María José Yances Guerra, also known as Pepina, spent years traveling along Colombia's Caribbean coast. She collected recipes from traditional cooks in Córdoba, Sucre, Bolívar, and the surrounding area to preserve them before they were lost. Rather than leaving her research in a notebook, her nephews Christian and Mateo turned it into a restaurant. The result is La Cocina de Pepina, where two generations come together: one dedicated to documenting Caribbean cuisine and the other dedicated to cooking it. The restaurant serves dishes built around ñame, yuca, plantain, corozo, and costeño cheese. It's a family story that also happens to be a restaurant. In our opinion, it serves the second-best mote de queso in Cartagena, after my grandmother's.

In Manga, where Cartagena's old mansions now stand alongside a growing residential community, a husband-and-wife team opened Los Criollos around a single obsession: saving Colombia's heirloom corn varieties. They work directly with farmers who grow the colorful, ancestral varieties that might otherwise disappear and feature them at the center of their dishes instead of treating them as a side dish. The cooking is straightforward, with dishes like sudados and arepas that highlight the corn's natural color and texture. The couple argues that protecting biodiversity can also be delicious.

The story of Sambal begins far from the historic center of Cartagena. Long before Sambal came into being, Jaris Julio was raised in the Montes de María, surrounded by her father's crops: ñame, beans, corn, and sweet potatoes. She transformed her childhood experience into Jaris Market, a network that now connects over 100 farming families with restaurants and households across Cartagena. Jaris opened Sambal with her husband, chef Jaime Galindo. They ask a simple question: What if those same ingredients could carry a five-course tasting menu? Trained in some of Cartagena and Medellín's most respected kitchens, Jaime translates Jaris's connection to the land into contemporary Caribbean cooking, letting the Montes de María take center stage on every plate.

The story of Tito Bravo begins with a beautiful old Cartagena house and a shared vision between two partners, Andrés Medina and Esteban Nieto. Esteban, a professional musician, had always dreamed of creating a place where great live music could coexist with the warmth of a traditional Cartagena setting and thoughtful cooking. Together, they turned that idea into Tito Bravo, a restaurant where the experience is as much about the atmosphere and the people as it is about what is on the plate.

Located in the heart of Cartagena, Centro Artesano is a place where guests can meet the people behind Colombian craftsmanship and experience the process of creating these pieces firsthand. Through our relationship with the artisans, guests can experience more than just buying a souvenir; they can immerse themselves in the process itself. They can work with natural fibers, learn traditional weaving techniques, and shape something with their own hands alongside a maker who has spent a lifetime perfecting the craft.

The Centro Regional brings together the craft traditions of Bolívar and the Caribbean under one roof. These traditions are not displayed as museum pieces, but are still practiced by artisans from across the region. Thanks to our connections, guests can go beyond the display cases and participate in hands-on workshops alongside local artisans.

Pachas/Bohío is a Colombian clothing brand founded on the idea that clothes should feel as good as they look. Its collections embody the relaxed spirit of the Caribbean with lightweight fabrics and easy silhouettes — pieces made for everyday life, not for showing off. As a certified B Corp, the brand is evaluated on more than just sales. It is part of a growing group of Colombian businesses that prove fashion can be both beautiful and responsible.

Tucked away on Calle Larga, Carlota Álvarez is a small and intentionally understated gallery that offers a very different perspective on Cartagena's art scene. While the streets of the city are filled with paintings that often look remarkably similar, repeated from one shop to another and inspired by the same familiar images, Carlota has taken a different path.
She has dedicated herself to finding and collecting more unique works by emerging artists from Cartagena, giving space to artists whose voices and perspectives are not always visible in the city's more commercial galleries.
The gallery itself is located in Carlota's home. There is nothing overly polished or designed about the presentation, and that is precisely what makes it special. It feels personal, intimate, and genuine, like being invited into someone's home to discover something they truly care about.