Justin T.
Gastrónomo
Miembro Foodie
142
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Sobre mí
Miembro desde:
Abril de 2013
10 comentarios en Panamá
No tiene fotos en panama
The Fish Market (Casco Antiguo)
This place is awesome. They've moved to Casco Viejo, across from the Lottery Building and right next to Zaza and Barlovento. The food is fantastic and is a refreshing breath of authentic, simple asian cuisine. Not your typical "comida china" but we're talking influences from Thai and Vietnamese cooking. The atmosphere is the total opposite of all of the super fancy high end restaurants that are taking over Casco. And to boot, they have great microbrews from North Coat, Lost Coast and Rogue Breweries! Despite the name, it isn't just fish. Last night they had the most delicious pulled pork sandwich wrapped up in a soft and fluffy flatbread. Wonderful!
El Sitio del Casco
Best chicken wings in Panama! They have a good beer selection, but it used to be better when they had more Sierra Nevada.
Madrigal
Four of us went here on Tuesday evening for what might be the best meal I've ever had in Panama. Amazing. We each had the Menu Gustación ($50 each) which was incredible. 1) tuna tartare topped with a sorbet of what tasted like guanabana. Unique and delicious. 2) fois gras with salted ground cashews and a wafer of bread. Amazing, rich, decadent. 3) fried rice - which sounds not very fancy but was in fact fantastic. Sort of a sauteed paella, very rich and full of great seafood flavor, but with a wonderful chewy yet crispy texture. 4) robalo (snook) poached with shrimp. Simple yet elegant and delicious. 5) lamb - ribs and bits - cooked perfectly with a wonderful hoisin based sauce, tender, wonderful. 6) for dessert, an "inverted cheesecake" which was wonderful, incredibly delicious and inventive, and perfectly portioned because we were all so stuffed already. Our only complaint would be that the plates were all very meat heavy - a soup or veggie course would have made a nice change of pace. Otherwise, a completely amazing meal.
Balboa Yacht Club
After returning from Islas las Perlas on Saturday afternoon, 5 of us decided to have dinner at the Balboa Yacht Club. Three of us made the mistake of ordering the "Baja style fish tacos" which were advertised as having a slightly spicy sauce. Instead the sauce was very sweet, much like a Thousand Island dressing from the US. The tortillas were stale and hard to chew and the fish was very strong and unpleasant tasting. Terrible overall. The burger and po-boy sandwich our friends had were better.
Tantalo Kitchen
Tantalo has updated their menu with several new options, which was refreshing to see. I have always liked Tantalo but had gotten bored with the same items always there. Everything we had, new and old, was delicious. Eggplant carpaccio, pulpo, empanadas, tuna tartare and mac and cheese. Everything was great.
La Rana Dorada (El Cangrejo)
La Rana Dorada is always one of my favorite places, but they have just unveiled there new India Pale Ale which is fantastic. Very hoppy and bitter, but not overpowering. Delicious!
Diablicos
We went to Diablicos this weekend with a group of friends who were visiting from out of town. We went on Sunday for the show, which was very good. The service and the performance were great. However, the food was by and large terrible. I ordered lechon santeña which was deep fried until it was hard and dry as imaginable. The arañitas we ordered as an entrada were very overcooked. The folks at our table that ordered fish were largely pleased with their food, but most everything else was bad. Beyond that, the food is very overpriced for the quality. Go for the show, but that's all.
Manolo Caracol
Three of us had dinner at Manolo Caracol last night. We've been many times and this occasion was not at its best. It was still delicious, but the food was not as good as many times before. Particularly, one of the plates was a taco with beef which was very boring. Additionally, the final fish was very strong and slightly unpleasant. However, the langostinos, the homemade chorizo with sweet corn, the sopa de langostino y zapayo, and many other dishes were fantastic.
Country Store y Café
I really enjoy the ambiance of the Country Store but the service is usually very slow. On a recent trip, the clams were fantastic as was the caesar salad. The caprese sandwich was also very good. However, the California sandwich was not very good and I would not recommend it.
Capital Bistró Panamá (Antigua administración)
Four of us had dinner at CBP last night and it was absolutely amazing. We had the lamb chops, sirloin steak, catch of the day (robalo) and grouper. Each dish was perfectly cooked and presented. One of the best meals I have had in a long time. The've done an outstanding job with the decor and ambiance. It is a gorgeous space and the terrace on top makes a great place to have a drink before dinner. The only thing they should improve is the dessert menu, which was very unimaginative across the board. Aside from that, I couldn't recommend Capital Bistro Panama more. It's spendy but worth it.