Hello all,

I first just want to say how great it is to have this website/resource available! I am a complete newbie, and my wife and I are really excited to be making our first trip to Bonaire later this month for a week to celebrate our first child who is 'on the way.' We would sincerely appreciate any advice on where to eat. We like tasty, good basic food. There is a treasure trove of info on this site and again, thank you to all for creating such a personal, lively and generous community to draw upon.

Hi Mark & welcome. You may want to check this site out. Because there is a high degree of competition on the island, the food overall is very good.

http://www.infobonaire.com/restaurant.html

hi mark, welcome to BT. my personal favorites, the ones i'd make sure to hit if i were there for a week, are cactus blue, pasa bon pizza, mi banana, bobbejan's, and lions den. then i'd fill in the rest of the days with any of the following: city cafe, mona lisa, papaya moon, le bistro de paris, wils tropical grill, guarnica, roomer, or it rains fishes. i've probably forgotten a few but as long as i ate at all the first group i'd be satisfied.

Hello Mark and welcome to BT. Pat gave a good list. Fortunately there are too many good places as you will find. There is also Sunset at Den Laman which is quite good and run by the Lion's Den management.Don't forget Unbelievable a new place this last autumn just a block down from Casablanca and Cactus Blue - the second floor balcony is a great evening.

all the restaurants mentioned are fine ... but why not eat local???? our food is great .. try Maikey Snack .. Antriol Catering .. Divi Divi ( not the hotel) .. also our Chinese resturants are so not Chinese .. if you want to meet the locals .. that is where we are .. any place east of the playa .. you can't go wrong .. also in the playa .. the Great Wall . better yet .. go see michael at chat and browse .. he is "the man in the know"

Pietri makes good sense. Like I said - so many great options - so little time. I know of no other place which is so small in population with so many food establishments of high quality.

Consider a jaunt to Rincon for lunch - some good options there but no names I can remember.

Someone can come up with Rincon eating place names I am sure. That would be a good "local culinary opportunity".

I am getting hungry reading all these recommendations. Thank you one and all for the postings. It is great to hear that there are so many good food options, as that can often be the missing link on many vacations. We really can't wait!

the Rose Inn .. closed on wednesday -- open for lunch - basically from 11 am to 6pm .. now the bar is something else .. melfina is in charge and the best person you would ever want to meet ..

I second the Rose Inn, especially for beers after diving. Melfina is fantastic and you can always count on running into some friendly locals.

We've had lots of fun there over the years.

I love it. Now I realize why I can't lose weight while on Bonaire in spite of the exertion of diving and other activities!! Oh well, have to sacrifice somehow.

Bobbejan's, Pasa Bon Pizza, Lions Den, Unbelievables, Patagonia, Plazita Limona, Richards, El Fogon, Mona Lisa, City Cafe

The Wind and Surf Beach Hut Bar & Grill and any place local. Fancy dining isn't always better food.

All the places listed are good. For a good morning latte (I know, high maintenance), head to City Cafe. You can watch the morning waterfront activities, and enjoy a few peaceful moments before the dive routine begins!

I second Pietri's comment about Michael @ Chat n Browse. He really helped us out last trip.

All the places listed are great, but if you're headed to Maiky Snack, make sure to get GOOD directions. It is, basically, in the middle of nowhere, twisting and turning off a bunch of dirt roads, and we surely would not have found it on our own (we had a local with us).

Definitely hit the Rose Inn in Rincon. YUM. And easy to find!

Yes, Dan, you have figured out why none of us come back skinnier despite the daily workouts we get from diving!

I guess my new year's resolutions will have to be 'suspended' for the week we are there with all that good food around.

OMG the food was almost as good as the diving!!!!!!!!! YUMMMMMMMMMMM

Liz..That's the fun part of going to Maiky Snack. Finding it..
Look for the blue dice on the post and make the first left! Hope you had the goat stew. I hear it's always made fresh.

I live in Antriol and have never found Antriol Catering although I have searched every road I can think of. Is it actually called something else, of does it hid in someone's house?

Vince....yes, very fresh. So fresh, in fact, we heard the day's main course bleating shortly before being served!!

Antriol Catering is a must - the most "local" food you will find on the island. Run by three generations - the son greeted us, the mom prepared our food, and the grandfather served us! It is located at Kaya Mariana 8, telephone 717-8816. Call and ask for directions. It is hard to find, just keep asking people walking on the street and you will eventually find it.
We also like City Cafe for lunch - great atmosphere. We think the Mona Lisa has the highest quality food on the island.
The Rose Inn is the restaurant in Rincon and is also worth a visit.

Remember to try the Flan at Antriol yummy

Phil...if you are on Kaya Korona. take the road to lagoen/landill/animal shelter/ vet. It is the third left (Kaya Mariana) Go to the top of the hill and look to your right and you will see a take out window. The sit down restaurant is in the back...

As the originator of this thread, wanted to report what we ate while in Bonaire. The food was great, for the Caribbean especially. Enjoyed all of the following: Papaya Moon, Richard's, It Rains Fishes, Lion's Den, Bistro de Paris (not sure if that's right name?), Lion's Den.

One note: The "package" included dinner at Harbour Village was really bad. The service was fine, but the food was awful. It seemed they gave us the worst cuts of steak due to us being on the "package." I can't imagine why else, as we had lovely cuts of beef at several other places round the isle. Other than this minor bit, we really had a nice stay at HV overall.

If you like to get away from the noisy and desperate hassle of so many Caribbean destinations, this island is the place. We loved it.