Unearth The Voyage
Panama sits at the crossroads of two oceans and dozens of cultures, and that geographic luck shows up clearly on the plate. The country’s restaurant scene pulls from Afro-Caribbean traditions, indigenous ingredients, Spanish colonial recipes, and Asian immigrant influences that arrived generations ago.
First-time visitors often expect beaches and the Canal, but many end up talking about the food long after they get home. Casco Viejo alone could keep a hungry traveler busy for a week, and that’s before you even consider the highland town of Boquete or the island-hopping paradise of Bocas del Toro.
This list covers 14 restaurants across Panama that consistently deliver for newcomers, from a legendary seafood market where locals elbow for counter space to a 12-seat chef’s table that requires a reservation weeks in advance. Read on, because your best meal in Panama is waiting.
1. Donde José – Panama City
Chef José Carles has turned a small dining room in Casco Viejo into one of the most talked-about tables in all of Central America. The tasting menu at Donde José is built around Panamanian identity, using ingredients tied to specific regions, communities, and food traditions that most tourists never encounter.
Each course is designed to tell a chapter of the country’s story, so by the end of the meal, you have learned something real about Panama without sitting through a single lecture. The kitchen sources directly from local farmers and indigenous producers, which means the menu shifts with the seasons.
Reservations are essential and fill up fast, so book well ahead of your trip. The dining room seats a small number of guests per service, giving the experience a focused, unhurried quality that large restaurants rarely achieve.
First-time visitors often call it the most memorable meal of their entire trip.
2. Maito – Panama City
Chef Mario Castrellón has been on the Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list since 2016, which tells you something important before you even read the menu. Maito takes Panamanian ingredients that have existed for centuries and rebuilds them into dishes that feel entirely contemporary without losing their roots.
The restaurant draws on Creole cooking methods, indigenous pantry staples, and regional coastal traditions, combining them with modern techniques that Castrellón refined through years of serious culinary work. The result is a menu that rewards curious eaters who want more than a predictable night out.
The setting is relaxed but polished, which means you can dress comfortably without feeling out of place. Maito works well for solo travelers and groups alike.
If you only have budget for one upscale dinner in Panama City, this is the restaurant most food-focused visitors point to first.
3. Mercado de Mariscos – Panama City
Right near Casco Viejo, this open-air fish market operates on a simple principle: buy what came in fresh today and eat it immediately. Locals have been doing exactly that for decades, and the market’s reputation for honest, affordable seafood has only grown stronger over time.
The lower level is where raw fish vendors sell directly to buyers, while the upper floor holds a row of small restaurants and food counters where cooks turn that same fresh catch into ceviche, fried fish plates, patacones, and seafood cocktails. Prices are far lower than at any hotel restaurant, and the portions are generous.
First-time visitors sometimes feel unsure about how the market works, but the setup is easy to navigate. Pick a counter, point at what looks good, and find a seat.
It’s one of the few places in Panama City where a full, satisfying seafood meal costs less than a fast-food combo back home.
4. El Trapiche – Panama City
Sancocho, arroz con pollo, tamal de olla: if those words mean nothing to you yet, El Trapiche is exactly where that education should begin. This long-running Panama City restaurant has built its entire reputation on serving the kind of Panamanian comfort food that locals grew up eating at family tables.
The menu reads like a tour of the country’s most beloved traditional dishes, presented in generous portions at prices that won’t require a budget adjustment. El Trapiche is popular from brunch through dinner, which means you can visit at almost any point in the day and find it in full swing.
For first-time visitors who feel overwhelmed by Panama’s more experimental restaurants, this is the grounding experience that makes everything else make sense. Once you’ve had a bowl of proper sancocho here, you’ll recognize its influence showing up in kitchens across the country.
Consider it required reading, served hot.
5. Makoto – Panama City
Panama City’s Japanese community has been part of the country’s cultural fabric for well over a century, so it should surprise no one that the city supports a genuinely excellent Japanese restaurant. Makoto, located in the Obarrio neighborhood, offers a refined menu that covers sushi, sashimi, nigiri, maki rolls, fish fillets, steaks, rice dishes, and noodles.
The kitchen works with quality sourcing and treats each preparation with the kind of care that distinguishes a serious Japanese restaurant from a generic sushi bar. The two-page sake list reflects the same attention to detail that runs through the food program.
Makoto works well for travelers who want a break from Panamanian cuisine without settling for something mediocre. The restaurant is polished but not stiff, and the service is knowledgeable without being condescending.
It’s a reliable choice for a special dinner that doesn’t require advance planning as intensive as the city’s most exclusive spots.
6. Tantalo Kitchen – Panama City
Casco Viejo has no shortage of rooftop options, but Tantalo has held its position as one of the neighborhood’s most consistent performers for years. The restaurant sits inside a boutique hotel in the historic district, and the rooftop setup gives diners an unobstructed view of the Panama City skyline that’s hard to beat on a clear evening.
The menu covers a wide range of dishes with Panama-inspired touches running through an otherwise international lineup. The kitchen keeps things accessible, which makes Tantalo a practical choice for groups with varying food preferences.
Beyond the food, the rooftop atmosphere draws a lively crowd of travelers and locals throughout the week. First-time visitors often end up here by recommendation and stay longer than planned.
The combination of solid food, memorable views, and a social setting makes it one of those places that earns a second visit before the first one is even finished.
