Costa Rica Restaurant

🇨🇷 COSTA RICA
📍 2500 W. Lincoln Avenue, Anaheim, Orange County
🅿️ Plaza Parking
🥤 Full Bar

For as long as many can remember, the tropically-planted corner of this plaza on Lincoln has been home to everything Costa Rica in Southern California. The tall palms were unfortunately chopped in the middle of 2017, but the trunks and surrounding vegetation still create a pleasant portal into the cavernous space. Inside, you are just as likely to find an empty dining room as you are a dance party.

Only open during evenings Thursday through Sunday, there is always something happening, whether it be a DJ for those dance parties or a tame karaoke night attended by regulars. On Friday and Saturday night you are likely to find a live band entertaining the crowds while the kitchen is still open. Eventually people start to move towards the dance floor as the finish their hearty Costa Rican plates.

Sundays are for karaoke

A couple wall-mounted surfboard advertisements for Cerveza Imperial combine with Costa Rican flags on just about every surface to show off the pride of the place. The restaurant and the people that run it take their job as a community hub very seriously, and customers all appreciate this very much. On any given night, it seems like everyone that comes for a drink or a meal is one big family and know each other well.

Besides music and food, the main passion of Costa Rica is football, a sport in which the small nation punches well above its weight. The Ticos are going to their third straight World Cup and sixth overall, and this will be the place to watch them. "Of course, guaranteed!" is the answer received when inquiring about the restaurant opening for matches, one of which starts at 2am Pacific time. For that you can expect a party starting many hours in advance, while the 8am and 11am matches will see the place open early for big breakfasts and probably big amounts of booze if things go well.

Live music and dancing

Before and after Qatar 2022, coming to Costa Rica Restaurant is still rewarding for big plates of the nation's staples, grilled meats served with rice, beans, and plantains. Grab an Imperial ($3.50, above) or two, ask for some ice like you might do in Central America as well, and cool down the more malty than hoppy lager to pair with your meal.

Also order an empanada de queso ($4.50, below bottom), a fried pastry filled with melted cheese and paired with a salsa verde. Some various hot sauces are also on the table, and it is fun to mix and match these into bites.

At the top of the menu and a great introduction to what a workaday meal in Costa Rica is like is the casado ($15, below), a platter that gives you many different items at once. This word meaning marriage is used in many Spanish-speaking countries of Central and South America, but in Costa Rica it refers to a specific meal that includes rice, beans, plantains, salad, a fried egg, and meat.

For this plate the carne asada was requested, thin strips of lightly marinaded beef that are sauteed with onions. The salad is crisp and zippy with citrus, the plantains are ripe, and the rice and beans are just right. It is a well-rounded order that satisfies just about everything you are craving.

Especially if you come as a group, order a plate of gallo pinto ($9, above), a dish of rice and beans cooked together that you can never get away from when in Costa Rica and Nicaragua. It is usually served in some way with every breakfast, lunch, or dinner eaten out at restaurants or at home. When cooked together, the rice soaks up all the bean juice, while additional tastes come from garlic, bell peppers, and herbs.

If you are feeling like chicken, try a plate of polla a la plancha ($14, below), a seemingly tame cut that surprises with full flavors. This dish includes many of the contents of the casado minus the egg, but lets you focus more on the meat, grilled with plenty of pepper and garlic.

You may have noticed from earlier that imported Costa Rican beers were only $3.50. Glasses of the house wine are only $4. People at the bar are enjoying frozen mixed drinks and cocktails made with Costa Rican guaro, the main spirit in the country. The spot really does have everything to make the experience here just right, and it is hard to find such an economical choice these days.

If you end up staying long enough with those cheap drinks to get hungry again, the menu continues with well-prepared grilled fish and olla de carne, a very Costa Rican stew made with beef, corn and root vegetables that will be craved again when temperatures are lower.

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