Chicken Pizza At Verano’s Pizzeria
Yesterday, after church, Lilliam and I went to Verona’s for Pizza and soccer. We watched the Netherlands defeat Mexico and they will face Costa Rica on July fifth.
Following our meal, I ordered one of the dessert pizzas. Have you ever had a chocolate chicken pizza? It was yummy and my sweet tooth was satisfied.
Choco Cluck
For yesterday’s Sunday lunch we decided to go to Tayrona Restaurante & Parrillada. On my first visit, Lilliam was in Costa Rica, so this would be her first taste test.
The government is currently requesting that all restaurants avoid using their air conditioners during certain hours to conserve energy. Sunday that was the case in Tayrona, so we chose to sit on the terrace.
The restaurant had ceiling fans and it wasn’t bad. There were four of us. I took photos of the terrace/bar area we were in. There is another terrace area in the front and and I assume it also had fans. The one in the front has a buffet setup on weekdays at lunch. Continue reading
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On March 31th, I made it back to SmokiN Mamma’s. I had returned two times before and it had not been open at the 12:00PM opening hour. One of those days, I ran a few more errands and returned around 12:25PM and it still wasn’t open. No sign on the door reflecting a late opening.
On March 31st it was open. The menu had changed and it had a few new items. I was pleased to see pulled pork on the menu. I ordered one and also ordered the onion bites. They were as good as I remembered them.
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I can’t say the same for the pulled pork. It looked good when it came to the table, but went downhill from there. The pulled pork was EXTREMELY dry and over cooked. I don’t know when it was cooked, but appeared to be rewarmed from a previous day. I ate it, but was extremely disappointed.
I never ask for jubilado discounts from new restaurants, but chose to ask this time because of the poor quality of the sandwich. I went to the counter and told the waitress that I needed my bill with the jubilado discount.
I returned to the table to wait on her. She brought the check and had not included the jubilado discount. I pointed out that she had left off the discount. In a huff she grabbed the ticket and walked off only to return to ask for my pensionado card. I gave it to her.
She returned with the check and had given the discount only for the pulled pork. I paid it, left her the 10% tip (I shouldn’t have) and left.
It will most likely be a while before I go back. I am not sure I think the burgers are as good as the Buffalo Wings Factory and I have never had poor quality meals at Buffalo Wings Factory.
I should mention that Natalie ordered one of the SmokiN Mamma’s burgers and said it was as good as our previous visit. It may have just been a bad day for pulled pork.
I have been too overwhelmed with projects to post some of the photos of places we have eaten at over the last few months. These were not initial restaurant visits, so maybe you will ignore my brevity. I will include an album at the end of the post with photos from the various sites. Continue reading
Parrillada Willhouse opened at the end of January, but I didn’t get by until February, and I am not getting toy post done until March. Whew!
It is under new owners and the current owners previous restaurant was Mi Tierra Colombiana.
Same food as Mi Tierra Colombiana had before, just a newer and better location. HERE is a Google map. It is just down the street from the Casino.
I had my standard Fried Shrimp and Lilliam and Natalie shared a combination platter. If you stop in, tell they you heard of their move from Chiriquí Chatter.
A new Colombian restaurant has opened in David on Via Rapida about a block and a half before Cochez. HERE is a Google Map to the restaurant location.
The restaurant is on a corner and has both inside and outside seating areas. One outside area appears to have a buffet setting, and I assume it is for lunch time service.
It has been open about two weeks. I asked about the name and learned it was taken from an Indigenous tribe in Colombia and that there is also a butterfly with that name.
It is currently open seven days a week and three of us tried it out on Sunday. It was open at noon Sunday, but I didn’t see a sign with the hours. I have posted photos in an album at the end of the post. Continue reading
Last month (I know I am behind), I stopped into Gelateria Italiana following the US Embassy warden lunch at Hotel Panamonte.
