Caliche's Wishbone

Cuisine: Seafood, Mexican

Hours: Thurs-Tues 11:30am-3pm and 5:30-10pm

Location: On the main road in Jaco, Around Town

Phone: 643-3406

Prices: Main courses $4-$16

This casual spot is popular with surfers and offers Tex-Mex standards and homemade pizzas. However, you can also get excellent fresh fish and perfectly prepared seafood dishes, as well as a variety of sandwiches served in homemade pita bread. The portions are huge. It almost always has fresh tuna lightly seared and served with a soy-wasabi dressing. The nicest tables are street-side on a covered veranda. Inside are more tables, as well as a bar with television sets showing surf videos.

El Hicaro

Cuisine: Seafood, Costa Rican

Hours: Daily 11am-11pm

Location: On the beach in downtown Jaco, Around Town

Reservations: Reservations recommended during high season

Phone: 643-3226

Prices: Main courses $5-$21

This is probably the best of all the simple Costa Rican seafood joints in Jaco. The food is good but not outstanding, but the setting is simply wonderful: right on the edge of the beach, with the majority of the tables outdoors under the stars, tall palm trees, and some interesting lighting. Stick with the freshly caught grilled seafood or lobster, although there are plenty of meat and chicken selections on the menu as well.

Hours: Daily 6-11pm

Location: At the Marriott Los Suenos resort, Around Town

Reservations: Reservations recommended

Phone: 630-9000

Prices: Main courses $18-$40

This restaurant offers creative and modern takes on local and regional dishes. The dozen or so tables are set in a narrow room that features a glass wall running its length, fronting a gorgeous pool fed by a series of spouts from a story-high aqueduct. The service and setting are semiformal, but there's no dress code -- they realize that you're at the beach and on vacation here. Standout dishes include the plantain-crusted red snapper and the guava-glazed baby back ribs.

Hours: Wed-Sun 6-10pm

Location: On the main road in Jaco, Around Town

Reservations: Reservations recommended

Phone: 643-3771

Prices: Main courses $8-$18

Chef Kent Green changes the menu almost nightly, but fresh seafood and top-quality cuts of meat are always the building blocks for his creative Asian-influenced creations. You'll usually find some fresh tuna, mahimahi, and jumbo shrimp on the menu, but on any given night the sauces will range from a homemade teriyaki to a spicy Thai sauce to coconut curry. Portions are large, but it's worth saving some room for dessert. Set just off the sidewalk on the main drag in town, the restaurant only has six or so tables, so reservations are often essential.