Cezanne888
8/28/2015 13:43 EST
We are coming to Panama--I am a Le Cordon Bleu Chef, I'm also Chinese. After reading the posts, I've decided to bring my knives, pans, small appliances, spices, baking pans--read they are hard to find there. We are bringing everything with us on the flight over--so must be very selective.
I've lived in very "foodie" cities--Hong Kong, San Francisco, Honolulu. We recently lived in West Palm Beach, Florida & was very disappointed with the food scene--restaurants not very good & people only want to eat hamburgers & tacos. How would you folks rank Panama as far as food & the restaurants?
Will I be able to get Asian ingredients--hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, oyster sauce, etc--are there any Asian Grocery stores there? Thank you so much for any info.
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Travelocity
8/28/2015 15:21 EST
Oh panama… Well panama has seen a boom of restaurants come up in that past few years. Lots of Venezuelans are setting up shop here for one reason or another. A restaurant targeting to lower to middle class can survive. I have been to restaurants that are no longer in business and it is a real shame b/c they were good. I am a foodie myself. Lol I go to the same places all the time, I have found my favorites. I think online reviews are killing a lot of restaurants and people are becoming less tolerant or wasting their money and much more savvy and outspoken thru sites such as degustapanama.com. You can find reviews, new restaurants etc. You can find asian ingredients…me I wanted galangal to make to make thai coconut soup, but I found dried not fresh. I can’t find kafier leaves. There are a lot of ‘specialty markets’ in bal harbor plaza in paitilla or el dorado mall with lots of authentic Chinese/asian stores, mainly Chinese ingredients. Other stuff, I can’t find here. I have it shipped thru amazon and our po box. I also bring stuff back on my trips. Hop on a plane, $200 cheap spirit airlines and take a look at these places….see what is worth bringing with you and what you can find here. I have also found $2.95 x 4 vanilla beans! That’s a bargain compared to what I paid in whole foods for $7x 1 vanilla bean! Those things you listed are here.
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ranadelnorte
8/28/2015 15:22 EST
The ingredients you mention are available at both the El Rey and Riba Smith grocery store chains in PTY. Specialized Asian ingredients are available in the El Dorado area of the city. There is a strong Chinese tradition in PTY.
Technically you can't import foods in your luggage to Panama, so bringing spices is risky. Your choice.
The supply and quality of fish and seafood available in PTY is excellent if you go to the fish market. You will find the availability and variety of a great many European-style food items lacking if you're intent on Cordon Bleu cooking style, in particular certain meat cuts, dairy products and baking flour. If you're used to artisanal produce you'll be disappointed.
Some Panamanian chefs are re-inventing Panamanian cooking at a handful of restaurants, and there are annual food and wine fairs that are gaining in popularity, but in general Panamanian tastes are not very sophisticated. It is a developing market. In Latin America the foodie cities are Bogota, Colombia and Lima, Peru.
Bon appétit!
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betsytrips
8/28/2015 15:42 EST
Sort of on subject. Try putting galangal in on Amazon and there is fresh plus other things you were looking for fresh. I would never have known had I accidentally run into it. Now getting them into country could be a challenge but there is a source.
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Cezanne888
8/28/2015 15:46 EST
Thank you! I am relieved to hear I can get Asian ingredients!
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Cezanne888
8/28/2015 15:55 EST
Thank you so very much--I will check out that website & so good to know where I can get Asian ingredients. I'm curious as to which are some of your favorite restaurants?
