Panamanian Food Guide: What to Eat and Where to Find Authentic Cuisine
Panamanian cuisine is one of Latin America’s best kept secrets. Shaped by indigenous traditions, Afro Caribbean influence, Spanish colonial heritage, and Asian immigration, Panama’s food tells the story of a crossroads nation.
For travelers visiting Panama City, understanding the local food landscape transforms a trip from ordinary to extraordinary. And for the most refined expression of Panamanian ingredients and techniques, Kaandela in Casco Viejo is the destination.
The Foundations of Panamanian Cuisine
Panamanian food is built on rice, corn, plantains, coconut, and fresh seafood. Traditional dishes like sancocho (a hearty chicken soup), patacones (fried green plantains), and arroz con pollo reflect the country’s agricultural roots. Street food empanadas, ceviche, hojaldras is everywhere and essential.
But the new generation of Panamanian chefs is pushing beyond tradition, using these same ingredients as a foundation for creative, globally informed cooking.
How Kaandela Honors and Evolves Panamanian Food
Chef José Aparicio represents the bridge between traditional and contemporary. Raised on a farm in Chiriquí, he learned to cook from his mother and aunts women who worked with what the land provided. After training at Panama’s top hotel school and working 17 years in world class kitchens, he returned to those roots.
At Kaandela, traditional Panamanian ingredients yuca, coconut, aji chombo, tropical fruits, highland coffee are reimagined through fermentation, smoking, curing, and open-fire techniques. The result is food that tastes unmistakably Panamanian but feels entirely new.
Where to Explore Panamanian Food in Panama City
For the full spectrum of Panamanian cuisine, start at the Mercado de Mariscos for street level ceviche, explore fondas (local eateries) in Calidonia for traditional plates, and end your culinary journey at Kaandela for the most elevated expression of the country’s ingredients.
The Kaandela menu reads like a map of Panama’s biodiversity each dish connected to a specific region, producer, or tradition.
Support the Source
Kaandela’s Giving Back program ensures that the communities producing these ingredients benefit from the restaurant’s success. Dining here is a vote for sustainable, community driven gastronomy.
Book your table and taste Panama at its best.
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