Meals depend on where you eat, you can eat great sea food in Boca del Rio and Mandinga and Alvarado but for this last one you have to travel about 45 minutes. Look for the Palapas huts and you can have a great meal for little money.
Jarocho cuisine is unique among Mexico's regional cuisines in its pronounced Spanish and Afro-Caribbean influences. The long coastlines make Veracruz a seafood paradise. Seafood dishes include octopus and red snapper huachinango prepared a la veracruzana a tomato-olive based sauce, "arroz a la tumbada" tumbled rice and "caldo de mariscos". Baked plantains are a ubiquitous side. Other foods of Afro-Caribbean origin are "pollo encacahuatado" chicken in peanut sauce and "mondogo" tripe soup. Veracruz is famous for its café con leche. Visit the cities famous coffee houses, El Gran Cafe de la Parroquia and El Gran Cafe del Portal.
Budget
In Veracruz, as in most Mexican cities, you won't notice much difference in taste between tacos from a fancy restaurant on the plaza and tacos from a street cart, it all more or less tastes fantastic. If you're on a budget, it's best to stay away from restaurants on the plaza, where you'll pay a premium for location. Street carts are definitely the cheapest option, but if you like to sit down and eat, a good compromise that's still dirt-cheap is any of lunch counters at the Mercado Hidalgo.
Helados El Malecón, Güero Güero Güera Güera - good ice cream sorbets. If you are very hungry, or have a companion, try a champola de guanábana, a huge milkshake of guanabana ice cream and condensed milk.
Midrange
Gran Café de la Parroquia - Try the lechero, or espresso with fresh and creamy milk. The picadas y gorditas con huevo fried, handmade tortillas topped with salsa and scrambled eggs make a good breakfast. The rest of the food is overpriced.
El Bayo FIXME: address? it's on the road to Xalapa, by the exit to San Juan de Ulúa. Excellent seafood, especially the seafood cocktails and arroz a la tumbada red rice with seafood.
Rio de la Plata It is a traditional Mexican Cantina, where you can find delicious and fresh fish. Waiters usually make "rifas" of Sea Food Salads. The ticket costs about USD 3.00 and it is really funny. It is located two blocks away from "Plaza de Armas"