7. Fonda Lo Que Hay – Panama City
The word fonda traditionally refers to a simple, no-frills local diner, which makes the name here a deliberate joke. Fonda Lo Que Hay has earned a place on Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list, which puts it in a very different category from the neighborhood lunch counters it playfully references.
The kitchen in Casco Viejo takes traditional Panamanian flavors and rebuilds them using seasonal ingredients and a creativity that changes the menu on a regular basis. The result is food that feels rooted and familiar to Panamanian diners while still surprising visitors who think they know what to expect.
The restaurant’s popularity means queues are common, so arriving early or making a reservation is a practical move. For first-time visitors who want to understand where Panamanian cooking is heading rather than just where it has been, this is the restaurant that answers that question most directly and deliciously.
8. Casa Casco – Panama City
Multi-concept dining venues can feel gimmicky, but Casa Casco in Casco Viejo earns its format through genuine variety. The property spreads across several levels, with different dining concepts occupying different spaces, so guests can move from a seafood-focused dinner to a rooftop setting depending on the mood of the evening.
The building itself sits in the heart of the historic district, which means the surroundings are worth paying attention to even before the food arrives. The architecture and neighborhood context add a layer of character that purely commercial dining spaces rarely achieve.
First-time visitors traveling in groups often find Casa Casco useful because the range of options under one roof means everyone can find something that works for them. The kitchen maintains a consistent standard across its different concepts, which is harder to pull off than it sounds.
It’s a practical and enjoyable anchor for an evening in Casco Viejo.
9. Restaurante Tomillo – Boquete
Boquete sits at roughly 1,200 meters above sea level in the Chiriqui highlands, and the cooler temperatures up there support a farming culture that feeds some of the freshest restaurant menus in the country. Restaurante Tomillo taps directly into that agricultural abundance, building its dishes around produce sourced from nearby farms.
The kitchen keeps the approach seasonal and straightforward, letting ingredient quality carry the menu rather than relying on complicated technique. That philosophy works well in a region where the soil and climate produce genuinely excellent vegetables, herbs, and proteins.
Visitors who make the trip to Boquete for the hiking and coffee tours often discover that the food scene is an equally compelling reason to stay an extra day. Tomillo is a quieter, more personal dining experience than anything available in Panama City, and that contrast is part of its appeal.
It rewards travelers who take the time to leave the capital.
10. The Rock – Boquete
The restaurant’s name is entirely literal. The Rock in Boquete is built around an enormous natural boulder that sits inside the dining area, functioning as both a structural feature and the most effective conversation starter in the Chiriqui highlands.
It’s the kind of architectural quirk that makes people take photos before they even look at the menu.
Beyond the geology, the kitchen offers a menu that blends international dishes with local Panamanian flavors, giving it broad appeal for the mix of expats, long-term residents, and travelers that Boquete attracts. The portions are generous and the prices reflect the town’s more relaxed pace.
The cozy setting makes The Rock a natural choice for a relaxed dinner after a day of hiking the Baru Volcano trails or visiting the coffee farms that dot the surrounding hillsides. It’s one of those places that earns return visits not through spectacle but through consistency.
11. Bibi’s on the Beach – Bocas del Toro
Bocas del Toro runs on a slower clock than the rest of Panama, and Bibi’s on the Beach fits that rhythm perfectly. The restaurant sits right on the water in the archipelago, offering a front-row position for watching boats, kayakers, and the general pleasant chaos of island life while you eat.
The menu focuses on fresh seafood, with the catch of the day rotating based on what local fishermen bring in. That unpredictability is a feature rather than a flaw, since it guarantees the fish on your plate was swimming recently.
First-time visitors to Bocas often spend their first day overwhelmed by the number of options on the main island, but Bibi’s has a low-key consistency that makes it easy to return to. The service is friendly without being formal, and the setting handles both solo travelers and larger groups without feeling stretched.
It’s a reliable anchor in a fun, slightly chaotic destination.
12. El Ultimo Refugio – Bocas del Toro
Long-timers in Bocas del Toro will tell you that El Ultimo Refugio has been a fixture of the archipelago’s dining scene for years, which in a place as transient as Bocas counts as a serious achievement. The restaurant has built its reputation on Caribbean-inspired cooking that draws from the culinary traditions of the islands and the mainland coast.
The menu leans on fresh fish, coconut-based preparations, and bold seasoning combinations that reflect the cultural mix of the region. Dishes here feel specific to the Caribbean side of Panama rather than generic tropical fare, which makes the experience genuinely educational for first-time visitors.
The pace is slow and the vibe is relaxed in a way that encourages guests to order another course rather than rush out. El Ultimo Refugio works best when you have nowhere else to be, which in Bocas del Toro is usually the entire point of the trip.
13. Restaurante Los Camisones – Colon
Colon doesn’t appear on most tourist itineraries, but travelers who make the short trip from Panama City often find that the city’s Afro-Caribbean food culture alone justifies the journey. Restaurante Los Camisones is one of the clearest expressions of that culinary tradition available to visitors.
The menu is built around rich, heavily seasoned dishes that reflect the West African and Caribbean heritage of the region’s population. Portions are substantial and prices are modest, which reflects the restaurant’s identity as a neighborhood institution rather than a tourist destination.
Dishes here use spice combinations and cooking methods that don’t appear in Panama City’s restaurant scene with any regularity, making the experience genuinely distinct. For first-time visitors who want to understand the full geographic and cultural range of Panamanian food rather than just the capital’s version of it, a meal at Los Camisones is one of the most direct routes to that understanding.
