Mi Ranchito (Revisit)

Restaurante Mi Ranchito
Amador Causeway
Panama City, Panama

More often than not, I do not re-blog a restaurant visit. For the most part, in my experience, my follow-up visits are pretty much similar to what I experienced and blogged. However, there are times I do re-visits thanks readers suggestions. So far, most re-visits have been locally here in Vancouver – after all, I live here. However, to “break” that pattern, I returned to Mi Ranchito, I restaurant I blogged about last year! After all, locals suggest this place and, since I was with my parents’ friends, it was a good way to introduce them to local cuisine!

Now, there was a reason I wanted to come back. Last time, I did not have my SpeedLight yet and the pictures used the regular flash. The end result? They weren’t pretty pictures. This time, let’s just say I wanted to make sure they will turn out better, hehehehe. Yes, while we did end up ordering similar dishes, we also ordered something else. Without further ado…

Ceviche de Corvina

Remember this picture?

Yup, now THAT is ceviche (specifically, ceviche de corvina; corvina being a fish usually found on the Pacific Ocean). Unlike the one I had in Baru Latino, you could really taste the acidity from the lime/lemon juice here and, to quote my friend, the texture was almost like that of chicken. I so wished I could find it here in Vancouver…

Dish #2 was almejas al ajillo, clams in garlic sauce. The “sauce” wasn’t only garlic based; it also had some butter and ají chombo, a hot pepper related to habañero pepper, which is one of the spiciest hot peppers around. However, there weren’t that much of the later so, it wasn’t that bad. Too bad we didn’t order a side of rice to go along with all that sauce… As for the clams, it is difficult to describe unless you have had it. Trying to compare it to local clams would be difficult but let’s just say you could taste a bit of the sea with each piece.

Moving forward, here is a dish that was also ordered last time: arañitas or squid tentacles. It is fried stuff, what else do you need me to say!

Patacón, or fried, smashed and refried green plantain. Remember I ordered something similar in Delicias de Alicia? This is the way I am used to eating. Needless to say, these were still warm (read: freshly fried). The only “issue” was that they didn’t add some salt as soon as they got out of the fryer.

Calamar al Ajillo – squid in garlic sauce. In a lot of ways, it was similar to the sauce in the clams dish, except it didn’t have the ají chombo, hence it wasn’t spicy. The squid itself was cooked tender so no complains. We had options of one side and we (actually, it was I!) chose yuca, aka, cassava.

In addition to the portion that comes with the squid order, I ordered a second serving. To those who have never had yuca, I will highly suggest you give this a try. It has a starchier, dryer texture compared to regular fries. Unlike fries were a lot of times you need catsup, mayo or mustard, you can have this as is. Yes, it has some unique taste of its own.

Finally, the cost of the meal. Notice one thing: tips were included in the final bill, something that a lot of us are against. At least, for Canadian standards, it is fine – it was 10% (it is the $3.43 line item in the bill above). Given that I have come back, it is needless to say I won’t hesitate to go one more time, next time I am in Panama City. So, if you happen to be a traveller and you are in the city, try to find your way to get there. Even if it is not the food, the causeway has a great scenery. A win-win scenario.

Tagged under: Fish • Panama City • Seafood