SANTIAGO – DINING
If you want decent Dominican food, along with a eagle’s eye view of the Santiago area, as well as a bit of history, you can’t get better than “Camp David Ranch Restaurant” (Carretera Luperón. Km 7.5), which is part of a hotel of the same name. At over 2,000 feet above sea level, this classy restaurant serves dishes, ranging from grilled lobster to other seafood like “mero en salsa de cerveza” (grouper in beer sauce), as well as various meat items, pastas and rice dishes, is memorable simply because of its mountainous location on the outskirts of Santiago. Founded by a loyalist of the country’s former dictator (Gen. Rafael Trujillo – who ruled for a 31-year period until 1961), a nearby piano bar called “El Generalísimo” still has three of the dictator’s vintage 1950s-era cars.
Meanwhile, back in the city of Santiago, another restaurant with decent local cuisine (as well as serving an assortment of Chinese dishes) is “Pez Dorado” (Calle El Sol 43), which has been in business for decades. Within “El Monumento” area are two popular restaurants: “Kukara Macara” (Av. Francia 7, Zona Monumental) – an American western-themed place that serves steaks, hamburgers, tacos and sandwiches; and “Marisco Centro” (Calle El Sol, esq. Francis, Zona Monumental) – a popular lobster and seafood place that happens to have a restaurant in New York’s Dominican community (Washington Heights).
Since some of these restaurants can be pricey, budget tourists can always fall back on American fast food, which began taking root in Santiago (and the capital) during the 1990s, when the sons and daughters of the local elite started launching franchises here, in particular Burger King (Centro Plaza Internacional), McDonald’s (Av. Estrella Sadhalá esq. Av. 27 de Febrero), Domino’s Pizza (Av. 27 de Febrero) and Pizza Hut (Plaza Zona Rosa/ Av. Juan Pablo Duarte).
Interestingly, because the prices for American fast food in this country are virtually the same as in the U.S. (if not a little more), such eateries are mainly frequented by the local middle class (especially students), tourists, and Dominican immigrants visiting from the U.S. The local working class is still likely to stick with Dominican fast food items such as “Chimmi Churry” (a Dominican version of a hamburger – consisting of an oregano-seasoned ground beef patty, shredded cabbage, onions, tomatoes, and mayonnaise served on a toasted roll).
Another note on fast food in the Dominican Republic: a local Pizza chain called Pizzarelli (which was launched by an Italian family who migrated to the island some years ago), has done extraordinarily well against American competitors Domino’s and Pizza Hut – serving tasty pizza with zesty tomato sauce and fresher-quality crush. That pizza restaurant’s popularity has gone as far as earning it a spot at Punta Cana Airport’s dining area (Punta Cana and nearby Bávaro Beach being the most popular tourist areas on the island).