Located at the corner of Alvaro Obregon and Vicente Guerrero at the north end of the Art District in San Jose del Cabo is a unique business that combines a restaurant, a market with small artisanal stands, live music, and a spa – Alma de Mexico.

We climbed the stairs to the second-floor location and were greeted by the hostess who led us to a table for four. Our server, Karely brought us menus and asked what we would like to drink. Tracey ordered a Mezcalita, Beth a limonadaminerale and I asked for a glass of chardonnay. We were brought a basket of tortilla chips and two salsas to nibble while we looked over the menu. The menu offers a full range of Mexican dishes – empanadas, quesadillas, tacos, fajitas, molcajete, enchiladas, as well as shrimp and beef specialties. We ordered guacamole to share to start, which was served in a large stone bowl with a crisp tostada. For main courses, Tracey selected the fajitas de pollo served with rice and beans, and Beth chose the mango shrimp served on rice with a side salad. Both dishes came with a basket of flour tortillas. I decided on the Baja fish tacos tempura style. The two tacos were loaded with lettuce, cabbage, and shredded carrots and a sauce with just a little spice.

The flavor, portion size, and presentation were very good and the prices quite reasonable. Karely was an excellent server and kept us in drinks throughout the evening.

However, the real thrill of the evening was the live entertainment – Kids Monsters. These five extremely talented siblings, ranging in age from 15 to 27 took the house down. With a repertoire that featured hits of the 60s and 70s and a few recent songs, they demonstrated not only their ability to play their instruments, but their ability to entrain and engage the audience. The drummer and lead vocalist could sound like almost anyone – from Steve Perry of Journey to Axel Rose of Guns n’ Roses to Louis Armstrong. The 15-year-old keyboard player was just as comfortable on the lead vocals as on her electronic keyboard. The young female bass player twirled her hair, jumped around the stage, danced with the audience and played her bass as she moved around the room. The 18-year-old girl was equally comfortable on guitar, percussion, or saxophone. The oldest brother screamed with lead guitar solos. Where did all this talent come from? It was clear when their father joined them on both drums and guitar for the last few songs. What an amazing band?

Overall, this was one of the best nights out that we have had in a while for both the entertainment, atmosphere, food and service. We are already planning to take a big group back in a few weeks on a Wednesday night when Kids Monsters play.