Need help putting together a list of low budget restaurants in BAQ

[Colgando]

Hey, hey, hey....jejeje...already getting amped for my next trip to BAQ and I am still several weeks out for departure, I am a feign...jejeje 


I gotta cut the food expense down drastically this next trip, I spent too much money on food my last trip. Of course the best way to save money is to cook at home, which I will do more of hopefully, but I need to put together a list of restaurants that are on the cheaper side, not US prices or more. I know Arepas and Arepas, that place is pretty good and cheap, I believe I spent ~$10 US for two people to eat and have a beer, that is what I am talking about.


All the frequent BAQ travelers (Whitey, AB, FT, JAX, Calisurf, DL et al), any suggestions on restaurants and locations? Some cool, cheap spots to grab a coffee, a beer, ice cream, sandwiches, Arab, Mexican, Colombian, Italian, etc, whatever comes to mind, maybe some of your favorite spots? Maybe your favorite quick recipe to whip up at the house also? Any good spots on the beach?


Thanks in advance for your recommendations....

[whitey]

Hey Colgando:

What is the price range you'd like to hit for 2 people? 

Nazly only weighs 94lbs, but she eats more than me for lunch (which of course is the main meal here).  Quite often we can split a lunch, which saves a lot of money.  It's easier to spend less on dinners, since they aren't the mail meal.  I might be able to give you a few ideas if you can give me a price range.

A tip for having a few drinks cheaply is taking advantage of Happy Hour (usually between 5-7:00pm).  You can get coctails and sometimes beer 2 for 1, Thursdays - Saturdays at places like:

Samba Casino (CC Portal del Prado)
Pizza Loca (many locations)
Henry's Cafe (Parque Washington - my favourite new place to hang out for drinks)

I'm lucky - Nazly is a very cheap date as far as food, and she can't drink much either.  She gets pretty tipsy after half a drink, and if we order two each, I usually get to drink most of her second drink




 

[CalifSur]

Colgando:  Agreed, those expenses add up quickly esp. when paying for 3 people (you, your date, plus interpreter).  Pretty sure you will go without the interpeter next time.  That will HELP!
 
Afraid I am too much of a BQ novice to offer good, cheap suggestions. 

[Colgando]

Thanks Whitey.....I am flexible with the budget, I figure the vets eat a lot cheaper than I did and may know some spots. I would only go cheaper on the food if there was an alternative that I was comfortable with. I want to go to places that regular people go to and different places than I went last time. The restaurants I went to were mostly more expensive than US restaurants for the same food, or about the same price. Are there many "mom and pop" type establishments?

[Alabamaboy!]

Any of the mom and pop places with lots of people there are good. If you like soups, roast chicken, carne asada,  yucca, rice, and a couple cold beers. I love that kind of food and so does my wife...and most of the girls I was with there. In addition to saving money, you will also probably endear yourself to them because you are willing to eat "their" food and literally have a "taste" of their culture.

We eat at roadside stands a lot to buy "fritos" which are deep fried foods such as arepas con huevo, Papas (which are shot put sized deep fried mashed potatoes with onions and other herbs), deditos (deep fried bread sticks filled with cheese), and empanadas. All of these things are cheap, cheap, cheap and will fill you up fast. For two people, including drinks, may be as little as 6-8K COP. Not good for your waistline, but good for your wallet. Mix a few meals in like that, and you will greatly reduce your overall dining bill. Especially if you are in Rodadero, you can grab all these things right there on the beach under the palm trees in the morning, bring them back to your lady who is still waiting for you in bed!

Also if you are not so hungry and are planning a big meal later, you may try to hit a Juice "restaurant" which has lots of different types of exotic fresh fruit juices which you can have in water or in milk. Many times my wife will just want that and maybe we share a dedito or something like that.

I have never gotten sick from eating "street food" or any kind of food for that matter in Colombia. Or for that matter in Philippines or Mexico.

A good rule of thumb is to look for places that have a lot of people eating there.

[Jeff S]

I'm with AB - street food is the best and cheapest way to go. I've never gotten sick anywhere in the world eating street food, either - and that's been some weird places. It's a whole lot more fun than formal sit-down restaurants too.

[Colgando]

Good stuff AB, thanks man!

[whitey]

I've been in El Rodadero, Santa Marta, and Parque Tayrona for the last week, so just getting back to this thread now.

Another great way to eat cheaply is to look for restaurants with signs for almuerzos ejecutivos (executive lunches).  Yesterday, Nazly and I split a very nice lunch on a restaurant patio across the street from the beach in Santa Marta.  There were about 15 different lunch options, all for $7.500 (about $US4.00).  We had:

2 soups (one was included and we paid $2.500 for the other)
a large steak
rice
beans
platano
Coke
Club Colombia

Total cost with tip was $14.000 (maybe $7.75 US).

I was stuffed.  Nazly looked like a snake that had swallowed a pig ... her stomach was sticking out for the next couple hours, which was quite funny as she is so slim.

As Alamababoy mentioned, it's really easy to walk around and find these restaurants in Santa Marta and El Rodadero.  In the north part of Barranquilla where most gringos will be hanging out, they are not so easy to find, but you'll see them in all the "lower" barrios like Soledad.

One cool place in BAQ is called Las Vegas.  If you want to treat the novia and her family to a HUGE lunch for not much money, bring them there and they will be very happy ... your wallet will be too.  I think I spent about $120.000 to feed 6 people.

The trouble with Barranquilla is that there isn't a place to go like a zona rosa where you can go, walk around, and find many restaurant/bar options.  So, you end up taking taxis everywhere ... and transportation can really start adding up over the day/week, even though each individual trip is quite cheap.

During my last two trips (6 weeks each), I've started using the new Transmetro bus system which is really great, safe, cheap, clean, airconditioned, and easy to use.  Each trip costs $1.400, and you can have up to 3 transfers to feeder busses within 1.5 hours.  I've saved a TON of money doing this.

Don't take the regular busses (the crazy, wildly painted and driven colectivos) - the wifey won't let me go on those alone - not safe for gringos.

[Gato4Astrid]

The cheapest way is to buy from supermarket and to cook them yourself )