Restaurante Rústicos — Restaurant in Jacó

You can't go wrong here. I ate here many times during my stay.

The food is delicious and inexpensive. The people are kind, attentive, and speak English. The place is always clean. This is the place to eat in Jaco.

If you want to eat like the local Ticos, this is the place.

USD $5 or $6 per plate (that's including a bottled water... drink the safe-to-drink tap water to save a little money. I learned that later in my trip). You will leave with a full belly.

Breakfast is rice and black beans, scrambled eggs, amazing bacon, potatoes and veggies.

You really need to try the bacon! It's better than what you get at the grocery stores in USA.

For lunch/dinner, it's rice, beans, chicken/beef/pork (the meat choices change every day), potatoes, veggies, and a very good salad.

Healthy, delicious food at a very affordable price!

We Americans can learn something from the Ticos. They are generally healthier than the average American. It's probably a good idea to eat like a Tico, and get more...

Soda Jaco Rustico is cafeteria style with a different selection each day. We ate there multiple times, breakfast and dinner, as the experience was easy, fast, delicious (like a Costa Rican grandmother’s cooking), and reasonably priced. It’s a nice contrast from the restaurants heavily catering to tourists. We had fresh fruit, salad, pork, chicken, fish, beans and rice, plantains, potatoes, Costa Rican pasta, and fresh juices. We found locals eating here, not just tourists, which is a good sign in our book!

Tip for Gringos: A “Soda" restaurant in Costa Rica refers to a small, family-owned and operated restaurant that serves traditional Costa Rican cuisine. Each one is a little different but nearly all we found on our stay had the most authentic Costa Rican food. If you like local food, skip all the other tourist places on the strip, and google “Soda” restaurants. We were never...

We asked the locals for some authentic Costa Rican food. They walked us down to this place and said enjoy. We were not disappointed. The line of people out front was our first indication that we had come to the right place and the aroma that drifted out to us was the second. Service was cafeteria style, you pick out a meat, sides, salads etc and they fill your plate. I enjoyed some beef tips, and mixed veggies. I also got a piece of fried fish from a dining partner. It was all delicious and filling. There are lots of neat places to eat in Jaco, but if you want a break from the tourist vibe restaurants then seek out this simple little...