RetroGusto Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Bajo Boquete

September 2024: We have been to Retrogusto several times and we are continually impressed. Our last meal there was as near to perfection as you can get - 100+ all around - service - atmosphere - and food, food, food.

We like to sit at a table on the interior of the restaurant (there is outside seating on the street one table, and an exterior ‘garden like’ setting in the back). Our inside table of choice has an excellent view of the kitchen, where we are continually impressed with the attention to detail and the perfection of their plating!

There is a wonderful menu, but you can also ask for a ‘tasting menu’ - smaller plates - more courses! Of course, we opted for the tasting menu.

Tuna carpaccio, it was not just ‘food’ but a delightful experience in textures and flavors. The smoked tuna was cut expertly, wafer thin and there was a pesto sauce, ‘crumbs’ of very well toasted and flavored bread, sprinkled with sprouts.

Cream of mushroom soup - so expertly done! The texture and flavors were impeccable. It did not appear to have cream in it - but it was a silky emulsion of mushroom, the flavor of the mushroom exploded in our mouths as we had the first taste .. mmm!

Risotto, flavored with truffles and topped with juicy, perfectly cooked shrimp. Again, the flavors shone through - expertly balanced blend of truffle and shrimp.

Filet Mignon, served over a bed of ‘creamed spinach’ - this was not the ‘normal’ creamed spinach - this was a light as air, concoction of spinach, that was not cream at all, but a wonderful puree that let the vegetable shine - and of course, their filet was cooked EXACTLY as we wished. There was a delicious balsamic reduction on the side that worked perfectly to blend the flavors on the spinach and the filet.

Lastly! There was a tiny cup of Pana cotta perfection - topped with a puree of strawberries, perfectly flavored - I don’t think any sugar met these strawberries.

My husband ordered a Negroni and Retrogusto have a special one that they top with Prosecco instead of soda - at the recommendation of our waiter - happy, happy husband.

Service was impeccable and our waiter was Jake, who was both knowledgeable and engaging. In all Retrogusto has our custom, again and again - it’s difficult for us to go to Boquete and not visit our favorite restaurant!

June 2024: We came here on the advice of Danny owner of Inn The Coffeepot in Boquete - a kindred European spirit who appreciates fine food and service. Retrogusto was totally unexpected in Boquete - I WAS in Italy! The food was, simply put - Italian. Not American or anyting else Italian. I has the best risotto I’d ever had (even in Italy) - uncutuous and delicious - creamy and flavorful. Risotto with Black Truffle, Asiago Cheese and Beef Stew - I cannot even write about this without drooling. And I cannot wait to go back to eat it again. When we read the description - both my husband and I ordered the same dish! We will definitely try their pizza next time - they looked amazing! If you’re in Boquete….. no need to think about where to go… I've already planned our next visit - they are having a Tuscan tasting menu that ends on June 7th - we will be there (husband's birthday treat). This place is so good that we're making the trip...

Who would have thought to find really good Italian food in boquete. We are here two of the three nights we stayed in boquete. It was that good. Ingredients were fresh and flavour combinations were well thought out and well executed.

I really enjoyed the pasta and the pizza. We had the mixed seafood pasta, cooked al dente and with a light sauce, it was very flavourful and not heavy at all. The second night a beetroot spaghetti with Gorgonzola sauce. This was my favourite. Nothing but pasta and sauce, so there is little for the pasta to hide behind, you can really taste the quality of the dough and the preparation. The pizza margarita was really good, the dough and the sauce was full of flavour with the acidity and sweetness well balanced. One thing I will note for improvement would be to use a little bit less sauce as it did make our crust bottom a bit soggy (we also let it sit for a bit as we were sharing a bunch of dishes)

David the owner is very friendly and stopped by to chat with us both times we went. Having a culinary background we can see why the restaurant is ran so well and the food of such...

We went there for a second time. Prices are good. Portions are ok too. The pasta with homemade chorizo was a bit too salty for me. More pasta and less chorizo would be better balanced. Definitely needs black pepper added because the chorizo is just salty, nothing else. My wife had the seafood platter which was decent. The vino de la casa was surprisingly good. The food came our very quickly. Music choice was good. Pretty good start.

The main point to improve is the service. We were only 2-3 tables and all the waiters were chilling outside the restaurant. No one came to ask how the food was, we didn’t get water refilled. The waiter didn’t really knew his menu, or the names of the wines by the glass, and although my plate was finished and the waiter passed about 4 times next to me, he didn’t take the plate back until i moved it on the side of the table. I waited for the bill but it never came. After 10 minutes I left to pay at the bar.

Some basic training for their waiters would be a start for a restaurant with such glowing reviews. Food used to be better a few years ago. Not sure if...