Citrus - a hidden pearl in the jungles around Uvita!

Tuesday, June 19^th in Costa Rica – the day started same as always (for the past one day) – breakfast by the pool with lotsa bugs all over, and steaming hot weather – but today was different – there was not a cloud in the sky… it was going to be a hot hot day! So we started out as normal – with swimming swimming swimming, once again, all alone in the pool! At noon the kids got smoothies – as usual – and I got a pina colada and Arild an ice cold beer and life was fabulous!

The goal of the day however was not swimming – but a cool place we had read about in Lonely Planet – Citrus (a restaurant) in Ojochal (about 10 km from here). We had tried to find it yesterday without any luck but today was going to be the day ! This is the review from LP:

Citrus: While it is something of the new kid in town, Citrus has the potential to equal (some would say top) Restaurante Exotica in due time. Offering New World dishes that are heavily influenced by Southeast Asian and North African culinary traditions, and benefiting from its candlelit riverside location, Citrus welcomes patrons with a helping spoon of flair and bravado.

This is the tripadvisor reviews too: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g1022300-d1674860-Reviews-Citrus-Ojochal_Province_of_Puntarenas.html

So we finally found it today, and it was pretty cool – tough to find – no sign on the main road that this was the road to Ojochal – just another dirt road turning in – but we saw a whole bunch of houses to we took a shot (plus yesterday, we drove for 20 km not finding ANY “real” turns to any Ojochal). We immediately saw the sign to Citurs and turned left and then right – though from the sign it was pretty impossible to know that it was a restaurant – it just looked like a regular house first, with no cars outside. It was open though so in we went! 

The place was modern and gorgeous and we loved the ambience immediately! The prices did not look daunting either on first glance – but then we are a bit off the charts when stuff costs 10 000 colones etc. So a meal for me that cost 4200 colones looked pretty reasonable – I just divide by 100 to get the Norwegian price (42 crownes) or time it by two to get USD ($8.40).  Arild and William got some chicken stuff for 7200 colones (14.5 dollars) and the kids got plain cheeseburgers. We also got beer, pina colada (again) and the kids got smoothies. The total came to 45 000 colones – and we were like “not bad” until we got home and realized that was USD91… which is pretty hefty for a “normal” restaurant trip LOL we seldom get that kind of bill at Chilis, for instance….  But the food was good – so I am not going to complain (too much) – I just want to mention – COSTA RICA IS NOT CHEAP! It is normal US prices ++ here it seems… 

Driving the roads of this area is still a story in and of itself, but it suffices to add a couple more pictures LOL the area is so rocky it is crazy! 

 Afterwards we decided to see the beach – we are after all in Costa Rica with coasts on both side – so we took the turn to Parque National Marina Ballena – which is some national park right on the other side of the street from the hotel. By chance (which we never would have been able to plan, given our lack of routine and time management) we caught the sunset – which was pretty magical! 

So now we are back at the hotel, suitcases packed into the car already, because tomorrow morning at 7:50 am we are going to start our new adventure – a day trip on horse back to Nauyaca Waterfalls.

  Now THAT is going to be interesting!!