Three Ways to Eat Here
You have three options here, and most guests mix all three: cook at the villa, bring in a private chef, or eat out. None of them takes much planning.
Eating in a private villa is simply more flexible than a hotel. You have a full kitchen and a grill, so you can make a slow breakfast in your swimsuit, feed a big group on your own schedule, and cook fresh fish or steak by the pool — no fixed dining hours, no getting everyone dressed to go out. On the nights you'd rather not lift a finger, a private chef cooks it all in that same kitchen and clears up afterward. And when you do want to go out, the area's restaurants are far better than its size suggests. This guide covers all three — and how to let the team handle the booking and the shopping.
The Private Chef
Yes — a private chef is available and is the single most requested service. The team arranges it, and it's far more flexible than most guests expect.
You don't have to commit to a whole week or a fixed plan. Guests book anything from a single dinner to chef service across the stay, for dinner, breakfast, or both. You choose what you eat — the team can share a menu, or you simply text what you're in the mood for, and the chef shops and cooks it in the villa's kitchen. Timing is built around your day: the chef's dinner is usually set for around 7 pm and moved earlier or later to suit you and the kids.
"Feel free to let them know what treasures you wish to have next dinner — just send a text with what you'd like from the menu, whatever works best for you all."
To make it concrete, a typical chef dinner might run from a traditional ceviche or seared tuna skewers, to a fresh catch of the day, a casado, or seafood rice, finishing with tres leches or arroz con leche — all cooked to your group's tastes and around any allergies.
Because prices and chef availability change, the team quotes it for your group and dates. Ask early for popular weeks, and they'll coordinate everything from the menu to the timing.
Groceries, Markets & Fresh Fish
The supermarket is only the start. The best eating here comes from the farmers markets and the local fish stores — and the team will point you to all of them.
The supermarkets
For the widest everyday selection, shop at BM Supermarket in Uvita or Dominical — the store the team points guests to "if you'd like a wider variety of groceries," carrying most of what you'd expect plus beach chairs, coolers, and gear. Closer to home, smaller shops like Jucaloa cover quick basics, and Mini Price serves the Quepos and Manuel Antonio side. One honest note the team makes with a smile: selection is good, but this is a small, lush corner of Costa Rica, not a North American mega-store — bring any very specific specialty items with you.
Organic & specialty — Mama Toucan's
For vegan, organic, and health-food items you won't always find in BM — specialty flours, plant-based products, supplements, harder-to-source ingredients — Mama Toucan's, the well-known natural-foods store in Dominical, is where the team sends guests. If you keep a particular diet, it's worth a stop early in the stay.
The farmers markets (la feria) — the real secret
The best food on this coast isn't in a supermarket at all; it's at the weekly farmers market. The Uvita feria runs Wednesday and Saturday mornings, and it's the one place you'll see the foreign and local communities genuinely mixed together over the same tables. The quality is exceptional and the range is surprising: produce brought down from the valleys and mountains, fresh fish, cold coconut water, just-baked French bread, jewelry and crafts, and every kind of organic fruit and vegetable — including things you simply won't find on any supermarket shelf. Dominical has its own market, the same spirit in a slightly smaller version. Go hungry, bring cash and a bag, and make a morning of it; many guests say it's a highlight in itself.
Fresh fish
For the freshest catch, skip the supermarket counter and go to a dedicated fish store. There are several, and it's always worth asking your hosts for the current best — it changes with the boats — but the main ones guests are sent to are the Fresh Fish Store in Dominicalito, El Coral #2 in Uvita, and El Coral just south of Ojochal. A whole fresh fish from one of these, grilled at the villa, is one of the simplest great meals of the week.
Arriving to a Stocked Kitchen
Two easy ways: stop at BM on the drive in, or send a shopping list ahead and let the team pre-stock the house so you walk into a ready kitchen.
After a long travel day, few things feel better than not having to go back out. Many guests stop for groceries on the way down — BM is only minutes before the meeting point for some homes — while others send a list in advance and arrive to coffee, milk, water, and the first night's dinner already in the fridge. The team shops it for a set service fee plus the cost of the groceries. Either way, plan the first night before you land; it sets the tone for the whole stay. (See Getting Here for the arrival-day timing.)
Dietary Needs, Allergies & Kids
Tell the team in advance — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, allergies, baby and toddler food — and both the chef and the grocery shop are tailored to it.
