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A restaurant review section was added to the Golden Gringo Chronicles in February 2010 and is known as the R.O.M.E.O. Corner. ROMEO stands for Retired Old Men Eating Out. To read the reviews of any of the restaurants in our archives, simply click on the name of the restaurant below and you will be taken to the original write-up.            

Editor - The Golden Gringo Chronicles

To Access Previous Chronicle Editions Go Here: Chronological Archives
For a Topical Index Go Here:
Topical Index Archive

 

R.O.M.E.O. Rating System

"What's for Dinner, Amigo? -
Try It This Way - It Helps Digestion"

Restaurants are given both a sloth rating and a dollar rating.

The sloth rating is a composite assessment of ambiance, food quality and service and ranges from a low of one sloth to a high of five.

The dollar rating has a similar range with one dollar being the least expensive and five dollars being the most expensive.

Both ratings are given relative to comparable restaurants in the extended Quepos/Manuel Antonio region  (including San José) and, as such, the system is not intended to be on an absolute scale such as provided by Michelin or Mobile (maybe next year). Sometimes restaurants in other parts of Costa Rica and Central America are also reviewed.

In addition to the Sloth and Dollar ratings we also calculate a Value Index. The Value Index is an attempt to measure the quality of food, ambiance and service one receives for the money spent. It's calculated by diving the number of sloths given for ambiance, food quality and service by the number of $ in the dollar rating and multiplying by 100. For example, a restaurant with a sloth rating of 4 and a dollar rating of 3 results in a value index of 4/3x100=133 but a restaurant with excellent food, service and ambiance (5 sloths) but is expensive ($5) has a lower value index (5/5x100=100).

The table below ranks the restaurants in the archives by Value Index, high to low.

Please note the dates of each review
as conditions may have changed since the review was made.

Also, restaurant reviews more than 36 months old are removed from the list on a monthly basis. Restaurants change owners and chefs rather frequently so this maintains a relatively up-to-date list. Last updated: 28 January 2023.

Restaurant
Location
Latest Review
Sloth Rating
Expense Rating
Value Index*
Agave Quepos December 2022 fgt.47 $$$.7 121
Cafe Milagro

Manuel Antonio

September 2021 fgt.46 $$.9 154
Chicken on
the Run
Quepos
June 2020 3.8 $$$.3 115
Coffee Stop
Quepos
June 2020 .8 $$$$ 120
Cuba Libre
Manuel Antonio
January 2021 fgt.5 $$$.9 115
de la Finca Quepos August 2022 fgt.44 $$$.0 148

Double Hook Sports Bar

Quepos October 2022 fgt.3 $$$.0 127
El Arado Manuel Antonio December 2021 3.73 $$$.7 101
El Avion Manuel Antonio October 2021 fgt.36 $$$.7 118
Emilio's Cafe Manuel Antonio June2022 kio.9 $$$.3 147
El Wagon Manuel Antonio March 2021 fgt.2 $$$.8 111
Falls Garden Manuel Antonio October 2020 kio.8 $$$.4 142
Gabriella's Quepos July 2020 kio.8 $$$$ 121
Hola India Manuel Antonio February 2023 kio.2 $$$.4 124
Jiuberth's Quepos February 2021 .2 $$$.0 141
La Dolce Vita Quepos February 2022 gty.4 $$$.1 109
La Lambretta Manuel Antonio August 2021 gty.8

$$$.8

100

La Luna
(Hotel Gaia)

Manuel Antonio June 2021 .2 $$$$ 105
La Mariposa
(El Papillon)
Manuel Antonio February 2023 kio.6 $$$.7 125
Mira Olas

Quepos

August 2020 kio.3 $$$.7 115
Oceana Seafood Manuel Antonio April 2022 hyu.5 $$$.1 113
Puerto Escondido Manuel Antonio April 2021 rty.05 $$.95 137
Ralphael`s Terrazas Manuel Antonio May 2021 gty.9

$$$.3

118
Rico-Tico
(Si Como No)
Manuel Antonio July 2022 gty.65 $$$.9 94
Simple Quepos April 2020 hyu.7 $$$.5 105
Victoria's Manuel Antonio December 2020 kio.4 $$$.7 120
Villas Lirio Manuel Antonio March 2022 kio.6 $$$.3 137
Vista Verde Manuel Antonio January 2022 hyu.98 $$$.3 121

Below are the same restaurants as above but ranked by decreasing value index (restaurants that haven't been reviewed in the last 36 months are put on an inactive list until they can be re-reviewed). The Value Index is arrived at by dividing the number of sloths given for ambiance, food quality and service by the number of $ given for cost. For example a restaurant with a sloth rating of 4 and a cost rating of 4.5$ is calculated as 4/4.5x100= 89 and one with a sloth rating of 5 and a cost rating of 4 = 5/5x100 = 120. Obviously, the higher the number the better the value.

The Golden Gringo
Pura Vida!
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