Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 809-682-8006; Máximo Gómez 60; mains RD$400; 8am-11:30pm; )
You might leave this
oasis of comfort and sophistication (on an otherwise gritty stretch) feeling envious of the
regulars who are welcomed like family. It's the sort of place where the Italian owner
bustles around, doling out pats and quips. Nearly three-dozen types of really top-notch
pizza and pasta, plus fish and meat dishes round out the menu.
Great-looking pastries, cakes, gelato and wine are on display in the bright and welcom-
ing cafe side. The larger dining room is a dreamy fantasyscape of papier-mâché trees and
structures like canopied beds.
El Conuco
MAP
DOMINICAN
$$
GOOGLE MAP
( 809-686-0129; Casimiro de Moya 152; mains RD$350; 11:30am-midnight)
Unashamedly
touristy, El Conuco is stereotypically Dominican in the same way the Hard Rock Café is
authentically American. Nevertheless, Dominicans as well as tour groups come here to get
traditionally prepared dishes while taking in traditional dancers - the real highlight - in a
dining room covered with traditional decorations.
Manolo
MAP
DOMINICAN
$$
GOOGLE MAP
(Av Independencia; mains RD$200-600; 24hr)
Owned by next-door Hotel Riazor, Manolo has
an indoor dining room and an elevated outdoor terrace that is great for a leisurely meal or
drink. The menu runs the gamut from basic sandwiches to elaborately prepared lobster
and steaks.
ITALIAN
$$$
Vesuvio Malecón
MAP
GOOGLE MAP
( 809-221-1954; Av George Washington 521; mains RD$700; 10am-midnight Sun-Thu, 11am-1am
Fri & Sat)
A Malecón institution only a few blocks from the Hilton and one of the city's
better restaurants since 1954, Vesuvio is elegant without being snooty. Expect refined
Neapolitan-style seafood and meat dishes; lobster and shellfish are featured in beautifully
plated antipasti.
Maniqui Restaurant & Lounge
(
INTERNATIONAL
$$$
809-689-3030; Av Pedro Henríquez Ureña, Plaza de la Cultura; mains RD$700;
noon-midnight
)
Decked out like the boudoir of a burlesque club, this
Mon-Thu & Sun, to 2am Fri & Sat;
