Review of Sheriff Rustic in Playa Samara - 5-22-2012

Sheriff Rustic in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

Sheriff Rustic is a small "soda," the Costa Rican term for a small, locally owned restaurant, right on the beach in Playa Samara. Unlike the beach bars in town like La Vela Latina, Locanda and Lo Que Hay, Sheriff Rustic is open only for breakfast and lunch...no dinner and drink service. Also unlike those places, Sheriff Rustic has an authentic, easy feel to it that says in no uncertain terms, "this is how Ticos vacation."



Sheriff Rustic in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

The soda serves local fare like beans and rice, casadas (meat, beans, rice, plantains and sometimes fresh fruit), fresh fruit, etc. and tourist food like hot dogs, burgers, fried chicken and similar fast food offerings. Burgers with fries are about $5, hot dogs go for $4. Traditional Costa Rican casadas go for between $6 and $7, depending on the meat you order. An Imperial is $2 and they serve it in a cup. I loved the fried chicken here. For $5, you get either a breast and wing or a thigh and leg, plus a pile of French fries and a mixed green salad with oil and vinegar dressing. The chicken was golden brown, juicy and seasoned to perfection -- flavorful, not salty. It's such a good deal for $5. I've heard the burgers and casadas are good too, but I stuck to the fried chicken...it was that good.

Sheriff Rustic in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

Sheriff Rustic sits underneath an awning and is further shaded by the branches of several huge old trees. Both provide a welcome respite from the day's heat. The dark brown, heavy wooden tables and dark brown sand floor give the restaurant a rustic, beachy feel, as does the line of surfboards propped up against the tree right in front of the restaurant. Particularly strong high tides sometimes come up almost to the restaurant itself. Eat here during high tide and you can listen to the pounding waves while watching some of the best local surfers do their thing. Conversely, eat here during low tide and you're treated to a parade of expats, tourists and locals walking the wide beach as the waves lap lazily against the sand 100 yards away from your seat. In either case, the soft salsa music playing in the background really brings home the fact that you're vacationing in a beach side paradise.



Sheriff Rustic in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

Find Sheriff Rustic by walking Samara's main street all the way to the beach, and then turn right at the sand. Walk about 50 yards and you'll see its tables and chairs behind Coco's Surf School. If you've reached Tutti Frutti, Bar Tabanuco, or the grass campus at the Intercultura Spanish School, turn around because you've gone too far down the beach.

Costa Rica, A Review - Sunday 4-26-2009

Playa Samara, Costa Rica

You should go to Costa Rica.

The country is beautiful. I loved Costa Rica's gorgeous natural environments. The Monteverde and Santa Elena nature preserves house ancient hundred foot (and taller!) trees, which provide shelter to white-faced monkeys, howler monkeys, rainbow colored parrots and toucans, exotic tree-climbing mammals, and rare snakes. One day in Monteverde, I found waterfall and lagoon tucked away in the jungle, hidden down a kilometer-long walk past of vines, ferns and huge trees. I had the entire falls, lagoon and jungle all to myself. It felt like being in a picture in a travel magazine showing places too isolated and spectacular to really exist. The countryside is similarly beautiful, with acre after acre of green, undeveloped rain forest, ranch land, and farmland.

There is plenty of opportunity for water sports. My water sports included only swimming and sitting under palm trees, but that's just me. The surf on the Pacific Coast is reportedly some of the best in the world, especially at Montezuma, Santa Teresa and Mal Pais, but there is ample opportunity to surf at beaches on both coasts. In Playa Tamarindo and Playa Samara, numerous tour operators fishing, snorkeling, or marine-life viewing tours. I understand tour operators in beach communities all around the country offer the same. I also understand that the snorkeling near Playa Hermosa and Cahuita is amazing. In Playa Tamarindo and Monteverde and Santa Elena, I saw brochures for river rafting trips, too.

The country is cheap, especially compared to Western Europe and Australia. I never paid more than $35 per night for a private room with at least a double bed, including pillows, linens, and towels. This fee often included a private bathroom and breakfast. Meals were at least $8 each in Playa Tamarindo and Monteverde and Santa Elena, but those places are tourist traps. I could feed myself with hearty meals for $10-$12 per day in San Jose and Playa Samara. Playa Samara was particularly cheap, and the food was always tasty.

It is easy to go upscale in Costa Rica. Every town I stopped at had expensive, resort-type hotels. You do not have to spend under $40 per night for a private room at a hostel to enjoy Costa Rica. There are plenty of luxury options.

Costa Ricans are friendly. More than once on my trip, I must have looked terribly confused because a helpful local came up to me and asked me in perfect English if I needed help. In each case, I explained where I was trying to go and the local directed me to my destination or told me exactly where I was. The hotel staff, restaurant staff, and tour staff I dealt with were also universally helpful.

The backpackers are friendly, too. I met so many interesting, friendly, worldly, talkative, and generally cool people at the hostels I stayed at. For the record, I stayed at Costa Rica Backpackers & Guesthouse in San Jose (www.costaricabackpackers.com; phone: 2221 6191), Manakin Lodge in Monteverde (www.manakinlodge.com; phone: 2645 5058), Hostel Botella de Leche in Playa Tamarindo (www.labotelladeleche.com; phone: 2653 0189), Cabinas Marielos in Playa Tamarindo (phone and fax: 2653 0141), and Casa Brian in Playa Samara (casabrian@hotmail.com; phone: 2656 0315).

First Impressions: Costa Rica Guesthouse

I'm staying at Costa Rica Guesthouse, which is the nicer part of Costa Rica Backpackers Hostel (www.costaricabackpackers.com, phone: 2221 6191). Costa Rica Backpackers is located at Avenida 6, Calle 21/23 and the Guesthouse is right across the street. I arranged for an airport pickup via the website for $18. When I was dropped off at the Guesthouse, the charge ended up being $20 but my driver Franklin was an excellent conversationalist so I didn't mind paying an extra $2.

I like this hostel. My spacious second floor room includes a king sized bed, and has three windows which look out onto a street. I share a bathroom with the other six rooms on this floor, but there are hardly any other guests on this floor so I don't mind. The bathroom is large and tiled with something like sandstone. The second story halls and rooms are nicely appointed with tastefully painted floors and mahogany-stained doors. The first story is airy and filled with natural light during the day. The Guesthouse has 24 hour reception. Across the street, Costa Rica Backpackers also has 24 hour reception, plus a reservations desk, a communal kitchen, a communal area with couches and a flat screen plasma TV, several computers for web-browsing, a pool, a garden with five hammocks, and a restaurant with decent food and which also plays movies at night. Tonight, they're showing Hancock (missed it) then bringing in three comedians at 8pm. I spent most of this afternoon talking to other travelers, all of whom were friendly and talkative. One is even from LA and her friend went to Carnegie Mellon. Small world.

I'm paying $35 per night for my room. A similar room with a private bathroom would be $42 per night. Costa Rica Backpackers has dorm beds for $12 per night and double rooms for $26 per night. Julie, the woman who checked me in and wife of the owner of Backpackers and the Guesthouse told me their business is down about 20 percent from this time last year. She further informed me that she has heard from hostel owners in other parts of Costa Rica that business is down as much as 50 percent from this time last year in some cities.