraza were really interesting and good, however, plus watching the sunrise while sipping coffee and eating pancakes was great.

The best cappuccino by a mile was what I pre-ordered from room service for delivery in the morning…good coffee is critical for me, and most of the coffee options around the resort did nothing for me.

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Room Service

I realize that room service is a weird place to start, but LeBlanc offers 24/7 in-room dining with an extensive menu.  I didn’t avail myself of it much for lunch, dinner, or late night snacks (beyond some tea and fancy desserts), but I stumbled on the best way to start my day and that became my little morning ritual.

Using the resort’s app, I would put my order in before bedtime, for a delivery between 6:45-7:00.  My body would wake me up around 6:30-6:45, so it was perfect and they always were prompt.  I’d order hot carbs (waffles were my fave), some of their French pastries, and two cappuccinos.

Then I’d go out on my balcony and sip my coffee, watch the sunrise over the water, and nibble on my carbs.

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Of all the food I ordered, the waffles were really good (mini waffles), better than the pancakes which were dry.  Of the pastries, the croissant with dulce de leche was awesome (if a bit sweet), concha was perfect, and the palmier and almond croissant were adequate but nothing to write home about.  And as I mentioned, the cappuccinos were delish.

The pre-order piece is important, both for timeliness and hot coffee…when I waited to order in the morning, it took over an hour and my cappuccinos were rapidly cooling.

On a side note, the rooms do have an espresso machine, which is a lovely addition.

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Ordering food out at Pool Sol

Since I spent like 90% of my time at the pool, I ended up ordering a lot here (make sure to check out my tips for where to sit for breeze).  I think the food technically came from the main Blanc restaurant (I never ate there), though if you order off-menu it sometimes comes from somewhere else.  Like I had a hankerin’ for something from Terraza at one point and also wanted to try something from Pure, and my awesome pool server made it happen.

Problem is that I tend to not have a huge appetite when I’m hot and sweaty.  The best things I ate here were the tacos (fish pastor and tinga especially).  The nachos were fine if a bit bland.  The hot dog was pretty good, burger mediocre.  Make sure you order the off-menu onion rings!

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Make sure to check out Glacé, located right at Pool Sol.  You can get delicious ice cream (try the Mexican coffee!), milkshakes, and other sweet treats.

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And of course there are the drinks.  I actually never swam up to the bar (which feels like a miss now that I think about it), but I kept the drinks coming.  They have a menu of nice cocktails outside of the usual “pool” ones, and I tried several.

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Yama

This is the only one of the LeBlanc restaurants where I ate twice, on my first night and my last night.  Generally the food was really good, and their cocktails are delicious.

Some of my favorites were the beef tataki, sushi and nigiri, miso salmon, and the short rib bao bun.  Also the macadamia nut ice cream that came with the cheesecake was BOMB (the cheesecake, however, was dense and dry).

The tempura was fine but not earth shattering, a little bland (I customized to be without shrimp for dietary reasons), the spring rolls totally fine though nothing to write home about. I had the garlic chicken and it had really good flavor though was way spicier than I could take.

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Terraza

Billed as a “wood fire bistro”, the menu here is a little all over the place.  I thought it was great for breakfast and lunch, but it was an underwhelming dinner option.

But let’s start with breakfast, because it was my favorite place for “second breakfast”…after enjoying my coffee and pastries on my balcony, I wandered down to the pool, got set up, and then often came upstairs to Terraza for some of their interesting breakfast options and a little more coffee.

The moka pancakes were amazing, the croquesita brioche was weird and good (sweet and cheese together).  The pomme rosti and smoked salmon bagel were both good as well.  However the French toast was soggy and their latte was meh.  For breakfast it’s empty before 8:00 and you can watch the second half of the sunrise develop.

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For lunch, I had their goat cheese tart (with strawberries and balsamic glaze), which was delicious.  The mini pavlova was delish (though could have used some creaminess with it like whipped cream)  The pizza I had was just okay but definitely edible (just bland).

