Tag Archives: panama city restaurants

I’ve been sorting through various restaurant recommendations for Panama City – and think I’ve settled for one touristy but classically Panamanian restaurant, Las Tinajas, that also has Panamanian dancers – and one upscale restaurant, La Posta, that’s not particularly Panamanian but more international in flavor and “Panamanian jet-set” crowd. Figure that will give us a variety.

I’ve never had Panamanian food – which I’ve heard resembles Cuban food, which I have had – so I figure when in Panama, eat like Panamanians which at Las Tinajas includes:  ropa vieja (spicy, shredded beef over rice), carimañolas (yuca rolls stuffed with meat), ceviche, and creole-style sea bass. At La Posta, food prepared by an american-trained chef  and served in a Havana-style dining room sounds a tad Italian, which is always good: yellow fin-tuna ceviche with capers; mero (a high-quality grouper) carpaccio; or fried polenta with Gorgonzola and portobello mushrooms plus thin-crust pizzas, risottos, seafood  such as jumbo prawns with passion fruit and rice pilaf. Also on my list is Madame Chang’s – which I wouldn’t ordinarily consider because it seems odd to eat Chinese food in Panama but apparently it’s some of the world’s best Chinese food.