5 Best Restaurants in Central Bolivia, Bolivia

This is simply the best place to go for a taste of local Cruzeño cuisine. The cozy, traditional-feeling dining room is housed in a late-19th-century home with plenty of restored furniture, and the food is top notch—just like Grandma would have done it. The sopa de maní (peanut-and-potato soup) is rich and creamy, and the majadito con pato (a traditional dish of rice, duck, and fried plantain, topped with an egg) is a must. The menu changes daily and if you don't speak Spanish, it can be a little confusing, but soldier on through and eat whatever they bring you. You won't regret it.

Nothing says Cochabamba like a giant plate of fried chicharron (deep-fried chunks of pork), and nobody does it like Doña Pola. From the depths of her enormous copper pans, she has been serving up these super-crispy portions of pig on weekends for more than 50 years, and it's no secret that she is simply the best in town—come early. Athough it seems expensive (prices have risen with fame), it's still not bad, considering that each portion will easily feed two or three people. Open only for lunch on weekends.

Big and always busy, this restaurant is one of the best places to eat regional dishes. If variety is your spice, go straight for the buffet típico with a selection of 4 traditional dishes. Other popular selections include picante de gallina (spicy chicken) or chicharrón (boiled pork ribs seasoned with garlic, oregano, and lemon). Most plates are big enough for two. The kitchen and service are excellent. If you happen to stop by on a weekend, you'll be treated to live music. There are several branches, but the original is still the best.

This late-night street-food option, with various stalls set up along the road selling local classics, is the place to get a taste of the famed Cochabambino gastronomy. Particularly worth trying is the silpancho (breaded steak cutlet, served with an egg on rice and fried potato, and topped with a tomato chili salsa) or even better, the aptly named trancapecho, which you could roughly translate as a chest blocker—the already carb-loaded beast of a silpancho put into a sandwich. Though it is street food, there is a really high turnaround, so it is generally safe, fresh, and always tasty. Ask any taxi driver and they'll get you straight here. The stalls are usually set up from 8 pm and keep serving until the early hours of the morning.

Set in a beautiful garden near the town square, this eatery offers excellent Bolivian and International food. The tapas-like Tablitas are great for sampling a variety of flavors. Vegetarian dishes are prepared with organic, locally grown ingredients and the lemonade is squeezed just before it reaches the table. Live music is occasionally featured on weekends.