Founded by former Vogue stylist Gina Góngora and architect Fernando Gómez, the Mérida-based VAGANTES studio doesn’t just design spaces, but actively engages in Yucatán‘s age-old, rich culture, by either breathing new life in existing structures with a hospitality concept rooted in that local culture, or creating an entirely new venue honouring the Mexican peninsula’s traditions. The latest hospitality concept of VAGANTES is an open-air restaurant in Izamal, a historic small town situated a one-hour car drive east of Mérida. Called Kanché, it specialises in beverages and food prepared with national liquors and locally grown ingredients from the orchard of the nearby Kinich restaurant, one of the town’s other gourmet destinations.
Its name is derived from Ka’anché, elevated structures in the ancient Maya civilisation where vegetables, fruits, and herbs were grown. The restaurant is located right next to Kinich Kakmó, a limestone pyramid built by the Mayans between 400-600 AD, and dedicated to one of Yucatán’s most important and notable deities of the same name. The venue sits on a spacious 500 sqm. (5,382 sq.ft.) plot abundantly dotted with fruit trees, shrubs, and medicinal plants. Unsurprisingly, Kanché aims to revive this ancient horticultural tradition. While respecting the plot’s existing vegetation, extra measures were taken, such as the adoption of bioclimatic design principles, to reduce environmental impact.
The Kanché restaurant comprises three distinct sections—when passing though the gate with its robust steel doors, guests encounter an elongated sheltered bar with stools and an adjacent open kitchen. The bar is attached to a structure which houses storage space and guest bathrooms, but which also embeds a staircase to the roof which serves as a garden lookout. Right next to the bar, additional seating can be found in the form of a communal table seating twelve guests. As said, Kanché proudly champions local flavours, and does so with a menu of exquisitely created signature cocktails and a wide selection of equally delicious bites inspired by the region’s flavours and its many riches. © superfuture
Kanché
Calle 28 (Centro)
97540 Izamal
Telephone +52 991 1057050
Thu-Sat 5pm-11pm
Sun 3pm-10pm
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