So, getting back to the food, we stumbled on a place next to the Costa Rica Surf Club where we rented boards the next day called Falafel Mundo, a Middle-Eastern Cuisine place that only served three items, but served them VERY well; falafel, shawarma and shaksuka. Shira (almost like the He-Man counterpart) owns the place with her Israeli boyfriend where they have brought the delicious tastes of the Mid-East. They bring the spices for the dishes back with them from Israel or have their mom send a care package, so you know it’s authentic as it gets.

We bellied-up to the bar on the giant wooden stumps and ordered two half Falafel sandwiches and two half Shawarma sandwiches so that we could each share both. She asked if we wanted to add hummus and if we liked it spicy and of course we replied with a tandem ‘yes’. The hummus inside and the tangy yogurt sauce on each was the kicker to set things over the top. Falafel Mundo was a great experience overall and Shira was a pleasure to chat with while she prepared our food. This has become our “Bubba’s Fish Taco” of Tamarindo, the must-have when traveling through or coming within 50 miles of this beach.

Falafel Mundo is located next to Sharky’s and across from High Tide. Don’t miss this Cheap Food Here hotspot in Tamarindo.

No matter what the history books have said, I think the real gold wasn’t discovered until I walked into the Waffle Place in Escazú. This gold mine is located in the Golden Plaza close to Multiplaza Escazú. Talk about rich, delicious food. And affordable to boot! My husband claims that I’ve acquired a knack for choosing the best thing on the menu the first time, and in this case I did. Now, it’s been a few weeks since I’ve been there and I have been lazy about posting, so I’ll let the pictures and descriptions do the talking.

The owner spent two years in Belgium studying the intricacies of waffles and the cuisine specific to that country and region. The menu is probably bigger than it should be, but I have yet to find something I didn’t love. I always get the waffle with creamy bacon and mushroom sauce over a fried egg. The first time ordering, not having seen the actual waffles themselves, I imagined something completely different. But, to my surprise the flavor was bursting and the richness unrivaled. Also shown here is a waffle with bacon and a fried egg over hashbrowns and topped with honey mustard for the perfect balance of sweet and savory.

They have a great lunch menu, as you can see from the soup in sourdough bowl (not uncommon in the US, but very scarce here in Costa Rica), there is more than just waffles here. Shown is a creamy tomato soup with avocado and a side salad. It’s pretty much guaranteed you’ll leave The Waffle Place more than just full, but completely satisfied.

There are several places in Jaco, Costa Rica to find fish tacos, or any tacos for that matter, like the Taco Bar and Jaco Taco, but we have certainly found our winner for best flavor, freshness and price. Bubbas was a little hole-in-the-wall place for several years and was recommended to us by our friends in Playa Matapalo. We went for the first time about 6 months ago, but each time I went, I was too excited about actually eating that I forgot to take pictures of the food and the place. Lame excuse I know, but I finally got a few pictures, but still forgot the actual tacos.

WHAT TO ORDER AT BUBBA’S

The place is pretty non-descript, but has a blue sign saying BUBBA’S with a marlin on it. There are about four aluminum 4-top tables with a basket of various hot sauces in the middle. No matter what you see on that menu, get the fish taco, all the way. That includes fresh grilled Mahi, cabbage, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, lime and a large dose of delicious! They come with a buttered ‘elote’ or corn-on-the-cob and don’t forget to order the fresh cut french fries and a lemonade. I’m telling you, you’ll never think twice about the other taco places in Jacó after you’ve left Bubba’s. Now, no matter if we are just driving past Jacó coming from Dominical or spent the day in Esterillos, we make it a point to grab a fish taco before heading home. The best part is, you can get the taco, fries and a drink for about $6, which is more than I can say for the other places.

source: http://www.junkfoodnews.net/worldrecords.htm

BUBBA’S HAS A GUINNESS RECORD

As it turns out, according to the Guinness Book of World Records and the Junk Food News, back in August of 2008, Bubba’s took the world record for biggest fish taco. 100% of the proceeds went to establish a reef conservation project at a local highschool in Jacó. “The mission of www.reefball.org is to rehabilitate the world’s ocean-reef ecosystems and to protect the natural reef systems using artificial reef technologies. Reef Balls are artificial reef modules placed in the ocean to form reef habitat.”

Now the little taco stand has moved two streets north and onto the beach. I don’t recall what is next to it, but everyone in town knows where it is. Bubba also runs a very successful deep sea fishing charter company, so make sure you check that out.

