PIPA BEACH BOCAS — Restaurant in Bocas del Toro

We visited this place twice—once for dinner and once for breakfast.

For dinner, the service was disappointing. Our waitress was not very kind. We ordered two juices (one with sugar for my boyfriend and one without for me, as I requested sucralose separately). When the juices arrived, I reminded the waitress about the sucralose, and she said she would bring it. Later, a waiter handed me a small packet, which was very difficult to open. When I finally managed to open it, I found something brown inside that looked like raw sugar. I tasted it, and it was disgusting. Looking at the package closely, I saw it was labeled “Do not open” and “Do not consume.” Shocked, I confronted the waitress, who started laughing and casually explained that it was a packet of iron oxide meant to prevent fruit from oxidizing. This was extremely unprofessional and potentially dangerous. Their way of compensating us? A brownie with ice cream. Given the seriousness of the situation, a significant discount—or even waiving the bill—would have been more appropriate.

The next morning, we gave the place another chance for breakfast, but the experience was again disappointing. Our table was dirty, with food crumbs and insects, and no one bothered to clean it. I ordered coffee and asked for a sweetener, only to be told they had none. I had to drink my coffee plain, and it wasn’t even good.

This place has potential, but the poor service, unprofessional staff, and bad price-to-quality ratio ruin the experience. I wouldn’t...

As much as I want to support them, I have to be honest. I’m a local resident and have been there many times since it opened. While things have improved, both the chef and bar staff still have room for growth.

Today, I ordered a green salad with extra chicken and parmesan. Everything was fresh — but there was no dressing. Can anyone really enjoy romaine lettuce without dressing? 7 As for the service, the staff still needs proper training. We were there from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The waiter came promptly when we sat down, then once to take the order, once to serve, and that was it.

As for the location, it is great.

By 5 p.m., we ended up going to the bar ourselves to pay. We likely would have ordered more if we had been given more attention. . . . . . We read the response from the owner: if you give the opportunity to clients to chose dressing, salt and pepper, etc per order then it should either be written on the menu or the waiter should ask, which none are in place. Again, my review is not to criticize just to state a fact. The place is great but the service needs...

The location is very nice at a cozy beach and well decorated. There's also a beach volley field but the highlight is the cat antonio. The staff is very nice and friendly and they leave you alone once you are on the beach chairs - which one can see as a plus or not. We had big expectations about the supposedly bad service from other reviews, but were disappointed that it was in reality just a nice place (and as far as we could tell they did not try to poison us). The food was really okay, one could even say good if you go in with low expectations. We were there at the beginning of May and it was quite empty most of the time, so if you are looking to meet new people maybe go there...