Ojochal Gardens sits in the middle of Ojochal’s restaurant scene, with Potz Restaurant and Momento Wine and Sushi Bar a garden walk away. Citrus is a one-minute walk from our gate, and we also send guests to Stan’s Cafe, Exotica and Heliconia.

For a small town surrounded by jungle, Ojochal has a serious food reputation. There’s sushi and a wine room, a coffee house that runs from breakfast through gourmet sandwiches and vegan plates to local craft beer, and kitchens doing haute cuisine a few minutes up the road.

Six of the places we’d send you to are either on our property or a short walk from the gate. One family who stayed with us in March said it better than we can: “The dining options in and around Ojochal were spectacular. We did not have a single bad meal during our stay.“

At Ojochal Gardens you’re in the middle of town on flat paved roads, so dinner here is a walk and not a drive. No dirt road, no 4×4 required.

Here’s where we send guests, which places suit which night, and how to eat in when you’d rather stay at your luxury villa.

Ready to book your stay? Check availability for your dates, and we’ll help you plan the rest.

What are the best restaurants in Ojochal, Costa Rica?

The best restaurants in Ojochal, Costa Rica start with two you can reach without leaving the property, and both are open to the public. Momento Wine and Sushi Bar does fresh tropical-inspired sushi and tapas, an air-conditioned wine room, and the best craft cocktails in town, mixed with cherry blossom vermouth, sake and limoncello. It’s a garden walk from the villas. Potz Restaurant and Coffee House is at the entrance for breakfast, coffee and sandwiches.

Then there’s the town, and we’ll point you at all of it. Citrus is the upscale one, a one-minute walk from our gate and next door to a small high-end food shop, and a guest who stayed two weeks called it pricey but worth every penny. Stan’s Cafe is the casual one she kept going back to, and the poutine is what to order. Exotica and Heliconia are the other two, and they’re on the list at reception because we send our own guests there.

Restaurants in Ojochal at a glance:

• Momento, on the property, a garden walk from your patio. Sushi, a rotating tapas menu, the wine room, and the best craft cocktails in town. Ask for Elias or Stephen.
• Potz, at the entrance, thirty steps from your door. Breakfast, coffee, gourmet sandwiches, vegan plates, local craft beer.
• Citrus, a one-minute walk from our gate, the upscale one. A gourmet menu the kitchen calls Mediterranean and Asian, escargots and French onion soup on the same page as pad thai. A guest of two weeks called it “pricey, but worth every penny.”
• Stan’s Cafe, in town, casual, the one that same guest kept going back to. Order the poutine.
• Exotica, in town, candlelit and open-air under a thatched roof. French technique crossed with the spice routes of Asia, Polynesia and the Mediterranean, and duck breast is the plate it’s known for. Tables are limited, so reserve.
• Heliconia, in town, in the trees above a river, run by Nancy and Edgar with their family. Fish and seafood alongside Costa Rican dishes, and the river is part of the meal.

Why Ojochal has a reputation for food

Ojochal has a reputation for food because dining out in the jungle is a custom here and not a holiday activity. This is a Tico town, and the mix of people who have settled into it since is wide, the original developers and homeowners mostly English and French Canadian by International Living‘s account, and every one of them brought a kitchen with them.

What came out of that mix is fusion you would not expect from a town this size, Japanese-tropical plates and a wine list at Momento, haute cuisine a few minutes up the road, and poutine at a casual cafe in between.

Everybody eats out, so there are more restaurants here than a town this small should be able to hold, and they are all different from each other. International Living writes that dining out most evenings is the local custom, either at friends’ homes or at the many eateries serving haute cuisine in Ojochal, which means going out for dinner is the evening’s entertainment for the people who live here, and you are eating off menus that had to satisfy the neighbors first.

Fifteen minutes south of Uvita, you’re in the South Pacific region, in the town with the greenest, lushest and most low-key vibe of the three main towns in this stretch. Search the best of Costa Rica’s food towns and this one turns up, and the gastronomic reputation is older than the search results.

The Canadians keep coming back, too. The Costa Rican Tourism Institute counted 123,845 Canadian arrivals in January and February of 2026 alone.