The difference between Tico empanadas and Argentinian empanadas are the crusts. Ticos love them some corn and Donde El Ché’s are flour. I definitely prefer the flour and baking them as opposed to frying them. The filling on these guys were amazing. We tried the chicken, spinach and the tomato-garlic flavors with a clear winner. Surprisingly, the tomato garlic empanada had the most unique, intense and delicious flavor of all three. I of course ordered that one and didn’t want to share, but how do you brag about what you’ve got without letting others try it out.

Next course, my husband and I split the Vacío de Horno or something close to that, which means ‘Empty Oven’. And this is by far the best cut of meat I’ve experienced in San Jose. It was cured first similar to corned beef and then baked to perfect tenderness in a delicious savory sauce and accompanied by a baked potato and salad. Our friend ordered the Churripan, which was a slice of marinated pork on a homemade bun with chimichurri sauce to DIE for. The best I could do to tell what was in the chimichurri was olive oil, pimentos, whole black peppercorns, garlic, herbs and some sort of secret magnificence that I couldn’t quite detect.

My husband describes his cheap food experience at Donde El Ché as a fiesta in his mouth and vowed that if we ever opened a restaurant he would never be satisfied unless we could create the exact same feeling of wanting to return somewhere as they did. We’ll be back, you can count on that.

After being recommended by a friend in the neighborhood, we were led on the search for cheap food in Pavas, San Jose, Costa Rica. The bar’s name is Jettsy and looks like your typical Costa Rican bar on the corner but the food is extraordinary. It’s an open air restaurant, similar to the others around the country, with TV’s over the bar, rustic wood tables, plants everywhere you look and an attentive waitstaff (which is tough to find, mind you).

We were told the hamburgers were pretty great, considering the country we are in. I mean, how come hamburgers in Costa Rica are so terrible most times? But, Jettsy is different. They don’t use preformed patties and they use decent quality beef, bacon and cheese. So, if you’re looking for a decent burger in San Jose, or Costa Rica for that matter, look for Jettsy in Pavas.

The other food is great too. We ordered nachos, which came with chicken and beef, refried beans, cheese and jalapeños on a bed of corn tortilla chips. My only complaint about those were the store bought tortilla chips; I mean, come on, homemade tortillas are so much better. Take a look at the tortilla chips at Rostipollo for example. Finally, I ordered grilled beef skewers with onion and red bell peppers in some delicious sauce next to a bed of rice, sweet plantains and a salad. Great, great, great flavor and the food was definitely cheap. About $15 for two entrees and the nacho appetizer. Now, add the beers and Cacique and watch the check start to climb.

Here is the initial part of the post (just to get you hooked):

Not the best response to paying customers. Isn’t the key to having a successful restaurant is by having repeat customers?

Best Chinese Food in Costa Rica

One notably strange difference in the Chinese food in Costa Rica (besides most of it being crap), is that they are likely to serve French fries in the dish or on top. So, don’t be surprised when your chicken curry has a few mixed in and some of the other dishes have 5 or 6 fries thrown on top. I haven’t asked the reason or background on this, but it can’t be a Chinese custom. It’s strangely delicious, so don’t let it throw you off.

Since living in San Jose, Costa Rica and working in the Sabana area, the Flor de Loto Chinese restaurant just South of the Subway in Sabana Norte has quickly become a company favorite. The front of the building isn’t much to look at, with its dingy sign and lack of parking, but it’s what’s inside that counts. Upon walking in you’ll notice the ornately textured ceilings, pleasant wait staff and amazing food.

I haven’t quite figured out why you are given behemoth-sized rolls to start the meal and a teeny-tiny spot of butter to go with it, but all you need to do is ask for the ‘salsa picante’ and they’ll bring an unforgettable oil and chili pepper mixture that is great with the bread and all your food. I always start with the ‘Chinese Tacos’, which are essentially egg rolls. Again, great with salsa picante to mix with the sweet and sour sauce that comes with them. Next up, I recommend the chicken curry or any of the noodle/rice dishes, but I have been advised to stay away from the ‘crispy rice’. I was told it is much like Rice Krispies, so if you’re up for an adventure, go for it. But I consider yourself warned. On the occasion of wanting light fare, I have also had the wanton soup thinking it would be less of a meal, but it was hardly that. They give you a very healthy portion and the flavor is amazing. So, if you’re thinking soup first and then a main dish, maybe find someone you don’t mind sharing with.

The prices are fair. Certainly not cheap on the Tico scale, but you can get lunch with a Coke or a lemonade for about $7-10 per person. Flor de Loto definitely leaves you wanting to come back, and I often do. Especially as I have visited other Chinese places that left a lot to be desired (eg. Mil Sabores, or as my husband and I call it, Nil Sabores) and the prices were around the same. It’s worth the trip into Sabana if you are staying at the airport or living in Escazú.

