The Best Restaurant in Bocas del Toro Archipelago, Panama

Background Illustration for Restaurants

The town of Bocas has an ample restaurant selection, with such surprising options as Thai and Indian cuisine to complement the traditional seafood. Dining is casual and the pace is slow, so be patient for your meal. Local specialties include lobster, whole-fried snapper, octopus, and shrimp served with patacones (fried plantain slices) or yuca frita (fried cassava strips). At restaurants, opt for bottled water over a glass with ice because tap water is usually unsafe to drink. Almost no restaurant here accepts credit cards. Although tipping is not obligatory in Bocas, it is greatly appreciated by the locals.

Om Café

$$

You can get authentic Indian cuisine in Bocas del Toro at this cozy café atop a gift shop. Owner Sunanda Mehra is a Canadian of Punjabi descent who raided her aunt's cookbook before running off to Panama. You can savor such improbable delicacies as her butter chicken, shrimp masala, mattar paneer, or any of a half-dozen vegetable dishes. Choose your level of heat on the curry dishes, slowly cooked with a blend of colorful spices. You can also request to have any dish wrapped in a flour tortilla. Be sure to try a refreshing fruit lassi, prepared the traditional way with homemade yogurt, rosewater, sugar, and cardamom.

Indian $$ Dinner
Calle 3, Bocas del Toro, Panama
507-6127--0671
Restaurant Details
No credit cards
Closed weekends

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