Ecuador's third city is quietly building a reputation as the country's rooftop dining capital. According to El Mercurio's special independence-day section, Cuenca now counts at least 15 rooftop restaurants — more than Guayaquil's 11 or Quito's 10. The line-up includes Negroni Rooftop, Cúpulas Azules, Zaza Lounge 360, Zielo City View, Terra Rooftop 360, Saya Hotel Rooftop & Restaurant and Nila Rooftop, among others. For a city famous for its blue-domed cathedral, sipping a cocktail above the terracotta roofs is a fitting way to end a day.
The food scene goes well beyond rooftops. Gaby Lazo's Atelier de Postres, on Benigno Malo opposite Parque Calderón, is turning out sculpted, painted cakes — including one shaped like one of the cathedral domes. Bolones y Tigrillos de la Negra brings Esmeraldas coastal recipes like caldo de bola and bollos de pescado to González Suárez, while Mocagi-San serves sushi near the stadium under a chef who spent over two decades working in the US. Casa Hermanos, run by the Narváez brothers from two locations, does sourdough pizza, cured meats and house-made chorizo.
Bread and coffee get their own chapters too. Panadería Internacional bakes with indigenous mollete flour and 24-hour natural fermentation in a wood-fired oven; Antojo Morlaco pairs traditional dairy with kombucha, kefir and Greek yogurt; and the Horno de Leña in the Todos Santos heritage complex keeps the old wood-oven tradition alive. Coffee lovers may recognise Hacienda La Papaya in Saraguro, whose grower Juan Peña exports award-winning beans to the US, Asia and Europe.
Getting around got easier as well. Avianca has launched a direct daily Cuenca–Guayaquil flight — about 48 to 50 minutes in the air, with an 83% full inaugural service. It opens a straightforward route to Avianca's international connections from Guayaquil, including a Cuenca-to-New York itinerary. Anyone still driving the Molleturo road should know Centresur is midway through a $483,851 lighting project on an eight-kilometre stretch, due to finish at the end of December.
There's a quirky extra for rainy afternoons: Cuenca's hybrid café-game scene. The Cuenca Chess Club meets at Café Austria on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays; Cosmos Coffee pairs cappuccinos with Lego kits; and VRooms, a gamer restobar on Calle Larga, rents console time for $5.75 an hour with machines from every era of gaming.
Why it matters: Cuenca has long been a favourite with slow travellers and expats for its walkable colonial centre and mild climate, but this round-up shows the food and drink side maturing fast. If you're planning an Ecuador trip beyond the Galápagos-and-Quito circuit, a few days eating your way through Cuenca's rooftops, bakeries and coastal-Ecuadorian kitchens now stacks up as a genuine reason to linger. The new Avianca link makes combining it with Guayaquil — and onward flights — far more painless, and timing a visit around the annual classic car rally, which draws nearly 100 vehicles on a 65 km route towards Uzhupud and raises funds for cancer charity FASEC, adds a bonus spectacle.
