Restaurante Grano De Oro — Restaurant in Hospital

Hotel personnel are perfectly attentive. Lovely contemporary lobby/reception with exceptional tropical floral arrangements all leading into the warm beautifully maintained 19th century patrimonial mansion full of wonderful rooms. The restaurant is beautiful. It occupies the architectural center of the historic home: the open air courtyard and the interior arcade surrounding the courtyard. Seated at a white clothed table in a window looking onto that courtyard, under the soaringly high ceiling with mahogany crown molding sipping a perfect Martini, cold, in cut glass sharp against our fingers. The table is perfectly set with old school hotel silver. Other couples sharing dinner in the court, we are feeling very private in our window seat. The waiter is formal yet somehow personable and warm as well. He delivers the drinks and vanishes. The menu is classically balanced with contemporary touches and locally sourced ingredients. The room and menu belong together like a special couple. Pate, Asparagus, Hearts of Palm, Lamb and Filet. The waiter reset the table properly with that elegant hotel silver. Wine service was nicely done. The meat was cooked perfectly. Palm Salad crisp tasty and lightly dressed. Pate and Asparagus: excellent flavor with nice touches like the flavored mustard with the pate and tangy pistachio pesto that came with the asparagus. After dinner a stroll down the mansion’s historic hallways to our...

Restaurant Rate: 9/10 a MUST visit if you’re in Costa Rica - no exceptions!

This is my third time here in a span of years and every time I come it is an incredible gastronomic experience. With one exception. Service. Never bad service but sometimes it’s a bit more aloof then I care for.

First time there I had excellent service. Second and third were okay. 4th time was above and beyond excellent.

We arrived on a Monday evening without reservations and were met with a bit of shock, but they quickly gathered themselves and sat us within minutes in our preferred area: the courtyard.

Waiter was courteous but curt at times. That’s okay. Often times that can happen when they are busy or overwhelmed.

Ambience in the evening was nice. A mix of task and decorative lighting led to a beautiful glow throughout the courtyard. There was a relaxing water fountain a few feet away. Chatter throughout was lively but never overly loud.

Food was brought out in a timely manner with time to indulge each course. The highlights were the cheese platter, macadamia crusted sea bass and the grano de oro pie. The chicken seed plate was good but not great. I will be back for lunch later this week. This time with reservations. And...

Beautiful place, with lots of dark wood and stained glass. We went for an 11 AM brunch and practically had the place to ourselves. We were greeted warmly, given water, and about 10 min. Later asked for our menu choices. I went with the Croque Madam (think fancy grilled cheese and ham), and my husband chose the eggs benedict with salmon. They both were out of this world. So good! After waiting for an eternity, we ordered a Creme Brulee that was one of the best I had ever eaten, including when we were in Europe. Besides the service, which was kind but practically non-existent, our water glasses sat empty, coffee cups as well, and the orange juice was not fresh. This may seem silly, but the little extras one enjoys in upscale dining make a difference. The ladies' room was spotless, but the bathroom tissue could easily be confused with sandpaper. We did appreciate that there was no "elevator music" and we could enjoy our conversation without distractions. We will definitely return. Their food is too...