It can be quite a challenge to find fine-quality meats at a reasonable price in Costa Rica, especially beef. Unless you raise the cattle yourself, or your neighbors do (which isn’t that uncommon, actually). The sole purpose of this post isn’t to bad-mouth the local restaurants that serve steaks. But the American restaurant chains in Escazú like Outback Steakhouse and Tony Roma’s just don’t have the quality of meat that you’re paying for. The single time I’ve been to Tony Roma’s, I ordered filet minion with a baked potato and what was served to me was a big ball of tough, undercooked (to my taste) meat. So, you can’t blame it on me wanting a medium-well steak, because it was medium-rare from all angles and still tough as leather.

My husband and I had a similar experience when buying steaks from the grocery stores like Hipermas, PriceSmart and even AutoMercado. Same story, tough, over-priced meat with an almost-gamey taste that you needed a chainsaw to cut and chew through. Alas though, we were turned onto Don Fernando, the butcher shop in Escazú just past the Scotiabank and Mas Por Menos toward Santa Ana in Plaza Colonial.

There certainly is cheap food in Escazú, at Don Fernando Carnicería. The assortment of cuts that we love include ribeyes, NY Strip, beef tenderloin, pork chops, chicken breast, turkey dogs and CHEESE. Glorious cheese, without spending an arm and a leg for it. Anyone who has spent even just a few weeks in Costa Rica will find that cheese is like gold here. For no apparent reason really. It’s made in the country but anything other than the local white ‘squeaky cheese’ is priced like an English import.

Our regular favorites from the butcher shop are ribeyes, turkey dogs and mozzarella cheese. Take the ribeyes and rub some Willingham’s seasoning (sorry folks, only available through mail order from the USA) or your favorite steak seasoning on them and grill ‘em up. We had a side of baked potatoes with black beans, butter, scallions, cumin, cilantro and salt & pepper.

Additionally, the carniceria or butcher shop, next door they have a Don Fernando restaurant where they’ll cook up your newly bought treasures if you can’t wait to get home. They also have a regular menu, which includes everything they offer in the way of meats from the other side of the kitchen. We have made a vow, even if it means going out of our way, to hit up Don Fernando to get all of our carnivorous needs.

If you like putting tacos, hotdogs, hamburgers, and friend fries together before it gets to your stomach, I have just the place for you. In the great town of Grecia, just outside of San Jose, Costa Rica, there is a place right next to the main church called Los Piras. If I had come to a place like this  in college, I would have been in trouble for sure. The outside of the shop looks no different than any little food joint in San Jose, a sign with no real design, entrance crowded with people, Ticos cooking on a grill behind the counter, but don’t be deceived. There is more than meets the eye.

The menu includes traditional hot dogs and hamburgers, tacos (Costa Rican Style), nachos etc, but un-traditionally all piled on top of each other on a bun. I got the Super Pira which was two meat tacos with a sausage/hotdog and coleslaw on a bun. Yes, it was as delicious as it sounds. And fresh french fries on the side with ketchup and a mayonaise sauce on them. Another option, hamburger with tacos, or add a hot dog on top of that and get it vampiro-style (with ketchup). Ridiculous! And the guy next to me had nachos, and I’m pretty sure it had everything on the menu on top of the chips. Ground meat, sausages, coleslaw, french fries, multiple sauces, hot peppers, etc. Looked amazing. Maybe I’ll get that next time.

And don’t let me forget the prices. Less than $2 each plate. Unless you opt for the burger with two sausages and three tacos, which is a whopping $3. Cheap food is here in Grecia, Costa Rica. Come all!

We had to get out of Costa Rica for the weekend to get our visitor’s visa renewed, so we headed to Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua. We were told to visit the Hacienda Mérida on the southern part of the island, hike to a waterfall and kayak on the lake. The owner is a local Nicaraguan, who speaks perfect English and knows how to run a hotel and destination for travelers.

They grow almost all their own food on the property, and it pretty regular to see some pigs stroll by while laying in a hammock or a hen and her chicks pecking the ground while eating. The garden was full of egg plant and a variety of lettuces and other vegetables, not to mention the banana trees all over the property. The Hacienda Mérida is a true example of sustainable living and sustainable food.

The best thing about the food served this weekend was by far the homemade bread. It was a whole grain bread with whole peanuts. Peanuts in the bread isn’t something I expected to see, but it definitely added an amazing flavor and texture. The sandwiches were amazing (fresh fish from the lake lightly battered and fried) and so were the enchiladas (Nicaragua-style). And talk about cheap food, the sandwiches come with homemade potato chips for $3.50, which I’m told is pretty expensive for Nicaragua.

We were sad to leave, but definitely know where to go to find cheap food on Ometepe Island and Nicaragua.