Number 10    

Eating out in Costa Rica

Easter Sunday was a good day to enjoy a day of rest and relaxation.  Oh wait, I think that is what I do every day, oh well then a good excuse not to have to cook.  It is remarkable the number of restaurants here in San Jose.  We have seen many, many types of different ethnic restaurants.  Within walking distance to our condo are restaurants serving classic dishes from Spain, Lebanon, and Argentina.

On Sunday we decide to eat at the Lebanese restaurant.  We walked the 3 blocks over and find the restaurant closed for the holiday.  So we back track and see the restaurant serving food from Argentina.   The sign in the window said open at 12.  Although after 12, their steel door is down across the door.  OK we have learned this lesson, we smile and wait. 

A sideline here…there are people on the public streets that “work” that particular street.  By that I mean, they wear cross-guard vests and tell people where they can park (yes on public streets with no meters).  They don’t work for the government, they are just people that have claimed a street to guard your car.  For this service you are expected to tip this man when you get back into your car.

Our “parking assistant” sees that we are waiting for the restaurant to open.  So he walks over to the window and begins to tap on the glass, letting the people inside know they have 2 customers waiting.  We are asked to come back in 5 minutes so we walk around for 15 just to be sure.

We enter “Terra Gaucha” later and there isn’t a sole in the place.  In the middle of the place is a fire pit that usually cooks whole lamb and other meats.

We order our meal…I order a Tenderloin steak with a Roquefort sauce and Roger orders a plain tenderloin.  We order wine and wait for our meal.

  By now I am totally fascinated by the “parking assistant” outside.  He has a whistle and a bright green piece of cloth that he waves and is trying to get people to come down his street.

We eat our meal but most of the time I am watching this very friendly man on the street walking up and down.  After my second glass of wine I can stand it no longer. 

 I ask the waiter how this man gets this particular street. OK so there is a huge communication problem.  He calls over another man who speaks some English and I ask again. They have no idea why I am asking about a man that works on the street.  Finally a man having lunch with his wife says, “Can I help you?”  I ask, how does this man get the street he is working on?  We’ve noticed that each street has a particular man working the same street each day.  He smiles and said he hasn’t a clue but he knows that these men pass their streets down to other family members.  It is the underground economy at work.  These men are unemployed and this is how they make a living. So if you know someone out of work (and we all do) tell them to claim a street and get busy.

  

Conclusion:  

The meal was great.  

You would never see into a culture if you are just taking a tour.