Hartwood opened in 2010 in a clearing off the beach road and arguably did more than anything else to put Tulum on the international food map. The kitchen runs entirely off a wood-fired oven and grill — no electricity, no gas — and the menu changes daily according to what the local fishermen, farmers, and foragers bring in that morning. The pork ribs and the whole grilled fish have been on it more or less constantly for a decade.
It remains one of the most booked-out restaurants on the Yucatán Peninsula; reservations open online a month ahead and disappear within hours. Walk-ups can sometimes get a seat at the bar early in the evening. The setting — open-air, candle-lit, jungle pressing in on three sides — is half the experience.