This is routine, not a special request. Chefs here regularly cook around dietary restrictions and family preferences, and a pre-stock list is the simplest way to make sure the right milk, snacks, and baby essentials are waiting. The earlier the team knows, the better they can prepare — especially for the more specialized items that take a little finding locally.
Eating Out
The area eats far better than its size suggests, and the team will recommend and book for you. These are the places they actually send guests to — the same list they share over and over.
A note before the names: for the sunset and fine-dining spots, reserve ahead — the team is happy to do it for you in the group chat. Many of these have water or jungle views worth timing for golden hour.
Gusto · La Parcela · Aracari · Al Chile Que Sí · La Uvita Perdida
The team's go-to list for a dinner with a view. Gusto for Italian, Al Chile Que Sí for Mexican, La Parcela and Aracari for ocean sunsets. Reservations recommended for all.
Citrus · Exotica · Alma — Cocina de Sebas · Mestizo
Ojochal's renowned dining: Citrus and Exotica are the special-occasion favorites the team books most, with Alma and Mestizo for inventive, traditional-meets-fusion cooking in the jungle.
Fuego Brew Co. · Café Mono Congo · Tortilla Flats · Sushi Dominical / Phat Noodle
Fuego is the local brewery and a great lunch stop; Mono Congo is the organic café everyone loves; Tortilla Flats sits right on the beach; and for Asian food, Sushi Dominical or Phat Noodle (Thai).
Sibu · Mosaic Wine & Sushi Bar · Pizzería La Fogata · Los Laureles · Beehive · Marino Ballena · Scala
Sibu is a lovely restaurant-and-coffee stop; Mosaic is known for sushi and wine; La Fogata for pizza; and Scala, Los Laureles, Beehive, and Marino Ballena for easy, reliable meals close to town.
Local sodas & casados
For honest, inexpensive Tico food — rice, beans, fresh fish, a casado plate — ask the team for the nearest soda; there's a well-loved traditional spot down in Bahía Ballena.
You don't need to memorize any of this. Tell your hosts the kind of evening you want — sunset and wine, a lively brewery, a quiet special dinner, real local food — and they'll point you to the right place and reserve the table.
"It's a wonderful place for a drink or an early dinner — you might even spot a monkey trying to grab a french fry from someone's plate."
Delivery to the Door: The Rápido App
There's a local delivery app called Rápido — think Uber Eats, but broader — that brings restaurant meals, groceries, alcohol, and even pharmacy items straight to the villa.
It's one of the quiet conveniences guests love once they discover it. Download Rápido like any food-delivery app, browse the local restaurants and shops, and have dinner, a forgotten grocery item, a bottle of wine, or medicine from the pharmacy delivered to the house — no drive into town required. It's especially handy on a rainy afternoon, a lazy pool day, or when someone's not feeling their best and you'd rather not leave the villa.
Some of the homes we manage make it even simpler: there's a tablet already set up in the house, so you just tap the service you want and it's delivered to the door. If your villa has one, the team will point it out at check-in; if not, the app on your phone does the same job.
Water, Coffee & the Small Things
Tap water is generally safe to drink in this part of Costa Rica, and the coffee is excellent. The villa page notes anything specific to your home.
Most guests drink the tap water without a second thought; some prefer bottled, which is easy to pick up at any shop. Costa Rican coffee is one of the quiet pleasures of a morning here — buy a bag locally to take home. Beyond that, the small comforts (a stocked spice shelf, a working grill, a blender for smoothies) vary by house, so ask the team what's already in the kitchen before you over-pack the car.
Celebrations & Group Dinners
Birthdays, anniversaries, retreats, and big group dinners are a regular and joyful part of what the team sets up — chef, table, and a few surprises included.
A villa is made for the celebration meal, and the team has quietly arranged many: a surprise birthday dinner, a multi-night chef booking for a large family, decorations and a cake waiting on arrival. For groups, the chef can cook for everyone at the house — far easier than seating a dozen people out somewhere — and the long table with a sunset behind it tends to become the night everyone remembers. Tell the team what you're celebrating and they'll help shape it.
How Most Guests Actually Do It
The pattern that works: stock the kitchen for the first night, cook a few easy breakfasts and poolside lunches, book the chef for two or three dinners (one of them the big group night), and go out the rest. You eat well, nobody spends the holiday in the kitchen or doing dishes, and the food becomes part of the pleasure of the place rather than a chore to manage.