La Balsa is a restaurant and lodge on the shore of Laguna Garzón, on the José Ignacio side, cooking around the day's catch and produce from the surrounding department (Uruguay's equivalent of a province).

The dining room is set with pieces from the lagoon's history: a replica of the raft (“balsa”) that for years was the lagoon's only public crossing, two masts from a schooner wrecked on this coast, chains from the ship Renner, which ran aground on the rocks by the José Ignacio lighthouse, glass buoys, the original sign marking the raft crossing and the oars of a local fisherman's boat.

The menu follows what local fishermen bring in, so the catch of the day may be saltwater fish, freshwater fish or both. The kitchen also uses native ingredients such as butiá (the fruit of a local palm) and wild boar, and smokes meat with tree bark in a charcoal-fired iron oven and on the griddle.

It opens Friday to Sunday for lunch; the published hours are below. For the menu, prices and table availability, use the contact on this listing: the portal does not publish them.