Chef Mario Rosero is standing beside a wood-fired grill at the back of Prudencia, the restaurant he owns in La Candelaria, Bogotá’s cobblestoned old town. The grill has three circular grates that can be adjusted to different positions. Small pieces of pork are sizzling on the one directly above the flames; a cast iron pot filled with corn is cooking less fiercely on another, higher up.

This precise yet casual restaurant in the La Candelaria neighborhood only serves lunch and it’s a 4-course affair (US$14 vegetarian or US$18 with meat) that’s reinvented weekly by chef Mario Rosero (a CIA trained chef) and his flawlessly hospitable wife Meghan Flanigan. Grateful area workers, devoted locals, and clued-in travelers come for dishes like spicy and tender beef bavette with chile de arbol and oregano, juicy brined chicken sate, surprising and satisfying sunflower seed risotto with arugula, shitake compote, wood roasted asparagus, carrots, haricots verts, and asiago, Spanish mackerel with brown sugar, coriander, and turmeric, and cloud-like white chocolate pannacotta topped with dark chocolate sauce and a crunchy peanut butter wafer. They smoke, cure, pickle, and ferment their own ingredients, bake their own legit bread, offer weekly cocktail specials plus a lovely wine list, and make their own fruit sodas.

If I have a special guest for lunch, we’re going for the prix fixe menu at Prudencia, currently my favorite restaurant in Bogotá. Located in the historic center La Candelaria, the love and work put into the restaurant by owners (and husband and wife) Mario Rosero and Meghan Flanigan shows in every detail, from the architecture that combines the local bamboo with recycled materials to the wood-oven bread baked fresh each morning to their homemade spice blends. Even seemingly homely ingredients are made with care—smoked banana and maracuyá (passionfruit) ketchup anyone?.

Prudencia: Truth be told, my lunch at Prudencia was my favorite meal while I spent a few days in Bogotá. The sun-kissed dining room, which was once a colonial-style home, is rustic and filled with the scent of freshly baking bread. The food is fresh, local, and vegetable-forward, with dishes like charred asparagus with poached pears and a strawberry curd, wood-smoked cauliflower served in a puddle of spinach puree, and melt-in-your-mouth homemade cheesecake with a silky dark chocolate sauce.

Set in an enchanting colonial home in La Candelaria, the historic district known for its inexpensive set lunches, Prudencia is boldly redefining the fixed lunch concept. The menu here changes weekly based on produce available from local producers; chef Mario Rosero is constantly innovating to ensure that no dish is ever repeated. Consistent however, is his respectful approach, using techniques such as fermentation to maintain the integrity of the ingredient.

One of the few good dining options in La Candelaría, lunch-only Prudencia, set in a Republican-era house redesigned by prized Colombian architect Simon Vélez, stands out for its creative, ever-changing menu based in local, seasonal ingredients. Pasto-born and Los Angeles raised Mario Rosero, a Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park grad, likes to smoke and ferment, minimize food waste, and cook things long and slow. Carrera 2 #1134;Prudencia.net.

Prudencia is a gem located in the historic La Candelaria neighborhood, known for its open-fire cooking and a menu inspired by global flavors with Colombian influences. Set in a beautifully restored colonial house, the restaurant offers a tranquil escape from the bustling city streets. With its open kitchen and communal dining tables, Prudencia encourages shared culinary experiences, inviting guests to interact and engage with their dining companions.

At Prudencia, chef Mario Rosero shapes his menu around the products that farmers are not able to sell anymore. While he often ends up with mass quantities of certain ingredients, it forces him to get creative. The educational nature of Rosero’s relationship with farmers goes both ways as he teaches them that selling a product at its prime can be just as, if not more, valuable than selling at its greatest size.

One of the other great restaurants in La Candelaria in Bogota is Prudencia. Prudencia is a sophisticated lunch restaurant offering a modern take on Colombian cuisine with a focus on local, seasonal ingredients. Their tasting menu offering 7 courses is very popular, giving you the the chance to experience a variety of dishes, like lomo de res with local mushrooms or tartar de atún with a special twist.

Another notable gastronomic spot recommended by Chef Clavijo is Restaurante Prudencia, situated in La Candelaria at Carrera 2a # 11-34. This place offers a seven-course menu that rotates or changes each month. Prudencia is located in one of the city center's most traditional mansions, specializing in national and international dishes prepared with wood-fired and rustic techniques.

Only a 5-minute walk from the Gold Museum is Prudencia in La Candelaria. Housed in a wonderfully renovated colonial house with a surprisingly contemporary interior, it’s the perfect setting from which to enjoy the 4-course set menu which Prudencia offers each lunchtime. The menu changes daily with original and surprising choices that are never repeated.

A unique dining experience in Bogota’s La Candelaria neighborhood, Prudencia features a rotating menu, with chef Mario Roseroand her team preparing most of their dishes in their wood-fired oven. They have a small indoor dining area along with a leafy patio in a quiet area uphill from downtown and are only open for lunch. View this post on Instagram

In the historic centre of Bogotá is the wonderful, lunch-only Prudencia, in a restored iron and glass-roofed house. Husband and wife duo Mario Rosero and Meghan Flanigan offer an ever-changing roster of dishes cooked over a barbecue developed by Mario himself. On my visit, it included creole potatoes with cheddar, Gouda and woodfired porchetta.

Prudencia – (La Candelaria) Prudencia had been recommended to me by a friend of a friend of my brother, who is one of the owners of the restaurant. As soon as I saw pictures of the interior, I knew it was right up my alley. Prudencia offers delicious and beautifully plated food in a gorgeous setting that is brightly lit with natural light.

This wood-fired kitchen tucked into Bogotá’s historic center is unlike anywhere else. We step into a lush indoor garden, are greeted by the open kitchen, and dine on seasonal menus that evolve weekly. It’s quiet, intimate, and best enjoyed at lunch or early dinner when sunlight filters through the trees.

Stepping into the renovated colonial home, one immediately feels serene. The abundance of light and the natural elements applied throughout this most homey of greenhouse call for a slow, celebratory meal which is exactly what Prudencia has been setting out to do since it opened in 2016.

Near Candelaria, you’ll find a number of other delicious spots, like Prudencia, built in a renovated colonial French-style home, and only open for lunch (vegetarian option available), and De Una Travel Bar, where you’re find a variety of South American dishes in a laid-back environment.

Prudencia: brinda una experiencia culinaria de platos sencillos, cocinados en su mayoría al fuego de leña reforestada. Comprometidos con la sostenibilidad, aquí utilizan ingredientes frescos, orgánicos, de temporada y locales. Con influencias culinarias de EE.

The lunch-only Prudencia also serves creative farm-to-table dishes (expect licorice-smoked pork belly) and has its own herb and vegetable garden out back. Maryland-born dancer-turned-restaurateur Meghan Flanigan runs it with her chef-husband Mario Rosero.

¿Uno de los mejores restaurantes del mundo me lo encontré en Bogotá?. Empeño mi vida en eso si no es verdad: la ilusión de cualquier comelón o de cualquier buen recomendador. Está escondido en la Candelaria!