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Relax beachside at the most laid-back yacht club you'll ever visit. There are bonfires after dark, live music, and sometimes an event like a chili cookoff or beer fest; plus, the kids can play in the pool while you enjoy a craft beer and good food. They also rent boats, paddleboards, snorkel gear, kayaks, and more to the public.
South of Hotel Bahía del Sol Surfside, Potrero, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Cold drinks
- Sunset views
- Sailing lessons and boat rentals
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With an atmosphere as fun and funky as the luchadora (Mexican wrestler) legend for which it's named, everyone will have a great time and an even better meal at this Mexican cantina. A large garden strung with lights beckons to families, and the long bar is a great place to try some churros after your meal.
Nosara, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Gorgeous garden with kids' playground
- Taco Tuesday specials
- Jalapeño margaritas
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This hip beach café has exactly the kind of ambience one comes to Costa Rica for, with tables scattered along the beach amid palm and almond trees, hammocks swinging in the wind, palm fronds rustling, and surfers riding the glistening waves in front. Seating, or more precisely, lolling, is on reclining, African-style hardwood chairs, or at shaded tables. Along with fresh fruit smoothies, ultrathin vegetarian pizzas, and veggie soy burgers, the menu includes organic chicken and "responsible fish" (caught in nets that don't also trap turtles). Seared ahi tuna with sun-dried tomatoes and olive tapenade served on ciabatta bread is a winner, as are the ceviche, fish-and-chips, pesto pasta, and assorted salads. Mahi tacos are the latest addition to the menu, served with rice and beans.
At main entrance to Playa Avellanas, Playa Avellanas, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Ave and Ana the pigs, their mascots
- Great spot to camp out for the day
- Flatbread pizza, fresh-fruit smoothies, and organic meats
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Located at Giada Hotel, poolside tables and ultrasophisticated cuisine make this Italian restaurant the best dining spot in Samara. Chef Gigio Palazzo prepares dishes with fresh local seafood, meat from sustainable farms, and organic-hydroponic produce. Start your experience with in-house cured pancetta with goat cheese, followed by mains like grass-fed tenderloin, organic duck breast, or homemade pork sausage. All breads, pastas, and pizzas are made from scratch, including the gluten-free favorites. Desserts are prepared fresh each day. The walls are enlivened by white fabrics and vibrant tropical-bird wallpaper in the cool interior. The attentive chef makes frequent appearances in the dining room and his enthusiasm is contagious. Service is polished and smooth. The restaurant is small and open for dinner from 5 to 11 daily.
Calle Principal, Sámara, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Imported Italian ingredients
- Homemade pasta and savory sauces
- Gluten-free pasta
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Wed. Sept.--Nov., Reservations essential
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There’s not much “aqua sport” going on at this Peruvian beachfront restaurant, unless drinking margaritas in a hammock somehow qualifies. It’s the kind of place you drop by on day one, and find yourself coming back to for the remainder of your vacation—blame the setting of Adirondack chairs lining the beach combined with fresh fish like grilled snapper served with shoestring fries. There are seven types of ceviche and a seafood soup that is good enough to make you miss the sunset between bites. For something absolutely non–Costa Rican, try the Peruvian Causa, a spicy potato-layered dish with tuna, octopus, or shrimp. You can also order familiar favorites like tacos, burgers, and surf and turf. Service is slow and prices are high, but there’s live music and tables in the sand.
Playa Hermosa, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Delectable fish tacos
- Cheerful location on the beach with a tree swing for the littles
- Tato burger—juicy beef patty with bacon, cream cheese, and whiskey
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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As soon as you cross the bamboo bridge, you’ll be instantly transported from a strip mall to an ocean-side Zen garden where the fish is bought fresh from the boats. Try a frozen mojito and start with a seaweed salad and steamed dumplings, then dive into the sashimi and sushi.
Tamarindo, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Fresh-off-the-boat sushi
- Frozen passion-fruit mojitos
- Spicy edamame
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You can usually count on good food at this second-story restaurant in the trees. You can get wild with crocodile fingers, or try something more familiar, like the handmade pizzas. There are several vegetarian, lactose-free, and gluten-free options on the menu. Presentation is always beautiful, and service is efficient and friendly.
Hotel Cantarana, Palm Beach Estates, Playa Grande, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Fresh seafood like tuna poke bowl and fish tacos
- Unfussy breakfast fare
- Homemade tortillas and sauces
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Wed.
