Dining
out in the Playa Cofresi area is a wonderful experience and not to
be missed. While you will enjoy having meals prepared for you at the
villa, there are many restaurants nearby. The food is delicious and
reasonably priced. The ambiance is delightful. No matter where you
go, dress is casual so wear your jeans, shorts and sandals,
sundresses or other comfortable attire. Ties are not required
anywhere.
In
many places you'll be able to enjoy your dinner and a drink and
probably not pay much more than $20 US after the tip. Some
restaurants, but not all, accept credit cards. The following are
some of our favorites but there are others, check with Gabino for
other suggestions. Be sure and try some of the local dishes, they
are delicious.
Try
paella, sans cocho, arroz con pollo, plátanos, and tortilla de
jamón. Local
beers include Presidente,
Bohemia, and
Quisqueya. Barceló,
Bermudiz, and Brugal are the local rums.
Within
walking distance
Chris
and Mady's Guests
have been pleased with this sprawling, ocean front thatched roof
restaurant that also has a pool table to keep the kids amused. You
can watch the Cable TV while your dinner is being prepared. This was a favorite evening
hangout for our 20+ year old sons.
If you
don't feel like eating out, you could ask Chris to prepare some of
the items from his menu for take out.
Even though hamburgers are part of his lunch menu, he'll do them at
night for kids who want something they recognize. Open every day
11-11. Credit cards accepted.
The
Beach House Grill & Lounge is
also located on the beach road. Their menu is a wide variety of
seafood, burgers, and salads.
They also have a nice selection of House Signature
Cocktails.
Near
Cofresi in Villas Cofresi
Le
Papillion is in
a community called Villas Cofresi. Turn left as you exit Cofresi; go
down the highway a few hundred yards and the entrance will be on the
right. This Ion-time favorite spot is where you go for beef. Thomas Ackerman always has
interesting blackboard daily
specials to augment his standard menu. Cap it all off with
his chocolate mousse. Closed Mondays. The ambiance
is quite attractive. Credit cards
accepted.
Los
Dos, also in Villas Cofresi near the entrance on the left, is
our favorite, featuring a variety of delicious specials. Very
reasonable prices, payment is in pesos and U.S. dollars. There is
usually a special event on Friday nights such as an all-you- can eat
Barbecue for $15 or a suckling pig roast that is to die for. Put
this on your “must go” list.
Hours: 8
am –
11
pm. Closed Sundays. No credit cards accepted at
this time.
Tyroleon
is
located on the left, at the very entrance to Villas Cofresi. The menu is German with
exceptional weiner schnitzel.
Portions are generous and the prices are modest. There is not
much ambiance. Someone
said it is like eating in someone’s carport or garage. We agree. Pesos only. No credit
cards.
*****Note the restaurants listed above are
located on the road to Villas Cofresi less than a mile from the
entrance to Playa Cofresi, but we do not recommend that you walk
there at night. Crossing the highway is dangerous! Please take a
taxi from Cofresi.
La
Roca
“the Spencer’s romantic
favorite”
La
Roca is another area nearby that has a popular
new restaurant, Los Tres Cocos. It is the restaurant of one
of the North Shore’s premier chefs, Mickey. He has quite a
following in the Cofresi area. It is an intimate, romantic open air
restaurant with lots of atmosphere. The reasonably priced
gourmet dishes are always outstanding. We love Mickey’s
cooking. Reservations:
809-993-4503
Restaurant Stefy
and Natale is the area’s
popular Italian dining spot.
Featured dishes are their homemade pastas and sauces and
fantastic thin crust pizza available with a variety of
toppings. Langostinos
(small lobsters), Cordon Bleu, shrimp, beef and veal dishes are also
a good choice. Good
place to come with large groups because the prices are so
modest. Open
Tuesday-Saturday, 4:30
pm –
11 pm and Sunday from 11:30 am – 11:30
pm. Closed Monday. Pesos
only.
