A week in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico - where/what should we eat?!

[eclaire]

Some of my friends and I are spending our last spring break as undergrads in Old San Juan, and I wanted to get some suggestions on where we should eat/drink. We're staying in an apartment right in the middle of Old San Juan, near the cathedral, and we would be especially interested in places that we can walk to.

We all speak Spanish fairly well, so we really have no need for touristy spots. I'd like to hear about some good, authentic, reasonably-priced lunch and dinner places to visit. Info about national dishes would be great, too.

Also, if anyone has suggestions for fun (less tourist-packed) bars and clubs to go to, please let me know!

I'm also hoping to find a Farmers' Market in the area to buy fresh fruit for breakfast, snacks... and blended cocktails.

We will probably cook dinner a few nights to save $$, so if anyone knows what produce/seafood is best in PR, I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks!

[pnk.pr]

To find a Farmer's Market, you will need to take a cab to La Placita de Santurce during the day, where you will find fresh local produce...and even Thursday and Friday nights there are various bars around and it get's packed, good times, not touristy at all...
in Old San Juan, you will find a mix of local and touristy spots, you should try to head up to Calle San Sebastian where you will find some pretty cool bars that locals go, like El Batey...Don Pablos's...La Tortuga...and La Sombrilla Rosa...Rumba...Cafe San Sebastian...Aqui Se Puede...if you are looking for a more trendy crowd head over to SoFo ( South Fortaleza Street) where there are many pretty good restaurants, which you should try to look into, that turn into lounges later during the night...Taste...Marmelade...Pink Skirt...Tantra...Dragonfly...Toro Salao'...MIlk...Blend...Fratelli...
To eat local food around old san juan, you can head over to La Bombonera where they serve the best breakfast around old san juan...you could try also Cafe Manolin on Calle San Justo...and La Mallorquina...

you should also try to take a cab to nearby Condado for some bars at night, La Terraza, La Ventana del Mar, Barlovento, also the lobby and pool bars of La Concha Hotel are very nice...

hope this helps you...let me know if you need anymore help...

[eclaire]

Thanks so much for your recommendations! We leave on Thursday morning and are all very excited.

I have another question, which isn't really about food, but you seem really knowledgeable about PR, so I'll ask anyhow:

We would like to take a few day trips out of San Juan. Where would you recommend we go? We are thinking of renting a car and going to El Yunque, and we've considered going to La Parguera to see the bioluminescent bay. I'd love to hear what you think the best places to visit for a day in PR would be! Thanks again!

[pnk.pr]

no problem, you could make one trip and see both El Yunque and a bioluminescent bay...there is one in Fajardo near Las Croabas...and there are various tour companys that do some night kayak tours...you could rent a car and see el yunque during the afternoon and then drive over to Fajardo and take a kayak tour...el Yunque is about an hour drive from San Juan... and Fajardo is about 20 minutes or less from el Yunque...and you could still make it back on time to party in San Juan...if you arent too tired...

another good trip is going to Camuy to see the caves...and to Arecibo to see the Observatory...if you are into ecotourism...there are a few companies that do trips near these areas and take you rappeling, kayaking, and hiking through some pretty cool areas...

if you are into museums, the MAPR (Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico) is pretty nice...it is in Santurce...

Ponce which is the second largest city in the south of the island is an interesting site...and the drive down there is pretty scenic...its about an hour and a half from San Juan.

The beaches of the west coast...Rincon, Isabela...etc, are very nice too if you are into surfing or just seeing amazing beaches...the sunsets there are the best in the world...

hope this helps you even more, and hope you have a great time in PR...if you need any more recommendations on restaurants or anything let me know...

[amy10040526]

Hello, I am new to this site and you are very knowledgeable about the subject of San Juan. My family is going to be staying at the Marriott Resort on Condado Beach. We are really looking forward to eating authentic "local" food and are also looking to go to the rainforest. We also want to visit some beaches that are pretty and clean. We have a 1 1/2 year old and a 6 year old. Do you know of any authentic places to eat for breakfast lunch and dinner? Thank you so much for any help you can provide.