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Sikwa

San José

Preserving Costa Rica’s Indigenous culinary heritage

Why should I go? Having travelled around Costa Rica to get to know the Central American country's diverse gastronomic heritage from its Indigenous communities, chef Pablo Bonilla interprets traditional ingredients and culinary techniques, as well as recipes that have been passed down through generations orally at Sikwa. The first restaurant in the country to ever be voted into the list, Sikwa is known as boundary-pushing and trailblazing in Costa Rica's culinary scene.

About the chef: Born and raised in Costa Rica, Bonilla relentlessly traversed his home country, getting closer to Indigenous peoples such as the Bribis and Cabécares to document them for his pioneering research project. The endeavour later took on a physical form in the shape of Sikwa, which opened in 2018 – the chef prefers to call it a research centre for Costa Rican gastronomic education, rather than a restaurant.

What's in a name? Sikwa means a non-Indigenous person or foreigner in Bribri, a Chibchan Indigenous language that is spoken in the Isthmo-Colombian region of Central America.

Giving back: The restaurant project operates its own circular economy, with Indigenous farmers and producers forming part of the production chain, selling their ingredients not only to Sikwa but also to other restaurants in San José.

On the menu: Kick things off withshrimp tartare (served with pico de gallo ponzu and a green plantain hashbrown) or the hen empanadas, made from purple corn and green plantain dough. For mains, there's a green curry made with the catch of the day, charcoal-grilled beef with a white bean pureé and cacao mole and a pork flank steak with green papaya kimchi and chestnut, among other tempting dishes. There's also a list of signature cocktails, such as the agua de sapo (ginger beer, rum and raw sugar cane) and the maiz dorado (corn whiskey, bone marrow, dry vermouth and a saline solution).

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