Hacienda San Angel - Puerto Vallarta hotel, Puerto Vallarta boutique hotel, Puerto Vallarta Bed and Breakfast

I must now add to my personal short-list of fabulous places the Hacienda San Angel in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Created piece by piece by proprietress Janice Chatterton over a period of ten years and open only for the last two-and-a-half as a hotel, the Hacienda is made up of five formerly private casas, purchased separately. One, Casa Bursus, was Richard Burton's 1977 Valentine's Day gift to his then wife Susan. The casas have been joined together and remodeled to form 14 suites on different levels that climb the hill directly behind town (left).

One of the wonders here is that although you're completely removed from its noise and traffic, the center of town is less than a five-minute walk away, albeit up and down well-graded stairs in lieu of sidewalks. An unassuming front door takes you from the steep, dusty, cobblestone street and your overheated taxi into a Moorish vision of paradise: an atrium-like patio, with stone floors, azulejo-covered walls, overhanging greenery, and the soft splash of a fountain. Once past the patio, which serves for reception, as well as for pre-dinner cocktails, you enter a lush tree-and flower-filled garden, with flights of stairs leading off to the right and left. The hotel proper sprawls across a series of terraces, affording, as you ascend, more and more unencumbered views of Banderas Bay, the town of PV, Carlotta's crown atop the bell tower of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe church, and even the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas behind.

Hanging ferns, date-palm fronds, and flourishing vines soften the contours of crisp, white stucco walls, while flowering bougainvillea add bright splashes of color to cool terra cotta floors, graceful arcades, and simple Doric columns gleaming in the sun. Lovely ironwork railings and stone balustrades punctuate the space. Three pools beckon (right), promising relief from the afternoon heat, while deep eaves provide welcome shade.

Within the guest rooms and without, all is set with beautiful 18th and 19th century Mexican and European furniture--armoires, massive, intricately carved beds, and ornate cassones vie with gilt-framed mirrors, crystal chandeliers and colorful Persian carpets to delight the eye. Even more beautiful museum-quality artifacts (many, in fact, purchased from a Mexican museum about to be closed) complete the magic.

Appropriately, angels and archangels form the main theme, with saints and apostles and polychrome and gilt statues, most from the early 19th century and before, in all the sitting rooms. Dark, moody Colonial oil-paintings in their original frames and bas-reliefs in stone and wood, elaborate wooden doors rescued from historic haciendas on the verge of demolition are everywhere on the property. Even a few folk-art pieces--an old, red horse-wagon from San Miguel de Allende doubling as a kitchen table, a larger than life-size, beautifully-rendered sheet-iron rooster, a handful of colorful, vintage carrousel horses, a miner's pot--are included, as are a scattering of ceramics, both European and indigenous.

Brochures in the rooms include a print-out identifying most of the major pieces and their provenances, but these are not the stuffy, hushed rooms of a fine museum, but bright, airy, informal spaces, open to the elements, overlooking flowering tree-tops, deep-blue, rectangular pools, the wide, placid arc of the bay, and the sky beyond.

The sound of running water is everywhere. Overstuffed sofas and armchairs, upholstered in easy-to-care-for white duck, create a laid-back, beach-house ambiance, while linen sheets and duvets, luxurious limestone bathrooms, ubiquitous phones that never ring, but only serve for summoning snacks or beverages chaise-side, and a large, friendly, obviously contented staff not only provides a constant temptation to indolence but also reinforces the impression of being a welcome guest in someone's exquisite, lovingly hand-crafted home.

Deciding where to dine is one of the Hacienda's charming dilemmas. Meals may be enjoyed either in the "main" dining-room (below), inside or out, on an upper terrace facing one of the pools with an Amalfi-coast-worthy view of the Bay. Or you can be served on your own private terrace (most suites, like the one at left, have them), or in one of the other various dining areas, again either alfresco or not, scattered about the place, with tables and chairs ready to be set with fine china, crystal, silverware, and napery. The waiters here are remarkably adept at mounting stairs with heavily-laden trays, even, as it turned out, while working with umbrellas in thunderous downpours.

