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Almost all of the PR for Costa Rica focuses on beaches and isolated communities. For those of us who love big cities — I’ve lived in Tokyo, NTC, Boston, and Vegas — and who mostly “eat out” and wants the best Sushi, real Thai, authentic Indian, and spicy Chinese, living in an inexpensive (compared to USA) CITY seems a possibility.
But looking through posts, the general attitude seems to be just ignore San Jose and you don’t have to worry about crime, etc.
So let me ask those who live IN San Jose:
1) Are there safe hi-rise condos?
2) Are they located in areas that are safe to walk day and night?
3) Are there coffee shops and food marts with in a few blocks? (I’m thinking of condos in Manila that are built on top of malls.)
4) Is there Sushi, Thai, Indian, and Chinese in safe areas?
5) IF so, what part of San Jose should I look?
Thank you,
Steveyou’d better come and have a look-see at SJO — i’ve lived in london, paris, nyc, LA, denver, seattle, and after experiencing big city life in those places, SJO does not even make it to a list of cities i would want to live in. Scott lives on the outskirts so he can fill you in on life in a penthouse. as for the cuisine, well, i love all that food you mentioned but i haven’t found a restaurant (with the exception of Tin Jo) that had better food than i could fix at home. SJO is NOT Buenas Aires, or Lima, or even Montevideo.
You have to see and experience it yourself! I have lived in several major cities around the world, visiting is one thing, living there is another. I currently live in a major northest U.S. city, and cannot wait to depart on a full time basis to Guancaste. I do enjoy the museums and eateries in SJ, on a day trip! In terms of crime, it is everywhere, learn tactics that make you less of a target.
I live on the edge of the Parque La Sabana in Pavas and love it here…
1. There are extremely safe and high-rise condos – I live in one…. Some are more expensive than others. The apartments they are building across from me start at over $500K, others start at around $200K
2. I do walk around here day and night here although I do not walk into the park at night. But I would not walk into Central Park, NY at night either…
3. There are shops and restaurants within easy walking distance but I don’t think you’ll find the same style and certainly not the same huge selection as you would find in an enormous city like Manila.
3) I eat sashimi every week – can’t get enough of that white tune – sorry! Atun blanco… There are tons of Chinese restaurants ANYWHERE in the world. For Thai and Indian the nearest one is in Escazu.
4. Rohrmoser is rapidly becoming a very upscale area. Rohrmoser Boulevard is to San Jose what Park Avenue is to Manhattan.
There is a large (percentage wise) Orthodox Jewish presence here and they tend to stay close to their temple.
Scott
I bet 10 different persons could respond to the question and you could get 10 entirely different responses. I think the only way to answer your question is to come down and try it out for 6 months or however long it takes until your comfortable with your decision. Personally I could easily live in a number of the nicer neighborhoods of San Jose and I think you’ll find mostly what you’re seeking but really there is no substitute for experiencing it for yourself. Good Luck.
[quote=”Scott”]I live on the edge of the Parque La Sabana in Pavas and love it here…
1. There are shops and restaurants within easy walking distance but I don’t think you’ll find the same style and certainly not the same huge selection as you would find in an enormous city like Manila.
2) I eat sashimi every week – can’t get enough of that white tune – sorry! Atun blanco… There are tons of Chinese restaurants ANYWHERE in the world. For Thai and Indian the nearest one is in Escazu.
Scott[/quote]
Yes, Manila is vast. In reality what I want VERY nearby are coffee shop/bakery, supermarkets, and magazine shops. (I lived on 75th between 8th and 9th in NYC and could walk to all of these.)
Thank god, a report of sushi! Curious if it’s run by Japanese.
If you’ve tried the Thai and Indian, how have you found them?
I can now look at maps to see where these locations are. Thank you.
I’d be very surprised to learn that there are shops nearby Scott’s home that offer any significant selection of English-language magazines. Correct me if I’m wrong.
The good news, however, is that most magazines are now available more conveniently online. If you own an iPad (highly recommended), the vast majority of commonly available magazines are available via iPad apps from the App Store. Otherwise, you can read ’em online from your laptop or desktop computer.
An Upper West Sider, eh?
I lived on 89th and Amsterdam Ave in 1985 and regularly heard gunshots at night from a few blocks North …
After I returned from living a few years in Westchester County I later lived on 72nd between CPW and Columbus…
It’s a great area however…
There is NOTHING like the the Upper West Side of Manhattan anywhere in any town or city in Costa Rica.
My local sushi restaurant is indeed run by Japanese. The Brits (I’m British) eat tons of Indian food and the quality of the Indian food here is “OK” but they always downplay the spices and I happen to love spicy (picante) food.. The Thai restaurant is also “OK” …
I love to cook and do so every night whether I have company or not and really don’t like paying through the nose for food (and more appropriately wine) that I KNOW I can prepare better at home…
It’s been my experience that:
1. There are plenty of mediocre restaurants here.
2. There are many good restaurants in San Jose, Escazu and Santa Ana but…
3. There are no truly excellent restaurants.This probably applies to most places but it would be good to hear the opinions of other long time residents of Costa Rica.
Scott
[quote=”Scott”] The Brits (I’m British) eat tons of Indian food and the quality of the Indian food here is “OK” but they always downplay the spices Scott[/quote]
But…Scott….are the [b]SAMOSAS[/b] at least good? I have [b]YET[/b] to find samosas as good as the ones I used to eat in East and Central Africa.:cry:
i haven’t found any restaurant here on the caliber of restaurants in NYC or even LA — whether that be italian, india, thai, or chinese. in fact, i’ve had some of the worst chinese food in my life in costa rica. this is not a culinary paradise despite that so many wonderful ingredients are to be found. and the bread. . . . well, that is truly disappointing, so in nearly 7 years i have never bought a loaf of bread. i like real italian bread so i make it myself. they do have good espresso here, tho.
i forgot to mention that the pastries here are the WORST!!! The few i’ve tried all tasted artificial; i know margarine is a staple here rather than real butter, and everything is overly sweet.
The best Italian restaurant here is on the road between Nuevo Arenal and Tilaran. Cafe Macadamia.
The best Chinese place is run by a Chinaman in Canas, can’t recall the name but if you go there just ask for the best Chinese food.
There is also an Argentine steak house in Tilaran.Fantastic.
My mental passport wont allow me to enter the central valley.[quote=”maravilla”]i forgot to mention that the pastries here are the WORST!!! The few i’ve tried all tasted artificial; i know margarine is a staple here rather than real butter, and everything is overly sweet.[/quote]
The German pastry chef ‘Mike’ at KaKau Restaurant in Centro Comercial Paco in Escazu serves up some delicious desserts …
Scott
So glad someone asked this question! I’m another one who dreams of city life rather than the tropical beach that seems to be the general ideal for those interested in living in CR. Glad to hear there is decent Indian as that is my favorite cuisine. (And yes, I can cook it myself and often mix my own masalas but nearby take away is a plus wherever one might live!)
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