A small ranching town in the Sierra de la Laguna foothills just got a formal push as a food destination. Miraflores, about 60 kilometers north of San José del Cabo, received copies of the Culinary Awards 2025 Guide this month, a publication spotlighting top restaurants across the Los Cabos municipality. The handover, coordinated through the municipal Tourism office, is part of a broader effort to pull visitors inland from the hotel corridor and into communities where Sudcalifornian ranch cooking still shapes daily life.
Miraflores: A Ranching Town With Deep Culinary Roots
Miraflores sits at roughly 300 meters elevation on the eastern slope of the Sierra de la Laguna, a UNESCO-designated biosphere reserve. The town’s population hovers around 2,500, and its economy has long revolved around cattle ranching, small-scale farming, and leatherwork. Talabartería, the craft of hand-tooled leather saddles and belts, draws some visitors already. But the food traditions run just as deep.
Sudcalifornian ranch cuisine is distinct from mainland Mexican cooking. The peninsula’s geographic isolation shaped a kitchen built on what the land provides: beef and goat from local herds, cheese made on nearby ranchos, wild herbs like damiana, and seasonal fruits including mango, guava, and pitahaya cactus fruit. Machaca (dried, shredded beef) is a staple, and so are flour tortillas, which dominate over corn in much of Baja California Sur. Dishes like carne machaca con huevo, beans cooked with local cheese, and empanadas filled with regional fruit preserves are common at Miraflores tables.
Doña Pame, the Miraflores restaurant featured in this year’s guide, sources its ingredients from area farmers, ranchers, and regional suppliers. The restaurant also hosts periodic culinary events that showcase traditional Sudcalifornian recipes. Municipal delegate María Aremy García García said during the guide’s handover that Miraflores holds “a great culinary richness that is part of our history and traditions.” She emphasized the importance of supporting cooks who “keep our culture alive through the kitchen.”
Los Cabos Tourism Office Targets Inland Communities
The Culinary Awards Guide has existed for several years as a promotional tool for Los Cabos dining. Past editions have focused heavily on the resort corridor between San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, where high-end restaurants dominate. Including Miraflores in the 2025 edition marks a deliberate pivot by the municipal government to spread tourism spending into smaller, inland communities.
This push fits a pattern visible across Baja California Sur. State and municipal authorities have invested in “Pueblos Mágicos” branding for towns like Todos Santos and El Triunfo, both of which have seen growing visitor traffic over the past decade. Miraflores lacks that federal designation, but its proximity to the Cabo corridor gives it a geographic advantage those towns share: close enough for a day trip, far enough to feel like a different world.
The strategy also responds to a real gap. Los Cabos welcomed over 3.9 million visitors in 2024, yet the vast majority never leave the coastal strip between the two Cabos. Inland towns see little of that spending. Funneling even a fraction of those visitors toward places like Miraflores could provide meaningful income for local food producers, ranchers, and small restaurant owners.
The Drive From San José del Cabo Takes Under an Hour
Getting to Miraflores is straightforward. From San José del Cabo, drive north on Highway 1 (the Transpeninsular) for about 45 minutes. The turnoff is well marked. The road is paved and in good condition the entire way. You do not need four-wheel drive.
Once in town, the main plaza and surrounding streets hold the restaurants and leather shops. Doña Pame is the standout dining option now, but several family-run kitchens serve traditional plates. Order machaca, queso fresco made locally, and flour tortillas. If pitahaya is in season (typically late summer), ask for it fresh or in a agua fresca.
Beyond food, the Sierra de la Laguna offers hiking trails accessible from the Miraflores area. The Cañón de la Zorra waterfall, a popular swimming hole surrounded by palm trees, is a roughly 20-minute drive from town on a dirt road. Combining a meal in Miraflores with a visit to the waterfall makes for a full day away from the beach.
The municipal Tourism office plans to distribute the Culinary Awards 2025 Guide to hotels and visitor centers across the Los Cabos corridor, where it will be available in print. Details were reported by the Los Cabos municipal government.