The love for ice cream is a worldwide trend. Can we agree on that? Let’s travel with a local’s advice all the way to Costa Rica to experience an unbeaten path place for having ice cream: Da Noi. If you are a tourist, is more likely that you hit places on the capital city where prices vary from one to another, hence this places may charge for being “overrated” and the quality is not always the best. If you are coming to Costa Rica, it will be very rare if you go to Da Noi. First, because is 35-40 minutes by car from the Capital city; second, because is close the residential areas, were the locals know best!
Why did I like this place (the one located at Momentum Pinares)? Because is a small, cozy and vintage coffee and gelato “cave” that makes you forget about the busy life we might have after having your cappuccino. The pink walls and the white tables reminds me the spring days at Paris, and the vintage-chic decoration is an open invitation to have a seat without thinking in having a coffee “to go”. The specialty of the place is the gelato, which is an artisanal ice cream…and forme the best ice cream I have ever taste in Costa Rica. But just ice cream? What are the options on the menu? Besides my beloved gelato, you can find artisanal sandwiches and the Spaniard cuisine bliss.
In Costa Rica there is a very famous dessert called Torta Chilena, and in fact my favorite dessert in the world! A Torta Chilena is a sort of pie made from thin crispy layers, and each one is covered with a sweet milk caramelized (in Spanish dulce de leche). In Da Noi they prepare the best torta, and the best news is a gelato with the same flavor, can you imagine? Without any doubt they have been conquering the locals with this heavenly flavor!
My favorite picks from Da Noi are: the freshly brewed coffee, the foamy cappuccino, the cranberry-pecan salad (my healthy option), and the mozzarella “empanadas”.
Da Noi is where the artisanal quality and the creative flavors gather to design an unique culinary experience. As a local and coffee lover, I cannot picture myself going to any other place to have gelato and chat with my friends while having coffee.
