Decent food is hard to come by in Changuinola. The two places listed here are the best bets. Some of the hotels have restaurants.

Bar y Restaurante Chiquita Banana (tel. 758-8215, 7 a.m.–11 p.m. daily, US$5 or less) is the best place to eat in town, which isn’t saying a whole lot. It serves an extensive menu of Chinese and criollo food. The arroz con pollo (chicken and rice) is tasty, cheap, and plentiful.

There’s a daily special—be sure to ask about it, since it’s not written down anywhere. Most people eat on the enclosed front patio, which looks out on the busy street, but there’s a fancier air-conditioned dining room inside, with a somewhat more upscale menu.

Repostería El Buen Sabor (tel. 758-8422, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Sun.), across the street from the Multi-Credit Bank, is a bakery and pastry shop that offers local specialties such as the bon de Bastimentos, which tastes like dry gingerbread, as well as fruit drinks, ice cream, and other goodies.