RESTAURANT: Rocking J's
It's not just a restaurant, it's "Costa Rica's one & only Hammock Hotel". In fact, the restaurant is actually called @t E's. The Dog and I cruised in twice to check it out, once on a Thursday night, once on a Friday.
Thursday's visit was laid back and quiet. We pulled in through the gate and easily found parking (most backpackers don't have cars while traveling). The surrounding wall for the property has a mosaic & metal dragon-type creature that winds his (or her!) way across the top. Two lovely dogs greeted us - Manuel & J's Dog as we parked. We went right up to the bar & got an Imperial and a mojito. The mojito was just right. 2500 CRC for the both. Not too many folks there as we strolled around the grounds. This place is expansive - as in large... just to wander about and look at all the mosaic work everywhere at Rocking J's was a treat, especially with the sound of the Caribbean in the background. Rocking J's is right on the beach. Hammocks for the night cost 5USD - yup, that's FIVE dollars American. Other options are available for bedding down for the night, including pitching your tent or renting one of their tents on the second floor. Really, you have to see this place to believe it.
If I was in my younger days, this would *THE* place to stay for me. Artful grounds, hip & beautiful people lounging about, cold beer, WiFi, and a top-notch kitchen.
Manuel or Manny, a marvelously well-behaved Boston Terrier, is owned by John, one of the staffers, and we got to chatting with John for a bit. He directed us to go down the road a bit south to Mango Cafe for the poker game later that night. We had a few more drinks there before walking down to Mango Cafe.
We returned to Rocking J's on Friday night for dinner. The best dinner thus far in Costa Rica and for the best price, though the wait just about killed us. The bar was hopping with all sorts of folks, young and old, local and visiting. A local band, Pantalones de Acciones (Action Pants) was due to play later that night.
We ordered the bruschetta on focacia bread. It came out loaded with cheese, fresh basil & tomatoes. 2000CRC or so. It was a huge portion, more than enough for both of us and could have sufficed for dinner totally, but we had ordered more.
I ordered the Catch of the Day with pesto. It came with coconut rice (lightly flavored and not sweet) and loads of grilled veggies of all sorts. The fish was marlin. Simply divine for 3500 CRC.
The Dog had the Pesto Cream Dream with grilled chicken and it arrived with another tasty piece of the focacia. The focacia, when by itself, had almost a flavor & texture of a great homemade biscuit. Perfect. The Pesto Cream Dream (approx 3000CRC) was rich with garlic and loads of creamy pesto. I thought perhaps there was cilantro in the pesto for this; very delicious.
The entire menu was loaded with tasty-sounding foods, and all the plates I saw come out of the tiny kitchen were artfully presented, for instance, the Chicken in Sauce special for the night had four mounds of mashed potatoes on the edges, each with a "tree" of parsley sprouting out. The skewers were served in a large bamboo "cup" of sorts and so on. Truly high-style dining for a pittance.
The wait was due to ordering right after a party of 12 and the waiter seemed quite apologetic about the whole thing.
@t E's is truly an exceptional dining experience and not to be missed while in Puerto Viejo. And if you're young & hip, consider shacking up for a night or ten at Rockin' J's Hammock Hotel.
Thursday's visit was laid back and quiet. We pulled in through the gate and easily found parking (most backpackers don't have cars while traveling). The surrounding wall for the property has a mosaic & metal dragon-type creature that winds his (or her!) way across the top. Two lovely dogs greeted us - Manuel & J's Dog as we parked. We went right up to the bar & got an Imperial and a mojito. The mojito was just right. 2500 CRC for the both. Not too many folks there as we strolled around the grounds. This place is expansive - as in large... just to wander about and look at all the mosaic work everywhere at Rocking J's was a treat, especially with the sound of the Caribbean in the background. Rocking J's is right on the beach. Hammocks for the night cost 5USD - yup, that's FIVE dollars American. Other options are available for bedding down for the night, including pitching your tent or renting one of their tents on the second floor. Really, you have to see this place to believe it.
If I was in my younger days, this would *THE* place to stay for me. Artful grounds, hip & beautiful people lounging about, cold beer, WiFi, and a top-notch kitchen.
Manuel or Manny, a marvelously well-behaved Boston Terrier, is owned by John, one of the staffers, and we got to chatting with John for a bit. He directed us to go down the road a bit south to Mango Cafe for the poker game later that night. We had a few more drinks there before walking down to Mango Cafe.
We returned to Rocking J's on Friday night for dinner. The best dinner thus far in Costa Rica and for the best price, though the wait just about killed us. The bar was hopping with all sorts of folks, young and old, local and visiting. A local band, Pantalones de Acciones (Action Pants) was due to play later that night.
We ordered the bruschetta on focacia bread. It came out loaded with cheese, fresh basil & tomatoes. 2000CRC or so. It was a huge portion, more than enough for both of us and could have sufficed for dinner totally, but we had ordered more.
I ordered the Catch of the Day with pesto. It came with coconut rice (lightly flavored and not sweet) and loads of grilled veggies of all sorts. The fish was marlin. Simply divine for 3500 CRC.
The Dog had the Pesto Cream Dream with grilled chicken and it arrived with another tasty piece of the focacia. The focacia, when by itself, had almost a flavor & texture of a great homemade biscuit. Perfect. The Pesto Cream Dream (approx 3000CRC) was rich with garlic and loads of creamy pesto. I thought perhaps there was cilantro in the pesto for this; very delicious.
The entire menu was loaded with tasty-sounding foods, and all the plates I saw come out of the tiny kitchen were artfully presented, for instance, the Chicken in Sauce special for the night had four mounds of mashed potatoes on the edges, each with a "tree" of parsley sprouting out. The skewers were served in a large bamboo "cup" of sorts and so on. Truly high-style dining for a pittance.
The wait was due to ordering right after a party of 12 and the waiter seemed quite apologetic about the whole thing.
@t E's is truly an exceptional dining experience and not to be missed while in Puerto Viejo. And if you're young & hip, consider shacking up for a night or ten at Rockin' J's Hammock Hotel.
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