Mini Break 10 Dishes you have to try

Panama Great Food
A fresh and natural chicha, with a tropical flavor, on vacation. You already know how much I like to know a country through its flavors, as a fundamental part of its culture. The cuisine of Panama is certainly a reflection of the country, an explosion of color on the plate and on the palate that has to do with its mix of Amerindian and Hispanic, Caribbean, and African. Some of these delicacies I had already discovered on my previous trip to Central America; others have been a real discovery on my route through the isthmus country between two oceans.

What is the typical food of Panama? Where and what to eat in Panama?

The gastronomy of Panama: 10 dishes that you have to try.

1. Breakfast with fresh tropical fruit. The day begins in Panama. But how soon the day wakes up here! With a radiant sun my first drink and bite are for the exquisite tropical fruit: a papaya juice, a pineapple freshly cut ... I had never tasted so delicious! A much more intense flavor, much sweeter than in Europe. My first breakfast in this country was enjoyed in the beautiful restaurant of the American Trade Hotel
2. Ceviche: my favorite starter. The day is passing between glass skyscrapers in contrast to the ruins of Panama la Vieja, the first settlement of Europeans on the mainland. Both walking and wet heat have opened our appetite. In Panama City, a good place to eat is at the Mariscos market, next to the port. The various colored umbrellas brighten the view and, to nibble, I can not resist a rich ceviche. Octopus, croaker, shrimp ... Or why not mixed! I confess that I love that touch of lime and fresh cilantro. Another place in Panama City that I especially liked: CasaCaco, where they also serve cold beer, in the heart of Casco Viejo.
3. From the land: A warm delight ready to fight the tropical "winter". Believe me, after one of those mornings in which it has diluted comforts and makes you feel, again, in harmony with the world. It is the main course and consists of ground corn, frayed chicken, green olives, and raisins.
4. Panama gastronomy: Gallo pinto. I tasted the gallo pinto on my first trip to Costa Rica some years ago, but as breakfast on the outskirts of Panama. It took away my appetite for the whole day: a plate of rice and beans accompanied by an egg.  I tried it in El Trapiche, a typical restaurant in Panama City and I liked it a lot.
5. Old clothes. I confess that reading it sounded like a Canarian dish, but no. This is a rich stew of frayed meat, prepared with vegetables in red sauce. Accompanied by mashed potatoes and fried plantain, I found a lunch as complete as satisfactory. Again I repeated in El Trapiche but Albrook, just landed in that remote region called Darién
6. Fried red snapper. As a privileged country on the shore of two oceans, fish in Panama is delicious. The richest I tried, both in the Seafood market in Panama City and later in Kuna Yala, was the red snapper. Accompanied by rice and patacones, to suck your fingers!
7. Chicken tamale. They say it's a tradition to eat it at the end of the year parties. But I saw how the street vendors offered them. Curious, I ended up buying one on a long bus ride from Bocas del Toro to Boquete. A green stem leaf, cooked, wraps a crushed mass of chicken, corn, and vegetables. With a picantito touch, I faced better the crossing between the cloudy mountains of the Central Panamanian Mountain Range.
8. A Caribbean lobster. On the coral reefs of the San Blas islands, the Kuna fish octopus, squid, and lobsters. To accompany, of course, rice with coconut. Pure Caribbean flavor!
9. For dinner: a hot sancocho. Very traditional Panamanian soup, thick and restorative. It is a chicken soup to which yam, corn, spices, and cilantro are added. I tasted it in several places like the Boquete buffet, and I even bought it in envelopes to prepare in the hostel kitchen. Cheap and recurring.
10. Do not miss the drink! Fruit Chicha I'm addicted to a fresh chicha. Soursop, papaya, pineapple ... Any tropical fruit is ideal to cool off with this natural juice without alcohol and ice, which they had consumed since pre-Hispanic times. Do you prefer it with alcohol? Dare with "a strong chicha". By the way, a very delicious Panamanian beer too! Can you imagine better holidays?