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Travelocity
8/28/2015 16:51 EST
favorite restaurants: Sabor de la India- bella vista Only get butter chicken, mutton curry, rice, mango lassi, massala dosa Restaurante Vietnamita- san Francisco Gauchos- bella vista Get filete en trozo. NY bagel café- el cangrejo Unlimited coffee and good breakfast-nothing else. Various flavors of coffee Al Veccio forno- san francisco Pepperoni Pizza and Italian food Pastisima- san Francisco Good spread of antipasto, good pasta dishes too The market- bella vista Best patty melt in home made rye bread (sometimes hard to get the right, too raw, too cooked oh well we managed to explain to get it right) Hotel grace Tuesday unlimited tapas night, super yummy, but pricey $30pp Beirut It’s Mediterranean, but we go for its chicken alfredo Habibis in calle Uruguay Best Mediterranean, the 1 person mesa is plenty for 2 people! Executive hotel Late bite nite place, open 24 hrs during the weekends, breakfast 24 hrs a day. Best for: fajitas, huevos rancheros, desserts: ny style cheesecake, carrot cake, apple pie. Unlimited coffee too. Jeffrey bakery- paitilla Best for fish and chips, most deserts too Mar de Grau- obarrio or Marbella Best Peruvian food- they know how to cook seafood to perfection and it has great flavors.
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ranadelnorte
8/28/2015 17:34 EST
Please use the search function for many, many suggestions on restaurants in PTY.
Personal favourites that are professional chef owned and operated are Donde Jose in Casco Viejo Reisen in El Cangrejo
Professional chef, good for lunch or brunch American Trade Hotel in Casco Viejo
Indian Avatar on Via Argentina in El Cangrejo (new, run by a Canadian, consistently has lamb and imported Indian beer; really good)
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Cezanne888
8/28/2015 17:56 EST
Thank you so much--Yum!
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Panama2017
8/28/2015 18:49 EST
I have to jump in here on some favorites:
Agree with Randelnorte that Donde Jose is definitely #1 on my list for Panamanian fusion, and also agree that Riesen is a close 2nd.
For brunch or lunch try Chez Titi - Salon de Te in El Cangrejo - it's unique (quirky) and delicious.
The PTY LIfe website is great for providing the latest options for foodies.
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betsytrips
8/28/2015 19:03 EST
Just had to tell you all that you have made me terribly hungry with your wonderful sounding food suggestions.
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ranadelnorte
8/28/2015 21:08 EST
Panama2017: Thanks for the tip about Chez Titi. To return the favour, the famous French patisserie Ladurée has opened in the Soho, and serves light lunch, brunch and the famous French macarons.
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Panama2017
8/28/2015 21:50 EST
Ah, ranadelnorte, Ladurée looks lovely. I will definitely go during my next visit to Panama.
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Travelocity
8/28/2015 22:11 EST
I forgot the thai restaurant near calle Uruguay, very classy and good. pad thai and all beef dishes are good. great service, great ambiance, bit pricey
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llseldon
8/28/2015 22:43 EST
Good Chinese food is Lung Fung in P. C. near RIiba Smith & a "hole in the wall" across the parking lot from the 99 supermercado in El Dorado, whatever the daily special is the only choice you have is rice or noodles. FYI El Dorado is the new China town replacing Av B in the CV.area near the fish market, be sure & see the China Gafe when you visit the fish market.
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Cezanne888
8/29/2015 00:21 EST
Thanks, I know I'll need a Chinese Food fix at some point...
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Cezanne888
8/29/2015 00:24 EST
We're in Hawaii now--lunch for the two of us is always $25+, if we have wine or a margarita, then $45--$60.
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panamajames
8/29/2015 03:59 EST
If you are in David in Chiriqui Province, look up The Steak House. It's Chinese food heaven. Not far from there is an Asian food store. Everything Asian and more. Lots of Chinese restaurants in the vicinity.
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capforfun
8/29/2015 08:00 EST
Great post for foodies, which we are :-)
We have been wondering about this as well. We were already prepared to grow certain items like Thai Chili Peppers ourselves but there are many ingredients (we particularly like Thai) that we are hoping to be able to find easily in Boquete or David to pair with the amazing fresh fish and produce :-)
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lapapuja
8/29/2015 08:46 EST
Hung's grocery in the El Dorado Mall has the best selection of Asian food ingredients that I have found.
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Travelocity
8/31/2015 15:13 EST
we had a friend who went to Thailand and brought chili seeds. he grew his tree in his balcony of his apt..
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