Hi
I was wondering about the quality of the food (mainly the meat and dairy) in Nicaragua. What do people who have been there think? I am only asking because the quality in Cuba was particularly poor (for obvious reasons) but the other places I have been in Latin America were great.
Thanks
Its fine. Cuba is known for crap food. Nicaragua has great cuisine, if you know where to look, though Granada, SJDS, Ometepe and Leon all have vibrant food scene.
We didn't find any problem with the quality of meat at all. Didn't have much dairy, but I don't remember any problems with any of the food. Just stay away from the brightly colored "juices" they sell in plastic baggies with straws on the street!
oh- Dairy is not the same in Nicaragua or the region as back home, due to refridgeration. Beef is grass fed, so it has more flavor, but also not as tender as the steroid, anti biotic, hormone induced, Genetic modified grain fed American beef.
It depends on where you are. Don't order Beef on Corn Island, it's not the place for it. It's tasty in Granada and other cities. The food is generally Very good. Gallo Pinto is great (beans and rice). The fish along the coast is excellent. Didn't do alot of dairy, it mostly comes from boxes. I used it in my coffee, that's about it. I did have ice cream a few times and it was really good. Watch your salt, they tend to put a lot on the food, especially eggs in the AM. Just say "Cin Sal" and put your own on.
The beef I've had in Granada and SJDS was much better then in Costa Rica or Panama. Seafood in SJDS was excellant as stated above. The only dairy I can recall having was an ice cream cone in SJDS and it tasted just like in the states. I wouldn't go to Ometepe for the cuisine but it was alright. I got tired of eating chicken there after 3 or 4 days. The fish from the lake didn't have much flavor.
The beef in Nicaragua is cheap and it can be tough, but I liked it. Most of the milk is UHT type. If you look at the packages you see it often has a lot of additives: soya, etc. which I don't see as a good thing. I tried to get the "purest" milk I could find. Processed type cheese in the supermarkets is expensive, but there is a lot of tasty local cheese in the markets which I liked. I haven't been to Cuba, so I can't compare it.
The fresh cheese inside guirilas (thick, sweet corn tortillas) is tasty, probably because of the high turnover at the street stalls & carts. Good shrimp are easy to find in Managua & Granada.
I found the beef on par with CR and Panama -- that is to say flavorful but tough (as mentioned above).
Matagalpa has some of the best food I've had in Nicaragua:
http://www.perceptivetravel.com/issues/1108/streetvendors.html
katrinab, I actually enjoyed the brightly colored chicha de maiz in the baggies. It's a matter of taste (and digestive tolerance), I guess.
In my opinion, the food here is ok. We haven't gotten sick if that is what you're worried about. But it is not very healthy... basically everything seems to be fried... and it doesn't seem to have a lot of variety either. rice and beans with meat or chicken or fish, chick peas, tortillas... and that's pretty standard at all the restaurants. So to sum it up, we're not very impressed with the food.
