One of my favorite restaurants in Costa Rica -- El Mirador de San Luis near Grecia
Unique restaurants with no walls
Restaurants without walls are not unusual in Costa Rica.
It's common for some restaurants in the US to have a few tables outside, but that's not their main dining area.
In Costa Rica, it's a different world
Usually, I would think any restaurant with a roof but no walls would be considered unique, but not in Costa Rica. Many restaurants here don't have walls around the dining area.
Up here in the mountains, where the temperature is usually in the mid-70s year-round, it's more common than near the beaches where it's a lot warmer, but you'll still see a lot of restaurants there with no walls.
I love the outside dining. Below are some more pictures of restaurants I've eaten at in Costa Rica that don't have walls around their dining areas.
Chirinquitos Del Rio, an upscale restaurant beside the river, but still with no walls.
This restaurant is high on a mountain with a great view of the central valley.
A small restaurant in Costa Rica like this one is called a Soda.
Below is one restaurant with walls, but it has glass on two sides of the dining room, so it almost feels like you're outside. Maybe it has walls because it's a house, and half of the house has been converted into a restaurant. All of the other restaurants pictured were built to be a restaurant.
Essprezzo de la Casa. This is a Mexican restaurant, and it's my favorite restaurant in all of Costa Rica
Here's a picture of the outside of the Mexican restaurant. Isabel, the owner, is standing in front of her restaurant.
Isabel is the owner of this restaurant. She's originally from Mexico and cooks delicious authentic Mexican dishes.
A restaurant where all of the tables are out in a tropical garden
Bottom line: One of my favorite things to do when I'm traveling is to search out small unique restaurants--both in the US and in foreign countries.