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$$$ | Bella Vista |
Elegant ambience and an innovative mix of Latin American and European flavors have kept La Posta one of Panama City's most popular restaurants. Located in a refurbished house just off Calle Uruguay, it has a classic Caribbean feel, with ceiling fans, cane chairs, colorful tile floors, and potted palms. There is usually Latin music playing, and the shiny hardwood bar stretching down one end of the dining room is the perfect place to sip a mojito. The menu changes regularly, but it always includes fresh seafood, USDA beef, and organic pork and chicken prepared in inventive ways, plus a few risottos and pastas. You can check current offerings on the restaurant's website. Reserve a table in the back, overlooking the small, tropical garden, and try your best to save room for dessert.
Calle 47 and Calle Uruguay, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Bella Vista |
This trendy steak house a block off busy Calle Uruguay is the best option for a meat lover, whether you're in the mood for filet mignon or a cheeseburger. You can get USDA Omaha beef here, but it costs considerably more than the Panamanian beef. The chicken and pork are organic and free-range from the restaurant's own farm. You can also get such American classics as a Cobb salad or a side of macaroni and cheese, which are no doubt novelties for the predominantly Panamanian clientele. The steaks are excellent, but so is the Moroccan-style chicken with couscous, and the salmon grille beurre maitre d'hôtel. There's an extensive wine list, and the service is excellent. You may want to reserve a table on weekends, when this place gets packed and noisy. They also serve brunch from 11:30 to 2:30 on weekends.
Calle 48 between Calle Uruguay and Aquino de La Guardia, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | El Cangrejo |
Named for the year it opened, this restaurant serves traditional French and Swiss cuisine in an eclectic mix of dining rooms. It holds the strange distinction of occupying the only building in Panama City that resembles a Swiss chalet. The owner, chef Willy Dingelman, trained in Lausanne then moved to Panama three decades ago, and has since developed a small restaurant and wine-importing empire. They consequently have an excellent wine cellar. When President Ricardo Martinelli was on the campaign trail, Dingelman promised he'd share a $15,000 bottle if he won the election; there's a photo of the post-election moment on the wall at the entrance. Dingelman's original Swiss restaurant, called the Rincón Suizo, is now a rustic dining room in the back of 1985—two menus under one roof. The decor is a bit of this and a bit of that, with a cluttered collection of chairs and couches in the long entrance, but people come here for the food, such as chicken cordon bleu, tenderloin in green peppercorn sauce, raclette, bratwurst, or Zürcher Geschnetzeltes (veal chunks in a mushroom cream sauce).
Calle Eusebio A. Morales, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Calzada Amador |
The best tables here are across the drive from the main restaurant, overlooking the Flamenco Marina and the city skyline beyond, but they are also the first ones to fill up. The other options are to sit on the large covered terrace, cooled by ceiling fans, or in the air-conditioned dining room. The food here is good, but the service can be leisurely. The menu has something for everyone, including a good selection of pizzas and pastas, but seafood is usually the best choice. You can start with duo de mar (corvina and lobster in béchamel sauce) or mero (grouper) carpaccio, and move on to pizza, salmon ravioli in a creamy tomato sauce, corvina al cartucho (sea bass and julienne vegetables broiled in foil), or langostinos provençal (prawns sautéed with fine herbs and tomatoes). You may want to walk around the island a few times before visiting their Italian ice cream shop.
Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Area Bancária |
A bit of an institution, this large, 24-hour restaurant half a block south of Vía España is where locals head for a good meal at a reasonable price. The decor in the large, bright restaurant is functional, and the service can be slow when it's busy, but the terrace in front is a good place for people watching. The menu ranges from Panamanian classics such as bistec a la criolla (steak in a tomato sauce) to Spanish dishes such as corvina a la vasca (sea bass in a shrimp and clam sauce). An extensive list of daily specials printed on a piece of paper inserted into the menu is usually the best option, both in terms of price and freshness. They also make about 40 different emparedados (sandwiches), including the classic Cubano with salami, ham, roast beef, cheese, and toppings.
Calle Ricardo Arias, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$$ | Paitilla |
This restaurant combines wild decor with an inventive menu that melds the cuisines of three continents. The central dining area looks like something out of a Hollywood adventure movie, dominated by a 20-foot bust reminiscent of the statues on Easter Island. By day, sunlight glistens down through portholes in the bottom of the pool on the roof. If the statue is a bit too much for you, look for a table in the other dining area, where the artistic decor includes giant vases and a wall of TVs broadcasting fire images. The menu matches the atmosphere with an inventive mix of Continental, Asian, and Latin American cuisines that is true to the restaurant's name. You can start your dinner with Peruvian ceviche or turkey ginger spring rolls, then dive into some shrimp and vegetables in a coconut curry, lamb ribs with a sweet and spicy sauce, or creamy lobster risotto with palm fruit.
Av. Balboa, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Bella Vista |
This Argentine restaurant in a Spanish-style house on Calle Uruguay is for serious carnivores who like their steaks big, tender, and juicy. The meat is USDA, but the cuts are mostly Argentine, such as the bife de chorizo, a thick sirloin cut, or the filete en trozo, a 16-ounce slice of filet mignon. They are served with chimichuri, whereas salads and sides, such as a baked potato, are à la carte. The restaurant also serves corvina, langostinos, and a dozen salads, but the real attraction here is the beef. Big windows surround the kitchen, so you can watch cooks slap slabs of meat onto the grill, or you can admire the cowhides, black-and-white photos, and paintings of gauchos (Argentine cowboys) that adorn the walls.
Calle Uruguay and Calle 48, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | Casco Viejo |
Quality Italian cuisine served amid ancient walls make L'Ostería a popular dinner option. The restaurant is located under the Casa del Horno boutique hotel, in a restored colonial building, and the back patio, with its stone walls and small garden, is a lovely spot to spend a couple hours. The menu includes a small selection of pizzas, pastas, meat, and seafood dishes. Try the pennette with a zucchini and almond pesto sauce, corvina alla piastra (sautéed sea bass served with grilled vegetables), or one of the excellent pizzas.
Av. B between Calle 7 and Calle 8, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
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$$$ | Casco Viejo |
An eclectic blend of Panamanian, European, and Asian cuisines and the choice of dining in an old-world café or a distinctly tropical patio make a meal at Las Clementinas a memorable experience. The bright dining room evokes a Parisian bistro, with its large, arched windows, tile floors, and long, marble-topped bar, and the lush garden patio is a lovely spot for an intimate dinner. The menu ranges from sea bass with jasmine rice and roasted eggplant to three-chili-braised goat tacos with homemade corn tortillas. They offer several cuts of beef and a selection of sandwiches, soups, and salads, and a popular Sunday brunch. It can get quite lively on weekend nights, when reservations are recommended, but as soon as things calm down, the manager usually sits down at the piano and plays a song.
Av. B and Calle 11, Panama City, Panamá, Panama
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
