NOI Bistro — Restaurant in Tamarindo

This was a VERY disappointing experience. The service: It took about 15-20 minutes for us to get our drinks because a woman and her husband were talking to the waitress for a long time (this restaurant seems to be linked to the hostel next door so they were working out some issue with the hostel). The waitress was very kind, though. The atmosphere: The couple’s kids were running around the restaurant, and one kid was sitting in the kitchen area with her feet on the counter the whole time—they let her stay there. Later, 2 other kids were in the back drink/other food area, grabbing things. This was VERY unhygienic. Also, the employees didn’t stop the couple from vaping in the restaurant, so we kept inhaling vape fumes. The food: Both the nonalcoholic piña colada and smoothie (mango and passion fruit) we ordered were very disappointing. The piña colada barely had any flavor (we saw the waitress use a small can of pineapple in it) and the smoothie was very sour (the worst of all the mango/passion fruit smoothies we’ve tried in Costa Rica). The sandwiches we ordered didn’t have a lot of flavor, either. The side of fruit was surprisingly good, except the watermelon was very overripe. The cost: it cost a lot more than we thought based on the menu, and this disappointing meal was about $24/person. Overall, go to a different restaurant next door instead of trying this place! We should have left after recognizing the unhygienic red flags. Don’t waste...

Please do not go there, outrageously expensive! The prices here are completely inflated. The food is naturally delicious, and the coffee is good too. However, the quantity you get, along with checking the offerings on both sides of the shop, absolutely does not justify this price. The service is very nice, but ultimately, they are also after tips. At the end of the bill, we were asked about three times if we really don't want to give a tip, even though a 10% service fee is already included. We've been in Costa Rica for a total of two weeks now, and, surprisingly, we actually spent the most money on this breakfast plus coffee compared to all other meals. Sometimes we had various different dishes for dinner, and everything was overall cheaper than this one small breakfast. From the outside, this restaurant looks pretty cool, and there are always many people inside. However, if you just walk a few meters to the right to the food court, there are already much better deals. Therefore, I would not recommend...

Honestly... can't believe I stayed. At first I didn't believe the girl sitting with feet on the counter was in the kitchen but later realized she was indeed sitting on the counter where they prepared our food. There is a hostel that also operates out of this joint and after we got our drinks (which took forever because there seemed to be a problem with one of the guests at the hostel) someone from the hostel came into the eating area and started vaping. Not the vibe I was hoping for. The good reviews had us very excited. The sandwich we got was without flavor. The watermelon was over ripe. The drink we got were the most flavorless drinks ever. We felt so scammed at the end. A simple sandwich with fruit and drinks cost 2 people almost $50 only adding to our disappointment since every meal we've had up to this point in costa rica the past 5 days has been great. SPARE YOURSELF THE DISAPPOINTMENT AND GO...