EATING IN ADÍCORA
 |
Seafood is abundant, and a fried fish with fried plantains (tajatas) and salad is common fare. Lobster (langosta) and shrimp (camarones) are also available. Fish soup (sopa de pescado) comes with the ubiquitous cornmeal dumpling called an arepa and makes an excellent light meal (it's best at Rancho Cacique). Most of the restaurants are on the North Shore. A typical dinner-size meal runs four to five U.S. dollars. |
The thing to be sure to order in Venezuela is any one of the jugos naturales - freshly-prepared juices which are widely available and excellent. I used to order two at a time because I always downed the first before I could remember it. Pinapple (piña), melon (melón), watermelon (patilla), and passion fruit (parchita) are common varieties.
Drinking the water: Inexpensive bottled water (agua mineral sin gas) is widely available at bars, restaurants, and grocers. Sometimes restaurants will serve filtered water free with meals and call it "agua filtrada," which is also what the giant blue bottles of water you can buy at the liquor store across from the supermarket are sometimes called.
While it is best to err on the side of caution, I do believe that tap water in Adícora is generally potable, so don't overreact if you find that you have ingested some. I've known some long-stay foreigners who have sworn by its purity, though I don't go out of my way to drink it. It's hard to be sure if tap water is not in use in the preparation of fresh juices at various restaurants, even when assured that they are using "filtered" water. You may request it be made with bottled water and offer to pay the extra money if you wish to be absolutely safe, though this is not a common practice. See Health for further suggestions.