La Choza de Laurel — Restaurant in La Fortuna

We dined at La Choza del Laurel our last night in La Fortuna and it was definitely worth the experience. I ordered one of the specials of the evening, the pork ribs, which I was told were being slow cooked on the outdoor pit. Being from Texas I figured I had to try them as all of the meat that I had eaten in Costa Rica so far tasted extremely fresh and had outstanding flavor.

When the ribs arrived I was definitely not disappointed and the size of the portion my wife stills polks fun of me about. When I say they resembled ribs I would expect to see on the Flintstones, I am not exaggerating. They took up the whole plate and I had never seen ribs that were attached to what I would refer to as a pork chop. I went to work on the meat basically neglecting the other tasty sides of rice, black beans, and plantains. I completed my task and did my carnivore job of finishing off the ribs with much fulfillment - although it was so much I don't think I had any red meat the rest of the trip.

Besides the wonderful food, the waiter had a very nice demeanor, joked with my wife about me devouring the whole thing, and provided customer service that left us knowing we would return to dine there one day if...

We have dined here twice during our stay in La Fortuna.

The good: The food is really good. I ordered the beef soup on day 1 and chicken soup the next day, they were both delicious. My husband ordered the grilled chicken breast on day 1 and the roast chicken on day 2 - he really enjoyed his meal. So food wise I think it's one of the best places we tried in La Fortuna. They also offer some free soups as sample as soon as you arrive. They were pretty good as well. We also ordered the green salad both the days. It was chopped lettuce and other greens without any dressing. We didn't really mind it, we were looking for some greens to eat.

The bad: Okay so if you are here, the minimum wait is 1 hour. Both the days, we waited for an hour for our food. The second day we were supposed to meet some people afterwards so we had to tell our waiter to serve our food quicker, so it came on the 56th minute. There is only person who takes orders and tends to forget about beverages, although the bar would have it ready. It will sit there for a long time until someone else will pick it up.

Anyways, if you are not super hungry or have time in your hand check out the place. You cannot go wrong with...

Wow what a great place so underrated but the best service I've had in Costa Rica yet! The waitresses wear traditional dresses and the staff is so proffesional and attentive. they bring you a bamboo tray of condiments and sauces the beer comes chilled with a chilled glass and the food portions are great value for the money. I had the meat and veg soup served with a side of rice and corn tortilla and had all the hearty root vegetables and was more than I could finish. It's not a fancy place and is located outside town on the side of the road and the tables are picnic tables in a big open barn like looking building It was so good I went back again the second night and found the service to be just as good with different servers friendly and attentive and easy to communicate with. This time I had Mojitos which were amazing and I ordered the beef fajitas which was so tender you could cut it with a fork served with refried beans diced green banana and tomato salsa with two pieces of corn tortillas which is plenty . you have to order coffee there seriously they come out with a cart grind it fresh in front of you and hand Brew it I haven't seen that anywhere it's like old style...