food: local markets; restaurants; and stores

water (drinking)
water (drinking)
juice
juice
soft drink (bottle)
soft drink (bottle)

bread loaf-white
bread loaf-whole grain
tortillas wheat

1753
700
360
2200
1950

700

cornflakes
chocolate
muesli bars
biscuits - plain
biscuits- chocolate

Tipping is not the norm in local and budget hospitality establishments. Restaurants automatically add a 15% sales tax plus a 10% service charge to your bill, so don't add anything extra unless you have received exceptional service.

*

Costa RIca operates a metric system: weights in kilograms; volumes in litres and distances in kilometres.

Like much of Central American cuisine, Costa Rican food predominantly uses rice and beans with little or no flavouring from spices. The national dish, gallo pinto: fried rice and black or red beans is served up at all times of the day. The problem posed for vegetarians is that most beans are prepared with pork or pork fat, so you'll need to ask every time.

Self catering is easy enough and even little towns have a grocery shop or mini super. Other names for these generally well stocked local stores are pulperia or abastacedor. Quite often, you can pick up some great local fruit and vegetables here, though generally in limited variety. Still the produce is better than what the bigger supermarkets have on offer. Better still, are the ferias de agricultor: local street markets. Make sure you wash your fruit and veggies thoroughly before consuming them: pesticide use is unregulated in Costa Rica.

Larger supermarkets like the Super Compro, Pali, and Super Mas have just about everything you could possibly wish for and are dotted throughout the country in plentiful supply. Products like peanut butter, nutella and anything else that has to be especially imported come with a whopping price tag. Maybe its a good time to find some cheaper, local substitutes. Guava and moras (blackcurrant) jam are deliciously popular and dirt cheap.

Along the Caribbean Coast, the food is heavily influenced by the population's ties to Jamaica. Coconut, ginger, coriander and chillies that bring tears to your eyes are just some of the rich flavours found in the kitchen and supermarket. Banana bread and ginger cakes also make super delicious snacks.

Casado
The set meal of the day consisting of the national dish: gallo pinto -arroz [rice] and frijoles [black beans] accompanied by ensalada repollo [cabbage and tomato salad] and plántano [fried plantain bananas}. It will more likely than not come with a serve of meat as well: vegetarians will have to ask to have this local dish without and also check if the beans have been prepared with pork or pork fat.

Carambola:: also known as star fruit. A translucent, lightly boiled apple texture with, depending on the ripeness, a thirst-quenching sweet or sour citrus-grape flavour.

Ackee: Beware this small pear shaped fruit with pink waxy skin has poisonous seeds and flesh when unripe. The edible yellow fleshy portion resembling scrambled eggs in taste, texture and colour also hints of a slight flavour of nuts.