The two Ojochal restaurants on our property at Ojochal Gardens

The two Ojochal restaurants on our property are Momento and Potz. Momento Wine and Sushi Bar is a garden walk from your patio, and it’s the fun one. A rotating tapas menu, a sushi chef, Japanese-tropical fusion in the kitchen’s own words, a wine room with a long list, and the best service in town. Ask for Elias or Stephen and they’ll both remember your name the next time you come, or stop in for happy hour, saddle up at the bar and take the margaritas two for one. Your walk home is a garden path, and the keys stay on the counter.

Potz Restaurant and Coffee House is at the entrance, thirty steps from your door and open to the public, so the town wanders in too. Order from a menu that runs from breakfast and coffee through gourmet sandwiches, vegan dishes and local craft beer. One guest, Isaac Q., wrote that Potz “was incredible, with a diverse menu for both food and drinks. Presentation and taste was top notch.” Another, the reviewer Sigaco, called it “the cherry on the cake.”

You tick breakfast at Potz as an add-on at checkout.

A guest staying in Villa Azul kept it to one line: “Restaurants located right on the property are excellent!“

See both rooms, the pool and the courts on our page for on-site restaurants and amenities.

Which Ojochal restaurants work for families, couples, and groups?

Which Ojochal restaurants work for you depends on who you brought.

With kids, you want variety and a short walk, and you have both. A family who booked two nights told us their children can be picky eaters, and they still loved every restaurant they visited.

Just the two of you? Walk to Momento. Get a table, get a bottle from the wine room, and take the garden path home. If you want a whole week that feels like that, we wrote about a romantic and quiet stay in Ojochal.

With a group, you can all eat together one night and split up the next, and nobody needs a car either night. If you’re coming for our retreat week, three of the dinners are hosted.

What if you would rather eat in your villa while you are at Ojochal Gardens?

If you’d rather eat in while you’re in Ojochal, you absolutely can! Potz and Momento both deliver to the villa, so call the restaurant, or ask reception and they’ll arrange it for you, and dinner comes to your own patio table. One family traveling with parents in their sixties and seventies wrote, “They delivered breakfast to our door in the morning, which was a nice touch.“

Your coffee comes with the room, a coffee or tea station in the two garden suites and a coffee or espresso machine in the villas, so the first cup is fresh on your patio before anyone else is up. One pickleball guest wrote that she “enjoyed my morning coffee which was provided in the room as I sat on my balcony.“

Cooking for six puts you in Villa Azul, the largest of our five villas, three bedrooms across 110 square meters with an extra-large kitchen and a full-sized refrigerator. Decide at six and the high-end food shop beside Citrus is close enough to walk to for the ingredients you’re missing.

Ready to plan your stay in Ojochal?

Ready to plan your stay at Ojochal Gardens? The food is one reason to come, and there’s a lot more waiting once you’re here, waterfalls, the beaches a short drive from our gate, and things to do near Ojochal that fill the days between dinners.

Book direct on our website for the best rate. Check availability today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Ojochal restaurants take reservations?

If you have your heart set on a particular table on a particular night, ask a day ahead. Potz and Momento are on the property, which makes them the easy default when a plan changes.

Is there fine dining in Ojochal, or is it casual?

Both, within the same few blocks. Citrus is the upscale end, while Stan’s Cafe is more laid-back. Momento sits between the two, a fun, vibey setting with a wine room and a sushi menu that’s still suitable for families.

Are there vegan and vegetarian options in Ojochal restaurants?

Yes. Potz Restaurant and Coffee House serves vegan dishes alongside its gourmet sandwiches and coffee, so there is a reliable option at the entrance to the property. Momento has plenty of vegan and vegetarian options as well. For the kitchens off the property, tell us before you arrive and we will ask on your behalf.

What is dining in Ojochal like compared with the rest of the Pacific coast?

Ojochal is a small town on the South Pacific coast with a culinary reputation out of proportion to its size, the whole scene is walkable, and the restaurants stay popular among locals as much as with visitors, since eating out most evenings is the custom here.

Can you eat well in Ojochal without a car?

Yes! You can dine on the property at Potz or Momento, Citrus is one minute on foot, and Mariana at reception can arrange a ride or a driver when you want to go further. If you are still deciding on the rental, we wrote a whole post on whether you need a car in Ojochal.