Bonaire- Cheap Eats/Tips? Going Oct 10-17 if anyone wants some buddies

[Jersey]

Mona Lisa has bar type stuff at the actual bar - bitterballen and other small plates. You can usually find local business folks there after work. Mi Banana - perpetual favorite! Meat/fish, plantains/fries and a couple beers. Save room for the BEST tres leches cake. Wattaburger always good for a quick lunch. Food trucks, on the water front, the intersection in front of the prison and in the soccer stadium parking lot. Buy fruit right off the Venezuelans boat. We usually grab a bucket of KFC for dinner then lunch and snacks. Weight your bags and take some food - couple pounds of pasta, I wrap frozen chicken/steak (organic) in the wetsuits and its still frozen when we arrive, salami and hard meats. Plazita Lamena has a mixed grill that usually yields plenty of leftovers. (I do miss Casablanca mixed grill) Hit Van den Tweels, get bread, cheese, olives, tapenade. We do a big breakfast, lunch is snacks/leftovers - fruit cheese meat bread crackers - and we cook in most nights. Alcohol is relatively inexpensive so we keep that chilled, take a adult beverage and watch the sun go down every night for entertainment.

 

[uncfnp]

...//... Buy fruit right off the Venezuelans boat.

Jersey. Haven't heard of this. Where and when?

 

[Jersey]

Jersey. Haven't heard of this. Where and when?[/QUOTE

Waterfront, south end Kralendjik, across from Willamena park is a concrete/block 4 posted structure - looks like an oversized urban bus stop for lack of a better description. The ladies set up and sell fruit and produce with stuff off the boats. When they sell - not exactly sure, we usually see them in the morning, some mornings. They are gone by dinner time. Don't know if it's every day or more 'whenever'. What they sell varies as well. You know Bonaire, have to go with what's on hand.

 

[uncfnp]

You know Bonaire, have to go with what's on hand.

Yep. Could almost be the island motto! At least now I know where to look! Thanks Jersey.

 

[gbf]

Directly across the street from Warehouse Grocery is "Fresh Market". They have a killer sandwich called "doner brood". It's big enough to half and make two meals (though I scarfed the entire thing at one time).

Really good. Get the hot sauce - it's tasty and not hot to my coon-ass taste.

They have a few stand-up tables if you want to eat there.

$18 for 2 sandwiches and 2 cokes.

 

[Jersey]

Could almost be the island motto!

Yep, and that's why we love it! I've seen plantain, banana, watermelon (but of course) and the really big papaya in the stall. I also hear there is fresh fish available, haven't found that yet. I have seen the fish guy pull up to a restaurant and yank a 4 foot dolphin fish (Mahi Mahi) out of his truck bed.

As an aside, we did get to dive the East side with Bas last trip. WOW!

 

[Lorenzoid]

We bring our own dry oatmeal, pasta, and whatever dry spoces we may think we will need. So, oatmeal for breakfast. Gouda sandwiches for lunch, and a variety of stuff we pick up at local grocery stores for dinner with some pasta from home mixed in. We generally only go out to eat maybe once or twice in a week in Bonaire. It is slow and not worth the hassle for us.

Wow, now THAT is thrifty. We pack some frozen steaks from Costco and think that is being thrifty. More generally, though, I agree with you about eating out. There's little in the way of restaurants that I think can be better, faster, or tastier than what we can prepare ourselves.

 

[diversteve]

This is where the Venezuelans sell stuff.



Seems like it was better than this the day we stopped. We saw fish there one morning as we drove by but it was gone by lunch:



As Jersey said, just north of North Town Pier.

 

[uncfnp]

We also take frozen meats. Have had good luck with the chicken breasts we find there but usually disappointed in the meats. Which is odd considering the meat producers nearby.

Spices of course. And Eric's special blend of coffee. And of course anything that is especially important to you.

BTW. Eric had the frozen meat in his carry-on our last trip (at the weight limits with checked). Set off some trigger for explosives? He ended up going through the full screening including being swabbed for chemicals! But they finally let him and the meats go through.

 

[KathyV]

There are only 2 of us and we pack a small, soft-sided carry-on insulted cooler with frozen meat. You can pack a bigger cooler and check it but if you have to pay baggage fees that negates any savings benefit of bringing meat with you. Although the quality will still be better (IMO) than what is locally available.

You should bring only enough for personal use and keep the items in their original packaging showing USDA or FDA or other quality labels. Freeze the items solid and then pack them tightly - don't use blue ice or dry ice with a carry on.

If the items are frozen hard and packed well they should be fine when you arrive. We declare the bag as "meat for personal use" and haven't had any problems or duty to pay.

Don't bring anything that might be considered a gel as a carry on. I once packed a frozen container of margarine but security at O'Hare confiscated it because the agent could squeeze it and she said that makes it a gel.

We love Bonaire but eating out gets expensive and it takes up vacation time. We try to reduce the cost/time by staying in an apartment where we can cook some simple meals and by bringing some foods with us. We usually bring frozen bacon, egg-beaters, lunch meat, and small selection of frozen meat - steaks, pork chops, chicken. We also pack a small supply of dry goods in our checked baggage; like pringles, popcorn, ground coffee, and tea bags, granola bars. Don't try to carry on peanut butter because it is a gel. Sometimes we also pick up some liquor in the duty-free shop at the airport after we clear security.

Of course, we can't carry in enough for 2 weeks, and we do enjoy eating/drinking out at least once a day, but we think that bringing in some food is helpful. I also have some food allergies and so bringing some foods that you are okay is a good option.

We spend a lot of money on our vacations - at least it seems that way to us - and that contributes (in a small way) to the local economy, so we don't feel any concern about making this minor economy on our part.