The Café with a Heart of Gold in the Cafe Guide
You can consume coffee “jaliciense” in this location and you’ll be seated like a guest in Paty’s home. This little café goes all-out to win your heart (and achieves it!).
Because of its location, on the second floor, it might be few have noticed it. However, it is famous among locals because it is one of the few places where the tourists rarely come. When we arrived there, we discovered a small town quality that was more Vallarta: Paty, the owner, knows all her clients by name and warmly greets them and tells them farewell; including us, first-timers. After introductions, they called us by name and told us that Paty is from Sweden. All the recipes are hers and she prepares the cakes and pies herself. The concept, from the food, the décor, all the way to the owner, is relaxed and wholesome. Only fresh fruit is used in the pies: guayaba, coconut, hazelnut and pears; but, since it is not the season, we still have a craving for the taste of mango.
After the desserts, the specialty of the house is the sandwiches. The portions are large, but you can request half orders. The bread (as opposed to that of other sandwich places) is homemade loaves of whole wheat and lightly toasted. Her menu, not overly extensive, will be easy to choose from. The Vegetariano, with cucumber, alfalfa sprouts and cream cheese is a good option to begin the day or to have as a light dinner.
Of the beverages (freshly made and without fuss; you won’t find whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles here) the coffee occupies the place of honor: you will only find quality Jalisco coffee, carefully selected from the mountain towns. If you want, you can buy it by the kilo, ground or in decaf, and to start your own coffee plantation they also sell coffee plants.
The location is large and inviting, for some 30 people. It seems like the home of a friend, especially because of the eclectic tableware and the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. It was commented to us that the idea exists that Oro Verde is a café for older people, but when we were there, the majority of the tables were occupied by young locals and almost no foreigners.
Although it is located on Morelos Street, you cannot hear outside noise. If you go with friends, there are table games available: Rummy, Uno, dominos, and chess. If you go alone, you can take advantage of Paty’s library; there are some 50 titles in English and magazines of all types.