Restaurant Café Viejo — Restaurant in Cahuita

After eyeing this place our entire trip, we decided to finally stop in on our second last day. We were unfortunately quite disappointed with our visit, especially when it came to the food.

Service was prompt, but a bit overbearing. This may appeal to some folks, but when I'm in the middle of a conversation with my family, I don't want my server interrupting just to wipe the condensation from beneath each of our glasses; nor do I need my cutlery rearannged for me. This may be appropriate in a "fine dining" setting, but Cafe Viejo is advertised as a pizzeria.

The food was very disappointing. We were initially served bruschetta (on the house), which was quite tasty; however, it was downhill from there. Our pizza was soggy in the middle, poorly sliced, and we needed a fork and knife to eat it. The pizza sauce may as well have been from a jar; not what you'd expect from a pizzaria boasting about their delicious pizza. The pasta dish we ordered (Spaghetti Alla Carbonara) was extremely bland and unexciting, and the appearance matched the flavor.

Atmosphere was acceptable, but nothing to write home about. There is a large fish tank full of tropical fish and eels to admire, however, don't make the mistake we did. If you sit right next to it, you are sure to have children bouncing around your table all evening trying to get a look. Not the fault of the restaurant, but worth a warning if you decide to eat here and are hoping for a relaxing meal.

Overall, it was a disappointing visit. Cafe Viejo always appears packed, and we were expecting a lot more as a result. Prices were very high for what we received, so poor value on their food. The silver linings were the tasty and free bruschetta, and the wine. If neither of those things appeal to you, you are sure to have a...

Cafe Viejo is an amazing find! A great Italian restaurant in the midst of the rural town of Puerto Viejo de Talamanca. They were referred to us from the concierge at Banana Azul resort. We took a quick taxi ride over... It's on a corner of a busy intersection... nothing to really look at. But inside is a beautiful dark rustic theme. The wait staff were extremely nice and on point. They started by bringing us over a complimentary order of bruschetta made with their homemade bread (see pic). We ordered a Caprese salad as an appetizer (pictured). The salad was big and very fresh. My wife ordered the lobster with pasta and I ordered the Lobster ravioli with shrimp toppings... both were outstanding (see picture). Every bite was savory and delicious. To complement the meal I also had glass of cab from Chili that was robust (Chilean cab has different notes than California Cab). We enjoyed our meal and it was big portions, so we brought the lefts overs back for lunch today. We were extremely happy by the food, staff, atmosphere and Cafe Viejo as a whole. I highly recommend them and I would put them up against any Italian joint in Los Angeles. We will come...

Came here with me and my two year-old son I ordered a rigatoni and asked if they have french fries they said no I asked them if they had rice they said no so she knew I wanted to get something for the kid and I was just like it’s OK don’t worry about it… then she offers if I wanted to get some fish sticks. I said yes and then she asked if I wanted a half order or not I’m like of course. So we get the food and everything it took forever to come out like Super forever to come out and I know about Tiko time and that was fine. No complaints, but she brought the check and my bill was 27,000 colones which equal to about almost $50 I was a little shocked …as well to find out that the fish tenders for the baby were $20. This definitely changed my whole night and made me feel completely unwelcome in the whole city. I really left crying because I felt like how could you charge a two year-old $20 for a dish that you offered for...