Lenny Karpman

December 2011 Update

 

It has been a year since I first wrote about MYA in Plaza Obalisco in Escazú. When pressed to pick a  restaurant in all of Costa Rica as my favorite, I have to choose two, MYA in Escazú and Park Café in San Jose. Unfortunately MYA no longer serves lunch. On the subject of favorites, let me list a number of mine to end 2011:

Argentinean  ---  La Esquina de Buenos Aires, San Jose

Bagels --- Bagelman, chain

Bakery --- Christophe, Escazú

Barbecue --- Big Bill’s, NE corner next to Mormon temple in Belen (ribs, brisket, pulled pork and sausage)

Best steak bargain --- Baby beef at Kianti, Belen

Burger for $5 ---  Bonanza, across the pista from the Forum

Café --- Kalu, Barrio Amon, San Jose

Cheesecake --- Big Apple Cheesecake, Heredia

Chicharrones --- Oviedo, La Guacima

Churros --- Food Court in Mall Cariari

Costa Rican bargain --- Huge bocas at Rancho de Laly, Santa Ana

Costa Rican dinners --- Chalito’s, Las Vueltas (weekends)

Desserts --- Saga, Escazú

French --- Le Chandelier, San Pedro

Hot dog --- Price Smart, Escazú

Indian --- Taj Mahal, Santa Ana

Italian --- Romantic dinner --- Da Marco, Piedades--- Saturday lunch with music--- La Focaccia, Cariari --- Regular lunch, --- D’amalfi, Escazú --- Café/Deli, Il Torino, Escazú

Lamb … Aya Sofia, Barrio Escalante, San Jose

Pita, Falafel, Shwarma --- Sisso, Escazú

Pizza ---La Fabricca, chain

Prime rib --- Tara Grand, Escazú

Pupusas --- Santa Ana Sunday Market

Roast chicken --- Pollos Del Monte, Belen; Costipollos, San Rafael de Alajuela (weekends)

Short Ribs --- Bufalo Grill, Santa Ana

Sizzling Chinese platters --- Chef Oriental, Moravia

Sports Bar --- Time Out Tavern, Escazu

Steamed pork buns and dim sum --- Casa China, San Jose

Steakhouse  --- Doris Metropolitan, Santa Ana

Tapas --- Ginger, Playa Hermosa

Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-free --- Oasis Cafe in Escazú and Restaurant at Lands in Love Resort 32 km north of San Ramon on La Fortuna road.

(The vegetarian restaurant Alquimia across the pista from the Forum has closed. Rumor has it that they plan to reopen somewhere else.)

Please resolve for the New Year to share your favorite dishes, restaurants and locations with me so I can try them and report on the winners.

Happy Holidays.

 

November 2011 Update

Floyd owns a company in Ohio and is considering an event at the International Convention Center in Real Cariari Mall. He asked about onsite food, nearby upscale options and bargain dining in the area.  So here goes.

Along the side of the mall that faces the Pan American Highway, there is “Gourmet Alley,” a cluster of restaurants including Ichiban – Japanese fusion, PersaMex – Mediterranean and Mexican, Rosti Pollo – a Costa Rica roast chicken chain with lunchtime buffet, Pan E Vino – an Italian pizza and pasta chain, an American bar and, across the parking lot, McDonalds. Inside the mall there is a food court as well. For early risers, the breakfast options are the cafeteria in the supermarket and McDonalds.

On the other side of the highway, there are a number of upscale options. CoMi is a new entrant that advertises California cuisine and actually has a chef who apprenticed in the Napa Valley. Forget about a second coming of Thomas Keller or Alice Waters. The fare is traditional American comfort food as likely to be found in Kansas as California. It is well prepared and tastefully presented by an attentive very professional wait-staff in a nicely appointed dining room. Still the dishes include mac and cheese, albeit with cheddar and a panko crust; a house special hamburger with a fried egg on top; fish and chips; barbecued pork ribs; crisply fried but chewy calamari rings crosshatched with thin lines of pesto and aioli; fish tacos and surf and turf. Brownies or very tasty apple pie topped with vanilla ice cream drizzled with caramel top the dessert list. Appetizers and desserts cost about $10-12 and main courses, $15-30. The house hamburger is $15. The bar area is comfortable. CoMi is located where Antonio’s used to be, 100 meters south of the Ramada Herradura Hotel on the frontage road. Closed Mondays. 2239-1613.

On the subject of hamburgers, two friends like the $12 burgers at Buffalo Grill and Henry’s better than the $15 one at CoMi.

For any of Floyd's crowd who prefer basic food at bargain prices, drive west for five minutes into San Antonio de Belen.  half a block west of the soccer field is La Piazza, a no frills pizzeria with one table for four inside and two out front.  Thin crust pies come in more than a dozen combinations.  A "small" is 3000 colones or $6, is large enough to feed two people and comes with ice tea.  On the parallel block to the north across from Pali, El Dorado services good ceviche, many fresh fish options and even a fair paella at prices well below most seafood restaurants.  It is very popular with locals.  Adjacent to it is a typical Costan Rican roast chicken restaurant, Pollos Asaditica, with bargain casados (lunch combination plates) and popular onion rings.

The Doubletree Hotel has a poolside restaurant and two bars, but I haven't tried them since the Hilton took over.  The Ramada Herradura offers two upscale restaurants, Topicala for Latin fusion cuisine and Sakura, a longtime Japanese fixture.

Apologies for misreporting that Café des Artistas was closed.

Brad’s is closed.

Sweet (see last month’s blog) in Boulevard Lindora behind Scotias Bank, plans to change its name to Pho Café to emphasize its nice Vietnamese cuisine. I had a French omelet there for breakfast and was delighted that it was fluffy, not Costa Rica overcooked, and well seasoned. 

Sisso in Florencia mall (see June Blog) is packing in the lunchtime crowds. Their home-baked pita is amazing.