03 · Instinto Bistró

Eating here is another way of getting to know the place.

Instinto is a fresh, varied kitchen, made for every taste and every way of eating.

Our garden and the produce of this land are at its heart, and so are flavor, a varied table and the simple pleasure of eating well.

On the menu you’ll find local fish, meats, chicken, milanesas, vegetables, salads, tropical fruit, breakfasts, dishes to share and vegetarian options.

Roots in the land, variety on the table and flavor at the center.

Leaf: Guamo

Slow food, no rush

Instinto is not the place to come in a hurry.
We work with fresh ingredients and many of our dishes are made to order. We believe a meal can also be a pause in the day.
While the kitchen does its thing, you can stroll through the gardens, talk, have something cool to drink or head down to the Guachaca River for a dip.
Here, waiting can become part of the experience too.
If you need to eat at a specific time, we recommend arranging it in advance.

Here, the place sets the pace.
Leaf: Palma

From morning to night

Instinto is there for every moment of the day.
A quiet breakfast among the gardens. A coffee from the Sierra. Fresh fruit and juices. Lunch after the river. Something to drink in the late afternoon. A shared table. Dinner wrapped in greenery and the sounds of the night.
The menu is wide: meats, chicken, local fish, milanesas, vegetables, salads, vegetarian options, dishes to share, smoothies, juices, coffee and something sweet to finish.
The garden runs through our kitchen, but it doesn’t limit it.
We look for a balance between what we grow, what we find nearby and a cuisine that is diverse, generous and full of flavor.
Leaf: Bijao

Come to Instinto

You don’t need to be staying at Salvia Madre to come to Instinto.
Drop by for breakfast, lunch, a drink or dinner, and stay a while to walk the gardens and enjoy the Guachaca River.
Often, a meal is the doorway to discovering the whole place.
It’s a place for couples, families, friends, travelers and locals. Kids find games, nature and room to explore.
Leaf: Heliconia

Hours and access

Instinto has its own entrance and parking right in front of the restaurant, separate from Salvia Madre’s main gate.

Open every day from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

We recommend booking ahead, especially for dinner, families and groups.

Come with time. Eat well. Stay a while.

The garden

The garden is a living part of Instinto. A place to grow food, but also to observe, learn and remember that we are part of a much larger system.

We tend it guided by permaculture principles, by knowledge shared by farmers from the region and by the ancestral wisdom of the Indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Different perspectives that teach us something essential: the land is not just a resource we take food from, but a living organism that needs time, care and reciprocity.

We learn by watching the cycles of rain and sun, caring for the soil, pairing plants, reusing organic waste, living alongside insects and other species, saving seeds and understanding that every crop has its moment.

We also learn from what doesn’t work. The garden is constant experimentation, and it reminds us that growing food takes patience, adaptation and listening.

We don’t try to grow everything we serve. What the land gives us goes naturally into the kitchen, and what we don’t grow we look for from nearby farmers and producers, strengthening a local network around food.

That’s how the garden connects the land to the kitchen, and the kitchen to the territory.