What to eat and drink in Costa Rica

20.08.2024 - 14:20 / lonelyplanet.com

Aug 16, 2024 • 5 min read

Traditional Costa Rican fare, for the most part, is comfort food consisting largely of beans and rice, fried plantains, and the occasional slab of chicken, fish or beef. Recently, locals have started to experiment more with the country's fresh and plentiful produce. The results have been inspiring and delicious.

Considering the extent of the coastline, it's no surprise that seafood is plentiful here, too, and fish dishes are usually fresh and delicious.

Here's what to eat and drink in Costa Rica, including the best traditional foods to try.

Find a drinks vendor with a machete and an ice chest: they'll hack off the top of a coconut, stick a straw in it, and you're good to go. Enjoy frosty, sweet coconut water straight from the source.

Where to try it: Roadside vendors all across Costa Rica.

Sold in plastic bags with salt, lime juice and sometimes chili powder, this is the ultimate refreshment.

Where to try it: The farmers market on Plaza Ferias in Alajuela.

Also known as soursop, this sweet and sticky fruit should be purchased wherever you find it and eaten with your hands.

Where to try it: Tamarindo Farmer's Market, near Playa Tamarindo on the Península de Nicoya. 

A flaky, Caribbean-style semicircular turnover filled with meat, onions, garlic and spicy goodness. It's often tinted golden from egg yolk or turmeric. A patí (patty) is the perfect takeaway bus-ride snack and picnic treat.

Where to try it: Soda El Patty, a rustic nine-table Caribbean restaurant in Puerto Limón.

The roasted peach-palm fruit is a roadside staple, delicious, warm and salted, although Ticos like to add a dab of mayonnaise.

Where to try it: You can find freshly roasted pejivalle at many roadside stands across the country.

Breakfast for Ticos is usually gallo pinto (literally "painted rooster"), a stir-fry of last night's rice and beans. When combined, the rice gets colored by the beans, and the mix obtains a speckled appearance. Served with eggs, cheese or natilla (sour cream), gallo pinto is cheap, filling and downright tasty. 

Where to try it: Sodas (cheap restaurants) across Costa Rica sell gallo pinto, but we love the beachside view that comes with the rice and beans at Sheriff Rustic on Playa Sámara (plus it's available all day).

A coconut milk-based seafood gumbo, rondón's moniker comes from "rundown," meaning whatever the chef can run down. 

Where to try it: Maxi's By Ricky does a great rondón soup in San José, while in the center of the capital, the wonderful Alma de Amón sells a rondón vegano with turmeric and coconut.

While it's not traditional Tico fare, ceviche is on most menus, usually made from pargo (red snapper), dorado (mahi-mahi), octopus or tilapia. The fish is marinated in lime juice with some