Restaurants

Choose From the Following:

Wonderland
Brisas del Mar
Habanero’s Mexican Food
Koji’s Sushi
Olam
Papaya Lounge
Rocamar
Others

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More Food Articles: Food Category

The beautiful coastal town of Santa Teresa is stacked full of beautiful food venues for you to enjoy. While it’s always pleasant to have a host of options we’ve compiled a short list of ten of the best restaurants in Santa Teresa. New restaurants appear every year, but the best ones seem to stick around. There are probably at least twice as many restaurants here as there should be (over 120 at last count!), making it a very competitive environment for a restaurateur, and as a result, the quality of the best places is incredibly high. I spend a lot of time in San Jose, the capital city of Costa Rica, and have traveled all over the country, and nowhere have I found such good food, and in such variety. There’s more than a dozen top-quality places… more than I’ve listed here, and if that’s not enough, Montezuma (25 minutes away) has another six or so incredible places (Click for Montezuma Restaurants).

Wonderland

Other than the beach, Wonderland is the best place to take kids in the area.  They have a variety of playground activities, a kids pool with slide, and even a mini zip-line.  Sometimes, farm animals are available for the kids to pet.  Parents can relax and enjoy a beer or a tea and each others company, and let the kids run wild.

The food is delicious, much of it grown “farm-to-table” on location.  The tables are even inside a greenhouse, surrounded by the food you eat!  Wonderland has perhaps the best fish tacos in the world.

For larger groups, parties, or special events, including weddings or wedding receptions, be sure to call, and arrangements can be made.

Contact: Phone: +506 8829-4739 – Website – Location: 15 minutes drive up the hill from Playa Carmen.  Google Map Location

Brisas Del Mar

A venue serving international food from its beautiful hilltop location, Brisas Del Mar has a great reputation with the locals and travelers too. The novel menu changes from week to week as specials come and go, you can expect refreshing fruit based drinks, copious amounts of fresh seafood, coconut based sauces and even a nice curry. They also feature a range of staples such as the multigrain pancakes for breakfast and the luxurious hot fudge brownies. Considered by many to be the best restaurant in the Santa Teresa area, it definitely has the best view, and is very popular, so reservations are necessary for dinner.

Contact: Phone: +506 2640 0254 – Location: Buenos Aires Hotel, in Playa Carmen

Habaneros

Beachfront gourmet Mexican food! One of my favorite places, I go to Habaneros regularly and bring all my friends and family who are visiting the area. If you have to pick one restaurant that sums up the best of Santa Teresa, this would be it. The menu has a lot of variety, and if you have a large enough group, they’ll bring their full array of sauces with dinner so you can try them. The best is an amazing orange one that’s made from carrot, garlic, and olive oil. Watch out for the habanero sauce, it’s killer hot. Luckily they always warn you about it when they set down the tray. It’s part of the Playa Cielo boutique hotel, which is a great place to stay if you can find any availability, since it’s often booked long in advance.

Contact: Phone: +506 2640-1105 – Location: Playa Carmen central, about 300m north of Tropico Latino hotel

Koji’s

My personal favorite! I drive all the way over from Delicias almost every week to chill at Playa Hermosa for sunset and then head to Koji’s. You may not have expected to be sampling high end Japanese food in Costa Rica but this is exactly what Koji offers. This is one of the very few establishments in the region where you may have to book a table to ensure you are able to eat, a good sign I’m sure you’ll agree! The sushi is of course is second to none but all of the dishes are well complimented by the exquisite outdoor dining area, which features the ambience only traditional Tiki torches provide. Again, prices are not low but as a one-off dining experience Koji really delivers.

Contact: Phone: 2640-0815 – Location: 400 mts south of Hermosa Valley School, Playa Hermosa

Olam

This charming establishment is built on the Nautilus Hotel and serves a large range of fare, there is a special emphasis on health food. Particularly popular is the pancake breakfast which features fruit and nut accompaniment and high quality fresh coffee. Everything is made with completely fresh ingredients and you can really taste it, the vegetarian burgers are a firm favourite with backpackers that like to treat themselves. The prices are not low here but you really do get what you pay for, definitely the pick of the bunch. Be sure to stop by this charming patio-based venue. Olam is very focused on health and offers detox programs, and healthy cooking classes from time to time, such as how to make organic, raw chocolate from basic ingredients. Plus, just above the restaurant is a great yoga deck. Definitely pul Olam on your itinerary.

Contact: Olam Website – Phone: +506-2640-0991 – Location: 75m East of Brunela Hostel (Santa Teresa Center)

Papaya Lounge

Literally built on a rock cliff, the Papaya lounge has one of the best views for a restaurant in the area. It’s a great place for a romantic sunset dinner. The food is a gourmet blend of styles, very photogenic and tasty. Closed on Tuesdays, it’s a good idea to call first (2640-0230) for a reservation. The only downside of the Papaya Lounge is that you have to walk up several flights of stairs to get up the hill to it, but that’s sure to help you work up a good appetite. It’s easy to find, very centrally located in Malpais, as part of the Moana Lodge boutique hotel.

Contact: Papaya Lounge Website – Phone: +506 2640-0230 – Location: Malpais Central

Rocamar Beach Lounge

Rocamar is the spot if you’re looking to go back in time to what Santa Teresa used to be a decade or more ago. Simple but amazing, it’s got small tables and chairs in the sand right on the edge of the waves, with shade trees all around, and amazing surfing right in front (Suck Rock point break is directly in front, which is why it’s also known as “Roca Mar”). It’s known for it’s location mostly, but the food is good too, and they serve excellent drinks, especially the Mojitos and the Brazilian “Caipirinha” cocktail that tastes so good when sitting on the beach.

Contact: Phone:2640-0003 Location: Beach Access Road at Blue Surf Sanctuary in north Santa Teresa

Other great restaurants:

Casa Del Mar

With a specialisation in Argentinian food alongside a fantastic range of pizzas, if you’re a meat lover it’s a beautiful experience in Casa Del Mar just to browse the menu. The Argentinians know how to do a good steak, that’s well known, but you’ll be pleased to find that the meat in every dish is cooked to absolute perfection. Many restaurants will use low quality meat on their pizzas because they think they can get away with it but not at Casa Del Mar. In addition to the great food the service is also delivered by authentic Argentinian staff, it was like enjoying a brief excursion to South America in fact.

Chicken Joe’s

To many people are fooled by the name and end up thinking this is just some standard Americanised Chicken place. Do not be fooled. Chicken Joe’s is actually the best roadside eatery around, featuring Peruvian inspired food able to compete in quality with restaurants that charge twice the price. The fish tacos are consistently recommended as is the bottled homemade hot sauce which is also sold from the premises. You’ll notice the locals stopping by on their motorbikes to pick up a bottle or two of this precious spicy nectar, why not take a few bottles back as gifts?

Chile Viola

A Mediterranean restaurant run by an Italian gentlemen Al Chile Viola is famous not only for the food but the inventive, and downright delicious, cocktails available. Choose anything involving avocado or passionfruit and you’ll be onto a winner, trust me. The homemade Italian specials are straight from the homeland and the freshly made Ravioli should make a particularly strong impression. The prices are a little high, but you’re on holiday, why not treat yourself on occasion? The chef is happy to personalise dishes so do go and speak to the kitchen if you desire something a little different.

It was very difficult to compile this list as the food is generally great, but hopefully you’re tastebuds will be excited after reviewing these top restaurants in Santa Teresa.