Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
clean, spacious and comfortable. Owner Wesley Williams is a knowledgeable source of
information on local history and culture.
Slilma Guesthouse
( 2572-0523; slilma_gh1@yahoo.com; Enitel, 1c S, 1c E; r with/without air-con US$30/20, r
without bathroom US$10; )
Take the first left after the cell tower to find this budget guest-
house offering small but very clean rooms with small TVs and the cleanest shared bath-
rooms in the Atlantic region. There are also excellent-value breezy and spacious rooms
upstairs.
GUESTHOUSE
$
Casa Blanca
( 2572-0508; Enitel, 250m O; s/d with air-con US$35/40, s/d/tr without bathroom US$20/25/35;
)
This lovely white house has wooden floors and furnishings made in the attached
workshop. The small rooms upstairs have very low ceilings but those out the back are spa-
cious and full of natural light. These ladies can cook too. Try the shrimp in coconut sauce.
HOTEL
$$
CARIBBEAN CUISINE
Nicaragua's best eating happens on the Caribbean coast. Fresh seafood, particularly lobster and
shrimp, is inexpensive and exquisitely prepared, most famously as
rundown
, a one-pot meal in
which seasoned fish is steamed atop plantains, cassava and other root vegetables, letting the fla-
vor 'run down.' Coconut milk, the Caribbean coast's not-so-secret ingredient, is considered the
key to good health and digestion, and is added to almost everything including bread,
gallo pinto
(rice and beans) and rich seafood soup.
Eating & Drinking
Casa Ulrich
(Up Point, Muelle 350m N; mains US$5.50-12.50; 7am-10pm)
Local boy and Swiss-trained
chef Fred Ulrich has returned to Pearl Lagoon after a long absence working in resorts all
over the Americas and invested in his own hotel and restaurant right by the water.
Everything on the menu is top-notch, but make sure to try the tender filet steaks that arrive
at your table on a sizzling platter or the delicate shrimp pasta.
There are also a range of rooms available and guests have private lagoon access via the
lovely grassed yard.
INTERNATIONAL
$$