From a dinner standpoint it was meh though…the parmesan cream soup was good (but I mean…how do you screw that up??), the Spanish bread absolutely terrible, and the coffee-cardamom salmon was edible but not great.  It’s not a bad option, but it would be at the bottom of the list for me on LeBlanc Cancun restaurants for dinner.

The drinks here were generally great, including their mojitos and some kind of strawberry cocktail on their special cocktail list.

Because the sun sets on the other side of the building, there’s not much of a sunset to be had for dinner anywhere, but you’ll get some pretty pinks.  This would be a great place for a pre-dinner drink.

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Bella

Full disclosure, I’m always hard on Italian food because I lived in Italy and learned to cook there, so I don’t eat restaurant Italian that often (due to being spoiled on it).  Overall Bella was pretty decent (which honestly is saying something) but not amazing.  Part of it is that the ambiance of the restaurant is a little sterile…it could really benefit from some mood lighting vs. how bright it is (feels less premium).

The appetizers were nice (I had the carpaccio and the caprese salad) but a little bland.  The cacio e pepe pasta was quite good, if a little saucy (which I don’t mind, as many times cacio e pepe can go glue-y).  The tiramisu assembled fresh at table was a nice schtick but dry as a result, less to my taste.  However, pro tip, have the frangelico with your tiramisu!

The service here was awesome, Lorenzo and another gentleman took care of me and were super attentive and warm.  None of the cocktails were calling to me so I went with wine, and they had good recommendations.

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Lumière

This is considered LeBlanc’s premiere restaurant, serving traditional French upscale cuisine.  They do a lovely job making it feel special, between great service and interesting delights and amuse bouche between courses.  The lighting wasn’t great so my pics are rough but I tried 🙂

The welcome drink was passion fruit, sparkling wine, and banana liqueur, which was DELIGHTFUL.  I was a little challenged because there’s so much on the menu I can’t eat (dietary restrictions for religious reasons).  Everything that I *did* eat was delicious though.

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First, the best thing I ate…both of their bread options were awesome, but they have a brioche that is 80% butter (YES YOU READ THAT RIGHT) and it was WHOA.

The amuse bouche were amazing as well…I had a tiny macaroon with foie gras and a truffle filled with champagne and Chambord.  For my meal I had the lamb rack, very good, as were both the rhubarb tart and chocolate soufflé for dessert (though I was so stuffed by that point I couldn’t come close to finishing).

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Other bars on property

I didn’t venture out too much, partly because I didn’t have great drink experiences.  The bar in lobby made an absolutely heinous Old Fashioned cocktail (was on their menu), like drinking kerosene.

The service was just okay at night, though I had one good experience where I was seated on the couches and a server came over…I asked if they could make a French gimlet and I told them the proportions (it’s super simple), and they made it and it was delicious.  The next night the bartender wouldn’t though.

I did spend a half hour in Cava one night, when they had live music.  It’s got a cool vibe though I’m not as into the TVs showing sports.  I stuck with gin & tonics here.

I don’t do all-inclusives much, but here’s how I felt about the nearby Royal Hideaway Playacar

K’akau and Pure

The cute little coffee shop K’akau was delightful and the service great.  I had delicious crepes and tiny pastries, and the cold brew was pretty decent too.  Make sure to try the mojito macaron!  They have lots of macarons and artisan chocolates as well.

I didn’t get to try Pure much (the “healthy” restaurant).  I couldn’t figure out if it was truly open when I was there.  But my server at the pool was able to get me a good chicken crepe and a smoothie.  Both were a little lacking in flavor but it was nice to have something lighter.

So as you can tell, I made it my mission to try as many different dishes at the LeBlanc Cancun restaurants as possible…and I wasn’t disappointed.  For an all-inclusive, their food and drink offering is really awesome!

Other deep-dive foodie adventures you’ll love:

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• The Quest For The Best Old Fashioned In Louisville, Kentucky
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