Costa Rican food is simple and filling rather than elaborate. The staple is rice and beans, eaten at almost every meal in some form. It's honest, inexpensive, and grows on you.
Gallo pinto is the national dish: rice and black beans (cooked separately, then fried together with onion, peppers, and cilantro) eaten at breakfast with eggs, cheese, sour cream (natilla), and fried plantains. You'll eat it multiple times a week.
Casado is the standard lunch plate — the word means "married man," implying a home-cooked meal. It comes with rice, beans, a small salad, fried plantains, and your choice of protein (usually chicken, beef, pork, or fish). It's the best-value meal in the country and available everywhere.
Sodas are family-run restaurants serving traditional Tico food. They are cheaper, more authentic, and often better than tourist restaurants. Look for a handwritten menu board and plastic chairs; that's usually a good sign.
Caribbean coast food is a different world. Coconut milk, scotch bonnet peppers, and fresh seafood dominate. Rice and beans (cooked together with coconut milk) is not the same as gallo pinto — it's richer and more fragrant. Rondón is a Caribbean fish and vegetable stew slow-cooked in coconut milk. Puerto Viejo and Cahuita have the best Caribbean cooking in the country.
Ceviche — usually made with tilapia, mahi-mahi, or sea bass, marinated in lime juice with cilantro, onion, and peppers — is excellent on both coasts. It's commonly served as a snack or starter.
Street food includes tacos ticos (soft corn tortillas with meat, cheese, and salsa), chifrijo (rice, beans, chicharrón, and pico de gallo — a bar staple), and patacones (flattened fried green plantains).
Coffee is excellent. Costa Rica produces some of the world's finest coffee, particularly from the Tarrazú region south of San José. A simple café negro (black coffee) or café con leche is the standard order. Avoid the instant coffee (café instantáneo) that still shows up in some cheaper places.
Guaro is the national spirit — a sugarcane liquor. Cacique is the most common brand. It's rough on its own but acceptable in a guaro sour or mixed with fruit juice.
Fruit is extraordinary year-round: mangoes, papayas, pineapples, watermelons, and many tropical varieties less familiar in temperate countries (star fruit, mamón chino, guanábana). Fresh juice (fresco natural) served with water or milk is one of the great pleasures of eating in Costa Rica.