www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I had dinner at the Del Mar (acoss the street from the Del Rey) which is owned by the Del Rey. I was given a Christmas present of dinner for two from Dr Bob who runs the poker room. Rather than bring a chica I invited a male friend to join me. (NO COMMENTS PLEASE) At least he knew which fork to use as opposed to the chicas. The freebie included salad bar,any dinner on the menu,and a bottle of house wine. We both had the surf and turf which was a nice filet and six decent size shrimps sauteed in butter and garlic. I have to say that the dinner was quite good. (especially since it only cost me a tip)

I almost fell off my chair...WHAT the DEL REY actually giving something away? Customer recognition? Customer Service? What's going on?

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A Costa Rica Toast:
Here's to Looking like Movie Stars, Partying like Rock Stars and phucking like PORN STARS!

Dr Bob .....gave the hard sell on a room at DR said if I took 2 nights 3rd would be free ....since I love playing tute ...it"s better I don't stay at the DR that free night could cost me 500

Glad you got a free meal Vegas Bob. However, the Bob who runs the poker room is a putz IMO. Ever since my last trip when he totally made a wrong floor call on some poker action, and refused to admit he or his staff made a mistake.

Every person there knew he had made the wrong call, and instead of just admitting it, he followed me and another player across the street to chastise us. Never seen such behavior in any casino.

i think the food and service at the Del Mar is excellent. It is also open 24/7 with a full menu. I think the reputation gets tarnished due to the association with the DR and KL.

BKTUNA/Boyd
I am never going home

Last week I dined there a couple of times. After finishing up an early evening session I went over to the KL for something to eat. After looking in the chafing dishes which looked unappetizing for 3500k, I wandered into the Delmar & had a plate of pasta for 2700k+tx/tip etc.

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"cuz I'm a back-door man" Jim Morrison-1969

Yes, it SHOULD be quite good for what they NORMALLY charge. I don't think the question about this place was ever so much about the food quality as it has been about the Del Rey management practices and pricing. A better question might be whether you'd consider it to be a good VALUE if it DIDN'T cost you just a tip? In other words, would you go rushing back there if the next time it all comes out of your own pocket?

I found the food there hit and miss as was the service.

Saturday night, had the spagetti with meat sauce. Lots of meat! but also the chef added lots of salt too! Had to ask for parmesan cheese, then after it came, had to ask for black pepper, and finally a spoon. Guess I am accustomed to all that coming with the dish, no questions asked! It may have just been that server. My buddy ordered the french onion soup but the server had to make two trips. One to bring the soup, and again to bring the spoon!

I noticed Gaby who showed to our seats and she was serving another table. Seemed to know what she was doing as she brought out the pepper mill after the plates were down.

Also my wingman and I ordered the cocktails (almost same price as the entree - price wasn't listed on the menu- approx 3700 colones). The bartendar was very liberal with the alcohol! Too much though as it was too much! And that was even after sending it back asking for less rum!

Had the open face roast beef sandwich (not open), earlier in the week. It was okay. My buddy got sick that night though but not sure if it was the roast beef. I was okay. At the Del Rey, ordered the grilled chicken sandwich (comes from Del Mar anyway), and that was pretty good.

It's convenient though because that is about the only thing that is available after 10 p.m. in the area!

I found the food there hit and miss as was the service.

Saturday night, had the spagetti with meat sauce. Lots of meat! but also the chef added lots of salt too! Had to ask for parmesan cheese, then after it came, had to ask for black pepper, and finally a spoon. Guess I am accustomed to all that coming with the dish, no questions asked! It may have just been that server. My buddy ordered the french onion soup but the server had to make two trips. One to bring the soup, and again to bring the spoon!

I noticed Gaby who showed to our seats and she was serving another table. Seemed to know what she was doing as she brought out the pepper mill after the plates were down.

Also my wingman and I ordered the cocktails (almost same price as the entree - price wasn't listed on the menu- approx 3700 colones). The bartendar was very liberal with the alcohol! Too much though as it was too potent! And that was even after sending it back asking for less rum!

Had the open face roast beef sandwich (not open), earlier in the week. It was okay. My buddy got sick that night though but not sure if it was the roast beef or something else he had earlier) was okay. At the Del Rey, ordered the grilled chicken sandwich (comes from Del Mar anyway), and that was pretty good.

It's convenient though because that is about the only thing that is available after 10 p.m. in the area!

Sorry for the double post. The Internet connection got really slow and so I cancelled and sent again. Obviously didn't work!

Actually, Chelles is open 24/7 (and is a lot cheaper)

Comparing Chelles to the Del Mar isn't even close. I eat at the Del Mar on my trips and always had a good meal.

The comparison that I was making referred to the hours of operation. RandyDog said that the DelMar is CONVENIENT because "it is the ONLY thing that is available after 10 p.m. in the area" and that quite plainly is NOT true. Chelles IS also available after 10 and IS also in the area. In fact, Chelles is available even LATER than the DelMar, being open round the clock. Not only that, if you want to talk about convenience, one could probably walk to Chelles, order a sandwich or empanada, pay for it, and return to the BM in less time than if would take for a waiter to even take your order at the DelMar.

Is the level of cuisine exactly the same? Of course not. But we're not talking about the usual supper time either. If we were just talking about where to go for dinner (at 7 or 8 PM), I'd completely agree with you. There wouldn't be any comparison at all between the DelMar and Chelles for a meal at that hour, but then there would also be lots of OTHER places available then besides the DelMar as well. You described the quality of the DelMar food as "good". RandyDog described it as "okay" but also said something there might have made his friend sick. These aren't exactly glowing recommendations, so at the normal dinner hour there are probably much better options available then EITHER of these places. OTOH, if we're talking about grabbing something "convenient" to eat after 10 p.m. at night, we're probably not talking about a heavy supper so much as some sort of light meal or snack and for that Chelles probably would do the trick just as well and "conveniently" as the Del Mar.

Thanks Prolijo for the recommendation. I will have to try Chelles on my next trip. Whereabouts is it?

As I said, I was fine after the meal compared to my friend.

The breakfast buffet has a great selection (just be careful with the bacon, it sometimes has chips of bone).

The ceviche is 'good'
Some of the lunch and dinner items are average.

Waiters have always been friendly and helpful. I was once gonna order the spinach ravioli. Most waiters, what do they give a phuk, but the one I had said, "That's not one of our best dishes, I do not recommend.' I told him I wanted a whole fried fish but have never seen it on the menu. He told me they had just gotten red snapper and would prepare it how I wanted it. It was damn tasty.

In the end though, I don't go to CR for the bland cuisine. (no decent hot salsa anywhere in the entire country). I only eat to have energy for the next mission.

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El Tigre a Mi Me Acompaña