Costa Rica (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Matthew Firestone [321]
Eating
The restaurants listed below are located in the town of Ojochal. Advanced reservations are recommended as they both command strong local followings.
Restaurante Exótica (2786-5050; dishes ₡5000-15,000) While rural Ojochal isn’t exactly a hot spot of cosmopolitan urbanity, this phenomenal gourmet restaurant certainly sets a benchmark for comparison. Despite the humble thatched roof and wooden tables, the menu features a mind-blowing array of nouveau French dishes, each emphasizing a breadth of ingredients that are brought together in masterful combinations. Some of the highlights include oil-drizzled fish carpaccio, wild-duck breast topped with tropical-fruit tapenades, and homemade desserts that taste as if they were shipped directly from Parisian patisseries. With more than a decade in the business, yet only nine tables for diners to choose from, this is an intimate culinary experience that is certainly worth seeking out.
Citrus (2786-5175; dishes ₡5000-15,000) While it is the something of the new kid in town, Citrus has the potential to equal (some would argue top) Restaurante Exótica in due time. Offering New World dishes that are heavily influenced by Southeast Asian and North African culinary traditions, and benefiting from its candlelit riverside location, Citrus welcomes patrons with a heaping spoon of flair and bravado.
Return to beginning of chapter
Getting There & Away
Daily buses between Dominical and Palmar can drop you off near any of the places described here. However, given the infrequency of transportation links along this stretch of highway, it’s recommended that you explore the area by private car.
Return to beginning of chapter
Southern Costa Rica
* * *
THE ROAD TO CHIRRIPÓ
SANTA MARÍA & VALLE DE DOTA
SAN GERARDO DE DOTA
PARQUE NACIONAL LOS QUETZALES
CERRO DE LA MUERTE
SAN ISIDRO DE EL GENERAL
SAN GERARDO DE RIVAS
PARQUE NACIONAL CHIRRIPÓ
ORIENTATION
INFORMATION
WILDLIFE-WATCHING
HIKING
TOURS
CHIRRIPÓ FOR CHILDREN
SLEEPING & EATING
GETTING THERE & AROUND
THE ROAD TO LA AMISTAD
BUENOS AIRES
RESERVA BIOLÓGICA DúRIKA
RESERVA INDÍGENA BORUCA
PALMAR
NEILY
PASO CANOAS
WILSON BOTANICAL GARDEN
SAN VITO
PARQUE INTERNACIONAL LA AMISTAD
ORIENTATION
INFORMATION
ACTIVITIES
SLEEPING & EATING
GETTING THERE & AWAY
* * *
In southern Costa Rica, the Cordillera de Talamanca descends dramatically into agricultural lowlands carpeted with sprawling plantations of coffee beans, bananas and African palms. Here, campesinos (farmers) work their familial lands, maintaining agricultural traditions that have been passed down through the generations. While the rest of Costa Rica embraces globalization, life in the southern zone remains constant, much as it has for decades, and in some places, centuries on end.
In a country where little pre-Columbian influence remains, southern Costa Rica is where you’ll find the most pronounced indigenous presence. The region is home to large populations of Bribrí, Cabécar and Brunka, largely confined to private reservations, who are largely succeeding in maintaining their traditions despite outside pressures to modernize.
Costa Rica’s well-trodden tourist trail seems to have bypassed the southern zone, though this isn’t to say that the region doesn’t have any traveler appeal. On the contrary, southern Costa Rica is home to the country’s single largest swath of protected land, namely Parque Internacional La Amistad. Largely unexplored, this national park extends across the border into Panama and is one of Central America’s last true wilderness areas.
And while Monteverde is the country’s most iconic cloud forest, southern Costa Rica offers many equally enticing opportunities to explore this mystical habitat. If you harbor any hope of spotting the elusive resplendent quetzal, you can start by looking in the cloud forest in Parque Nacional Los Quetzales. Or, if you want to stand on top of the Cordillera Central, you can climb the cloud-capped heights of Cerro Chirripó (3820m), Costa Rica’s highest peak.
HIGHLIGHTS