Santiago Restaurant Tips by TheWanderingCamel

Restaurant Name: Mercado Central cafes

Fresh fish is definitely the dish to order here at one of the restaurants in Santiago's Mercado Central. The market has become increasingly popular as a place to eat and the fish stalls that once filled it have pushed to the sides whilst the centre of the great hall is really just one big restaurant. Lunch is the big meal of the day here in Chile and many places shut for a full two hours between 1 and 3 so get here early to be sure of getting a table. Take some time before sitting down to inspect the stalls - there are some amazing sights - squid rings as big as bicycle tyres, huge spiny crabs, sea urchins and a bewildering array of other sea creatures.
Cooking can be a bit basic -fried is the most common. If you don't want to absorb too many calories with your fish ask for it to be cooked "a la plancha" (grilled) or try a "cerviche" - lightly steamed or, more traditionally "cooked" in lemon or lime juice.

Favorite Dish: We had a beautifully grilled sea bass, big white flakes of a decidedly unfishy-tasting fish. Served with a pretty basic salad - an a lot of charm and chat from the young waiter - it made a delicious lunch.

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Theme: Seafood
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$11-20  » Currency Converter
Address: Mercado Central

Restaurant Name: Cafe Turri - Valparaiso

Right near the top of Valparaiso's Ascensore Concepcion is where you'll find Cafe Turri. Its location, so near the funicular and the wonderful views from its wide terrace, make it a magnet for tourists but the food is good enough to attract lots of locals too. Inside it's an attractively old-fashioned sort of place - white tablecloths and wood panelling in a series of interconnecting rooms.

A second visit to Cafe Turri some 2 years later than this first one showed the place has been refurbished to give it a more contemporary look. It may have lost some of its period charm but the view is still spectacular and the food is still as good.

Favorite Dish: We love seafood of all descriptions and, after the solid meat diet of Buenos Aires, found we were eating fish of some sort every day in Chile. Cafe Turri was no exception. I can't remember what the fish was exactly but I do know we enjoyed it! A bottle of good Chilean red went down well too.

The second time around we ordered a Chilean speciality - pastel de jaiba (crab casserole) served Cafe Turri-style in an edible bowl of crisp cheese. Rich and filling - and utterly delicious, especially when teamed with an equally crisp Chilean semillon.

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Theme: Local
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$11-20  » Currency Converter

Restaurant Name: Don't know

I have no idea what this place in Valparaiso was called -but you can hardly mistake it for anything else. I seem to remember it being some sort of tourist information place as well as a cafe. Whatever -it certainly is a landmark in the area known as Cerro Concepcion. The information office was at street level and we went downstairs to a wide terraced cafe for a drink. The view was truly spectacular -definitely a million dollar one.


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Theme: Local
Comparison: about average
Prices: less than US$10  » Currency Converter
Directions: At the top of Ascensor Concepcion

Restaurant Name: Liguria

Liguria's something of a Santiago institution, a real favourite among the city's in crowd. We didn't know that when we ate there first - it was just the restaurant nearest to our hotel, it looked good, there were outside tables for a fine evening and the menu promised rabbit - what more did we need?

Sitting down and perusing both the menu and the place, we decided we liked what we saw. Walls covered in interesting photos and posters, an interesting looking crowd, a hum of conversation, waiters busy but attentive with time for a few words and a smile, a piano somewhere in the background, old favourites on the menu - both food and wine. The place was living up to those first impressions and it continued to do so as the evening wore on. The food was excellent, the wine to wash it down a really good drop, the service didn't flag and the bill was a pleasant surprise.

There are two other Ligurias in the city - all three are in Providencia. "Our " Liguria is on Ave Pedro Valdivia, the others are on Ave Providencia and Ave Thayer Ojeda.

Favorite Dish: Did I eat the rabbit twice? I really can't remember. I know I had it the first time and it was very good, roasted and served with a winey sauce and buttery steamed potatoes. MrL's a sausage-lover in all their manifestations and he had the morcilla ( Spanish blood sausage) and spicy mashed potato on one occasion and pronounced it very good. There was a plate of fall-off-the-bone-and-melt-in-the mouth pork ribs - I think we shared those. Does it really matter? I just know we really liked this place and coming back on our return to Santiago after a few days touring south was definitely an easy decision.

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Theme: Local
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$21-30  » Currency Converter
Address: Pedro de Valdivia 047, Providencia
Directions: Next door to the Orly Hotel
Metro: Pedro de Val divia