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Vestiges of the original Swiss-French owners linger on at this bakery and alfresco eatery, open for breakfast and lunch. In addition to hearty sandwiches, the café serves burritos, bowls, and salads. It's a good place to cool off, and perk up, with a café frappé (espresso blended with bananas and ice cream). The adjoining bakery is great for take-out beach picnics, with French-style bread and an array of pastries and tarts, including chocolate mousse. There's free Wi-Fi.
Main road, on corner of Playa Guiones entrance, Nosara, Guanacaste, 50206, Costa Rica
Known For
- Lunch with a dip in the pool
- Bakery goodies like baguettes, tarts, and pastries
- Coffee and espresso
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Café closed Sun. No dinner
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This surf café features such Peruvian specialties as ceviche and causa (cold mashed potatoes studded with shrimp and tuna chunks). The menu also includes a few familiar favorites like hamburgers and BLTs. Desserts are homemade and delicious, and the pisco sour cocktail is not to be missed.
Main street, Playa Negra, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Ceviche and sushi
- Pisco sour cocktails
- Beautiful presentation
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Tues. and Oct.
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The best perch along the Paseo de los Turistas is a table on the breezy veranda of this updated seafood and grill restaurant with a beach view. The menu is modern, with starters like salads, ceviches, and huge disks of patacones (fried, squashed platanos), served with frijoles and shredded beef. Along with the classic fish fillet grilled with butter and fresh garlic, there's a spicier option with a jalapeño and fresh tomato sauce, as well as tuna in teriyaki sauce and grilled salmon. Grilled beef and barbecue pork ribs will satisfy meat eaters. Save room for flan de coco, dense and creamy with toasted coconut and caramel sauce. This place has polished service, with friendly, attentive waiters.
Puntarenas, Puntarenas, Costa Rica
Known For
- Sea bass ceviche
- Seafood grill
- South American, Italian, and Spanish wines
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The "crazy coconut" is one of the few places where you can dine with your toes in the sand while watching the sunset without anything separating you from the water. Start with the fried calamari or mixed ceviche, and move on to mains like the blackened swordfish wrap, the sesame-crusted yellowfin tuna taco, or the slow-cooked ribs with pineapple barbecue sauce. Although not on the menu, they usually have a whole lobster for $20. Entrées come with a choice of coleslaw, fruit, fries, or rice and beans, and can be prepared Caribbean-style, with coconut milk. If you haven’t already overdosed on coconut, try the homemade coconut sorbet. Sunset diners should come with mosquito spray, since those little buggers love naked feet in the sand.
Flamingo, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Tuna tacos
- Exquisite sunsets
- Signature drink served in a fresh coconut
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A feast for the senses, this plant-filled haven has coffee, smoothies, and food that look lovely and taste delicious. Whether you order the impeccably presented "Eggs Nest" (sous vide eggs in a nest of crispy, fried sweet potatoes) or the art-topped green matcha latte, having an enjoyable meal here is practically kismet. Don't worry about trying everything on the menu, you'll likely be back. Note that the restaurant closes early at 3 pm.
Playa Guiones Norte, Nosara, Guanacaste, 50206, Costa Rica
Known For
- Fresh salads, poke bowls, and brunch food like truffle avo toast
- Outdoor garden setting
- Thirst quenchers like the blue majik (spirulina) smoothie
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner. Closed Mon.
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An ample selection of good Italian food, including crispy pizzas, decadent pastas, generous salads, and a lengthy Italian wine list (available by the glass, too), makes this sidewalk trattoria a good spot for lunch or dinner. Tuna carpaccio is a lighter option, or try the insalata caprese, with fresh basil. There's also a selection of local tico dishes and seafood. Unlike the checkered tablecloths you'd find elsewhere, here you have glass tabletops showcasing shells or plain wooden tables by the pool. Save room for a delicious mint-chocolate panna cotta.
Hotel Giada lobby, main road, 150 m north of beach, Sámara, Guanacaste, 50205, Costa Rica
Known For
- Poolside dining
- Seafood
- Tiramisu
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Montezuma’s first natural-food restaurant is named after the chewy dried bananas made by the owners, who also own the upscale Ylang Ylang resort on the beach. This popular eatery serves the best vegetarian fare in town, including scrambled tofu for breakfast and excellent wraps, salads, fajitas, and spring rolls, with plenty of vegan and gluten-free options. You can enjoy a delicious Mocha Chiller, made with frozen yogurt, or a fruit smoothie made with local coconut milk. The homemade cakes and pies are scrumptious. The standout is the Chocolate Volcano, a mountain of ice cream atop cake, with a lava of chocolate sauce. For vegans, there's a nondairy chocolate mousse. A shaded garden terrace behind the restaurant is cool and pleasant, but bring mosquito repellent. A battalion of ceiling fans keeps the air moving in the spacious dining room decorated with murals of tropical beach scenes.