Bahia
de Maimon
Exit
right from Cofresi and go down the highway about 3 1/2 miles
to an area where many small stands and restaurants
offer fresh cooked fish. Fresh cooked chicken and meats are
available, but the specialty of the
area is fish, caught fresh from the local shores .You can take-out
or eat the food on the premises at picnic style tables. It's very
popular with locals and tourists alike. The prices are quite cheap, too. Talk to Gabino about which
stand in this area is best. This was a highlight of our last two
trips. Unbelievable fish!
Cash only. Use
bug spray before you go.
Costambar
Costambar
is a large, ocean-side community adjacent to Playa Cofresi. Exit
left from Cofresi and go about a mile down the highway toward town.
The entrance to Costambar will be on your left, and opposite the
Free Trade
Zone. The road is about 1/2 mile long before you come to the gated
entrance. We suggest you have a taxi take you and come back to get
you. There are many restaurants but we haven't tried them all. These
are our
favorites.
Solo
Mio, at
the corner of Anacoana and Higuamota, has excellent brick oven baked
pizza, barbecued meats, seafood, and Italian
pasta
dishes. Good place to bring the kids because they’ll love the pizza
and the prices are so modest. This is a perennial favorite
with all the expats. Open every day. Credit cards
accepted.
Cafe
Caruso, on
Calle Castilla at Condo Lisa in the area known as the
Italian
Village, has
weekly specials and a good variety of seafood, chicken and meats in
their regular menu. The
ambiance is pleasant around their terraced pool. Open daily for
breakfast, lunch, and dinner from November until the end of
April. Rest of year,
dinner only.
Don
Quijote is in
a converted home with a pleasant atmosphere on Calle Cadiz. Excellent Austrian and
International food featured at very modest prices. Open Tuesday-Sunday from
6:30
pm –
11
pm. Closed
Monday.
Thon's
shack right
on the beach, near the corner of Almirante, is probably the biggest
bargain around. Enjoy
delicious meals for less than $10. It's all at the surf’s edge
under the palms with plastic chairs and tables so don't go
when
it's raining. No printed menu, just a few black board specials. Try
their chili con carne, beef soup, Weiner
Schnitzel, or chicken curry with rice. This is for the truly
adventurous souls. They are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner,
weather permitting.
In
Puerto Plata
The
historic and colorful city of Puerto
Plata, just
three miles from Playa Cofresi offers a variety of local restaurants
that are colorful and reasonably
priced.
Quo
Vadis Restaurant at
#47 Avenida Luis Ginebra is in an elegant home surrounded by lovely
gardens. White
tablecloths, romantic atmosphere, attentive service compliments the
delicious food. Best
surprise, the prices are very modest. Worth a trip into town, but
easy to miss with the high walls that surround the property. Open daily from 11-11.
Credit cards accepted.
The
Swiss
Garden
(Jardin Suisse) on
the ocean boulevard in Puerto Plata is a favorite. The varied menu has appeal to all age
groups. The owner is Swiss but his Dominican wife is the talented chef
in the kitchen. You'll
love their German potatoes, or Potatoes au gratin or dumplings. The
prices are bargains and everything is delicious. It's worth a trip into town.
Closed Sundays. Credit cards accepted.
Portofino,
located
off the traffic circle on Avenida Hermanas Mirabal (on the side
street next to the stadium
going toward the ocean), is another bargain when it comes to
delicious food and low prices. They even have a play area for kids.
Menu offers seafood, traditional foods and good pizza. Open
daily. Credit cards
accepted.
Playa
Dorada
Plaza
The
Playa Dorada resort complex, on the other side of Puerto Plata about
6 miles from Playa Cofresi, has a few restaurants in the hotels that
are open to the public, and a shopping plaza with fast-food
places.
Hemingway's,
right
in the Plaza, is popular although we found the service slow and the
food just OK. But if you want to relax over a drink, the Havana-like
atmosphere is pleasant. Credit cards accepted. Open
daily.
Updated July
2007
