The Daily Diary of a Wandering Restaurateur
December 6 - Dining around the Lake
The German Bakery in the town of Nuevo Arenal is part of a complex owned by an American couple and seems typical of the sort of thing that gringos seem to do here. In addition to the bakery there is a German restaurant, gift shop, Internet cafe and who knows what other little ventures? I imagine you need multiple streams of income to generate enough cash, particularly in the off season. We stopped here for some strudel -- not bad, but more Austrian than German. On the way back to the house, we stopped at the Hotel Tilawa since Alex had been talking about the place. Great view.
The hotel may have a great site but they still don't have a clue about running a restaurant. The food was adequate but nothing that would make me want to return. Since the owners don't have a clue on how to run a restaurant, they can't train the staff on what to do. Unfortunately in a community this small, the word gets around quickly. Alex and Laura couldn't believe that we actually ate here! (I wish they had mentioned that in the first place!) The place has potential but it is going to need a LOT of work, both physically and operationally. The roaring fire, a nice touch at first, finally drove us out, sweating profusely. The idea that a fire might generate too much heat was not on anyone's radar.
© 2007 Restaurant Doctor
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