Spending a day in Ixtapa recommendations

Hello, we have been to Zihua several times, but never made the trip to Ixtapa. This time around our trip to Zihua is longer than usual so we might want to go spend a day in Ixtapa just for a change.
I envision we'd go to a beachfront restaurant, eat and hang out for a few hours, but that's as far as I get.
My questions are:

Where should we get off the bus to be closer to a beach?
Do you have any favorite restaurant that we should try while there, preferably one on the beach, since I think we'd only have one meal there.
Are there any beaches or places where we are not allowed to be because we're not staying at any of those hotels?

Thank you, any insights appreciated.