Aya la Vida Restaurante | Casco Viejo — Restaurant in El Chorrillo

This review is long overdue. We visited this restaurant while in Panama last month. The food, service and atmosphere were all 5 stars across the board. However, during the course of our dinner, I went to the restroom. And while I was at the restroom, one of the floor managers, slightly heavyset guy, was talking to my girlfriend and asked her questions about me and our status. As if to flirt, but not be overtly direct, is the way she explained it to me. He even gave her his card with his number. Completely inappropriate and disrespectful to her and me. She didn't mention anything about it until after we got in the Uber and she gave me his card. I only wish I still had the card, so I can attach it to this post. I tried calling the restaurant the next day, but they where closed the entire day. I meant to write a review a lot sooner but I forgot about it until someone asked me for recommendations for good restaurants in Panama. This was totally unprofessional and inappropriate by your staff.

Response to owner: Thank you for your follow up. However, I may have a vague recollection of his exact physique but I am 1000% certain he was a member of your staff. The two of us briefly spoke to him together at another point in the evening. Hence, the only reason I knew who she was referring to after we left. I also vaguely remember him interacting with other staff in a managerial role. Like I said before, I should have kept his card and wrote this review a long time ago while the details where fresh...

We booked a table for 7:00 pm and the experience was unpleasant from the very beginning. As soon as we confirmed the reservation, the restaurant messaged us reminding that they closed at 8:00 pm. We acknowledged and confirmed we would arrive on time. However, they insisted again, saying we would only have 10 minutes to place our order since the kitchen was closing.

When we arrived, we were greeted by the supervisor, Luis with a grey suit (the same person who had written to us), and instead of offering a warm welcome, he repeated in a rather dry tone that now we had only 5 minutes to order. At that point it became frustrating, because we already understood the situation from the start, but it was unnecessary to remind us over and over in such an unfriendly way. What is most surprising is that this attitude came from a supervisor, who should be setting the example in customer service.

On a positive note, the waitresses were very kind and attentive, and the food was actually delicious. Unfortunately, the negative impression from the initial treatment overshadowed everything else. It’s a real shame that a restaurant with such strong recognition on TripAdvisor does not prioritize something as essential as customer service.

Sadly, we will not...

This new spot in Panama’s old town is incredible! They have plenty of options from modern takes on Panamanian Classics to burgers and pizza. My husband and I gravitated toward their more original dishes and we were not disappointed! In particular we loved the Tamal, which was a Maza based purée (though it was so sumptuous it tasted more like a white bean purée) with Chicharrón, fried hominy, olives and raisins. It was really incredible. The cashew butter was surprising and lovely. The salad was exquisite and tomato tartar was so good we are definitely going back to try the beef carpaccio. Another stand out was the smoked butter, mini rolls and chorizo. How did they get so much smoke flavor in that butter? Amazing. The cocktails were reasonable and the pisco sour was divine. Wait staff all speak English and are eager to help you understand the menu and have a nice time. GREAT service! The staff was so attentive and helpful. This place is really remarkable. We noticed they also have outdoor dining available if you prefer that. The passion fruit mouse was also lovely. Definitely ...