Main road, Montezuma, Puntarenas, 60111, Costa Rica
Known For
- Sandwich with chicken and patacones (smashed and fried plantains)
- Great people-watching
- Super breakfasts
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Head to this spot for the biggest pizzas in town in a large, roofed-over garden near Playa Pelada. The house pizza is thin crust with carrots, broccoli, olives, red peppers, onions, mushrooms, ham, and pepperoni. If you like it hot, dribble on some of the house specialty: red-hot flavored oil. You can watch your pizza being dressed, or choose from a full menu of salads, pasta, grilled fish, seafood, and meat—all done Italian-style. It's cheerful and hearty; no one leaves here still hungry. In high season there's sometimes live music at dinner.
Across from Condominios Las Flores, road to Playa Pelada, Nosara, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Wood-fired brick-oven pizzas
- Spicy dipping oil
- Family-friendly setting
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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A favorite local hangout, this rustic pizzeria has an outdoor clay oven and an open kitchen. There are 14 types of pizza, like the house special with goat cheese, pesto, and caramelized onions. They also serve salads and gluten-free pizzas, as well as barbecued meats from the pizza oven (with 24 hours’ notice). If you can’t find a pizza that sounds good, you can build your own from a list of toppings. As the area’s top local hangout, the place gets packed, so plan to enjoy some sangria while you wait for your food and bill.
Playa Negra, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Amazing crispy crust
- Busy atmosphere
- Sangria
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. No lunch
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Two Italian brothers offer well-prepared Italian classics and thin-crust pizza, as well as some interesting seafood dishes like tuna tartare and tagliolini with crab in a cream sauce. For dessert there's an intriguing panna cotta or classic tiramisu. If it's a romantic night, try to get a table outside next to the fountain, and be sure to check out the selection of Italian wines. There's live music at least once a week. For those lazy evenings after a day at sea, you can call the restaurant and request delivery.
Playas del Coco, Guanacaste, 50503, Costa Rica
Known For
- Homemade pasta
- Catch of the day
- Beautiful courtyard setting
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While the day away listening to reggae, sipping on cold drinks, watching the surfers, and snacking on beach food. You can't beat the views or the service, and it's a great family spot owing to the large portions, good prices, and on-site ice cream parlor. American fare includes hamburgers and pizza and the casados (a plate filled with white rice, black beans, and salad) are fresh and delicious. Don't miss the breathtaking sunsets.
Main entrance to Playa Avellanas, Playa Avellanas, Guanacaste, 50303, Costa Rica
Known For
- Fish tacos
- Beautiful vistas
- Wonderful hospitaity
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Famous for its wood-oven pizzas, this breezy, all-wood restaurant with tree-trunk pillars is set amidst trees above the hotel of the same name. Lunch is the best deal in town, with pork, chicken, or fish casados elegantly presented with patacones (plantain fritters), a mound of white rice, a ramekin of red beans, and a mixed salad with creamy vinaigrette, all for $6. Dinners focus on grilled, stewed, and sauced meats including buffalo and lamb dishes, a rarity in these parts. Desserts are not to be missed—a passion-fruit crème brûlée is crunchy on top, smooth and tart below, and comes with a spoonful of strawberry coulis. The two-chocolate mousse, and a moist chocolate moelleux (cake) will make chocolate fans happy. The wine list features affordable French wines. Service is friendly and the chefs enjoy describing what's on the menu.
Giardino Tropicale Hotel, main road, 100 meters west of road to Playa Guiones, Nosara, Guanacaste, 50206, Costa Rica
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
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A Flamingo institution serving beachgoers and locals for more than three decades, this popular restaurant has an array of sandwiches and salads, as well as reliably fresh seafood in large portions at reasonable prices. Settle in at one of the wooden tables beneath the ceiling fans and massive thatch roof for a traditional Costa Rican ceviche, avocado stuffed with shrimp, or heart of palm and pejivalle (palm fruit). The main fare includes whole fried red snapper, shrimp and fish kebabs, and a delicious plato de mariscos (shrimp, lobster, and fish served with garlic butter, potatoes, and salad). For a lighter meal, you can't beat the scrumptious fish tacos. Save room for Marie's signature banana-chocolate bread pudding. At breakfast, try the unusual papaya pancakes, French toast made with cream cheese and jam, or eggs Benedict. There's free Wi-Fi for customers and live music three times a month (call ahead for schedule).
Plaza commercial center, Flamingo, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Known For
- Big breakfast menu
- Kebabs featuring fish, chicken, and shrimp
- Whole red snapper