The cooking here is on a par with the surroundings. The kitchen prepares dishes familiar to its international clientele--steak, ravioli, grilled filet of fish, soups and salads--all the while using local ingredients and spices, especially Mexico's myriad chilies, to give diners a sense of place, as well as to give new interest to some old favorites.

Ceviche is the perfect hot-weather appetizer, especially the Hacienda's version, made with butterflied shrimp and blanched octopus, red onions, habanero peppers, and cilantro in a lime juice marinade. The shrimp were fully "cooked," that is, cured in the marinade, the octopus had just the right tender bite, and the hint of heat from the habaneros made it all the more refreshing. Order the fried calamari (lightly seasoned with chilies and lime) early on in your stay and you'll want it often. The perfectly-fried, crispy little nuggets--each just about one good crunch--arrive in an upright seaweed cone, along with a white wine-mustard sauce and a spicy red cocktail sauce.

The Hacienda's gazpacho, once again, was just about as good as this ubiquitous dish gets, a beautiful, thin, brick-red colored liquid, vibrant with tomato, bell pepper, celery and cucumber flavors, and garnished with a tiny dice of cucumber. With a couple of ice cubes added to the bowl, it took me back to my first encounter with gazpacho, on a steamy August day in pre-air-conditioned Seville, when it provided momentary relief from the heat.

Don't pass up the hot soups either, whether the shrimp and coconut, a satiny bisque powered by a rich fumet, nicely flavored with coconut and Mexican spices, or the hearty Chef's Special soup, a large bowl of creamy, thyme-perfumed chowder, chock-a-block with shrimp, scallops, octopus and chunks of fish, each different fish treated with respect. It's more stew than soup. Classic Caesar salad is another must-try, either on its own as an appetizer, or with grilled chicken or shrimp as a light luncheon entree. It's a beautifully simple, untheatrical rendition-- just perfect for a hot June afternoon spent poolside--some leaves of immaculate romaine laid on a plate, a couple of anchovy-topped croustades rubbed with garlic, a grating of cheese, all ever so lightly dressed with a classic creamy vinaigrette. Once again, quick, light, and refreshing. The chefs here know when to pour on the flavors, and when to let freshness speak for itself.

Grilled cabreria turned out to be a slice of beef tenderloin but still attached to the bone so it was fork-tender and flavorful, with ranchero-style black beans, a delicious garlic-flavored portobello, and a deep brown demi-glace sauce, flavored with guajillo, pasilla, and cascabel chilies. Al Pastor shrimp brochette consisted of perfectly grilled, slightly smoky, adobo-flavored shrimp, with a wonderful rice pilaf and a "ratatouille' of mangoes and jalapeños.

Roasted yellow-fin tuna arrived just seared as requested, topped with a lively radish vinaigrette, along with tiny sautéed new potatoes, haricots verts and grilled papaya, while Ravioli San Angel, well-made pasta stuffed with Mexican queso blanco, and topped with a good half-dozen large shrimp in a creamy garlic-tomato sauce, were rich and copious enough to satisfy the largest of appetites.

From the "All-Day" menu, which also serves for lunch, we enjoyed the Taco Trilogy, a beautiful example of something a Mexican might actually have for lunch: achiote-marinated red snapper with cilantro, chicken in red sauce, and shrimp with avocado, each on its own small corn tortilla, surrounding a mound of the Hacienda's killer guacamole and ranchero-style black beans. A bocadillo sandwich, made with Serrano ham on crusty bread, proved once again that this raw Spanish raw ham can give Italian Prosciutto a run for its money.

By the way, the rolls served with the meals --the product of a local bakery--are wonderful, as are the minty, almost medicinal mojitos. Local mariachi bands visit the hacienda nightly during the cocktail hour.

We had two delicious bottles of Chilean wine, a Miguel Torres Santa Digna Merlot 2003 Reserva (US$35), and a Château Los Boldos 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Grand Reserve ($52), both with ripe, upfront fruit, toasty vanilla, good acidity, and a nice edge of fine tannins, the latter wine offering a bit more depth and complexity.

Appetizers and soups range from $US7-$12.50; entrees $16.50- $29.50.

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