You will find Gelateria Italiana a block west from the Bistro Restaurant. This is the place that is now providing ice cream for Delicia Italiana in David. If you like ice-cream and are in Boquete, you have to try this place. It isn’t cheap, but it is high quality.
I stuck with a cup of vanilla. There are a few more flavors in Boquete than in David, but the ones in David rotate, so I guess they all get there.
Also, I had a reader contact me and tell me that Gelato Pacifico has its equipment working again in Chiriquí Mall. That means there are two good ice-cream places in David. Haven’t been there after getting the email, but will soon.
We have guests in from Panama City for Carnival and yesterday, after church, we decided to try a restaurant I don’t frequent often, that being TGIF. Currently, the cheapest burger is about $11.25 at TGIF and most other meals are higher. For our party of seven, we would probably have had a bill over $100 and a tip over $10. 10% is the expected tip in Panama.
When we entered, there were two large dirty tables and no staff in sight. There was another table of 6 waiting with menus ready to order. There was no one minding the door and seating people. We pulled three tables together and found a couple menus.
After about 10 minutes the other table of 6 left, because no one came to take their order. We looked for someone to wait on us and were basically told that they would be by soon. After another 5 minutes, we decided that something as special as TGIF was not to be had today. If the TGIF franchise becomes aware of how this management and staff are preforming, several people will probably be looking for jobs. It will be a long time before I decide to try it again.
I suggested we go to the new Verona Pizza place. It turned out to be the perfect place. For me, it has my favorite pizza in David. However, I love thin italian crust pizza, which is what Verona serves.
We ordered pizzas, sandwiches and salads and everyone was extremely pleased. For dessert, we had one of the Nutella pizzas, which was outstanding. That was a first for me, but won’t be my last.
We enjoyed great food and outstanding service for less than $50 including tip. It turned out to be a special day after all. If you are not aware of Verona’s Pizza, you can see my original post HERE. Also, Verona’s Pizza has a new Facebook page here.
If you stop in, tell Chef Franco that Chiriquí Chatter sent you.
Last December, I noticed that Cuatro had started their new service offering. That post contains some photos inside the business.
On February 6, Cuatro had the grand opening of Marca and I received an invitation to attend.
I have been fortunate to attend many such functions because of this blog and I enjoy each and every one of them. I get to meet a lot of nice people and am usually the only gringo around.
While I rarely go out in the evening, there is no way I would ever pass up going to an event that has Chef Luis’ catering the appetizers. I took no photos of them as I was too busy eating.
Luis and others spoke before the ribbon cutting ceremony. This business compliments his restaurant because you can stop in and find many things to take home. There is also a large selection of wines to choose from.
The event was set up in Cuatro’s parking lot. My photos are in an album at the end of the post.
Antonio Singh was there and I hadn’t seen him in some time. I met several new people. One was Vielka Ledezma, who has VLedezma Photography. She was photographing the event for Luis. Her business card and contact infer is in the album.
I also met Edwin Mirands, who was shooting photos for his website VIPPanama.net. His card with contact info is in the photo album.
He obviously gets around to many of the events that are going on in this area. If you want to see a large number of the Chiriquí young ladies, just check out his site. Here are his photos of the inauguration. Who knows, you might even find me in one of the photos.
Lilliam and I were the first to arrive (a gringo trait) and about the last to leave (a Panamanian trait). There was music playing and there was a continuous video of the restaurant and food preparation. I also noticed that the video featured Finca Santa Marta, owned and operated by Ron and Kim Miller, where Cuatro gets many of its organic products.
If you stop into Restaurante Cuatro of the new Marca Cocina + Vino, tell them that you read about them on Chiriqui Chatter.
I know all everyone thinks that all I do is eat and that is close to true. We are currently in a construction project and I haven’t had time to post. I have, however, had time to eat. Another of my quick stops is the Speed Way. As I said in the first post, you might not normally think of going to a filling station to eat, but their sandwiches worth a try.
My last time there I had the club. Didn’t have bacon, but did have egg. I enjoyed it and it was quite filling for the price.
