I know this is quite a general question, but we are trying to decide whether to rent a place with a kitchen or just a hotel room. On an average, what would the cost for two people be for beakfast,lunch and dinner.

Thanks for your help.

Allison,
Dinner is between $10 and $30 PP, $10 to 20 for lunch, $10 to $15 for Breakfast.
We get a place with a kitchen and go out for dinner everynight... Ron

It depends on where you go for dinner & if you have drinks & appetizers. I have found that the prices here are very similar to the US. If you just want burgers for dinner, it will be inexpensive. If you want a salad & the catch of the day, you will pay for it. Cooking at your room can get expensive, too. You will probably have to buy all of the spices & seasonings that you need. Fresh vegetables are really hard to find some days of the week. sometimes i have a hard time finding real butter. plus if you want aluminum foil, plastic baggies, etc. count on having to buy all that too. Not to mention that you will be cooking in a (most likely) tiny kitchen that will heat up your whole room & you probably will have less than ideal cooking implements. I would plan on eating out, there are definitely some places to go for inexpensive meals, and I have not encountered any restaurant where the prices are riduculously expensive.

What we do is get juice, bread for toast and sandwiches(and we bring our own Starbucks), some sort of meat and cheese, and eat breakfast and at least part of lunches in. We've brought packets of rice and beans as well, for a light supper when we're doing a night dive. Then we eat out for some lunches and most dinners. It works well for us, as long as you don't plan on real cooking. After all, you're on vacation!

Definitely go to the Lost Penguin for breakfast & lunch. It's not expensive & their food is great! they are closed tuesdays and wednesdays. Also check out Bobbejans on the weekend & Pasa Bon pizza for a cheap & yummy dinner. Also you must try the mixed grill at Casablanca - you get TONS of food, enough for days of leftovers, for around $35 for two people.

We find the prices very inexpensive on Bonaire compared to other islands.

We were away w/out our children and wanted to eat at nice restaurants - and the average price was around $70 - but we aren't big drinkers. At Richards we both got lobster tail, appetizers, and two drinks and it was around $75. At home it would have easily been over $100.

I recommend buying your own water & soda at a local supermarket in town - that seems to be a bit pricey at the hotels.

For me it is not so much a matter of price as a matter of what I want my vacation to look like. I want to spend my time diving so like a place with a kitchen where we can have something simple for breakfast and be out the door. Same for lunch -- I want to be able to make a quick sandwich or salad or heat up leftovers and head back out. We often make simple dinners because we are tired. That being said we have some favorite restaurants for all three meals! It all depends on how you want to spend your time!

Allison:

It is really hard for me to answer your question as it so dependant on the person. Burgers at Julios? Probably less than $3.50 per person. Not much $$ at all. KFC is also pretty cheap as is a bakery. But you can also spend $35+ per person for dinner. Sort of like in the US...

I think kitchens are great because:
a) You can eat whenever you want. If one person is hungry and another isn't, no one has to sit and watch the other eat (or the other eat alone.)
b) Snacks and drinks are always available -- and cheaper than at a hotel.
c) It does cost less than a restaurant. (I live in a high cost area in the USA and think Bonaire groceries cost about what they do here.)
d) It is easy to eat some meals out and some meals in. You can even eat Casablanca leftovers in your kitchen.

I think restaurants are great because:
a) Someone else does all of the work. No prep and no clean up -- just time to enjoy the food and companionship.
b) Everyone can have a different meal and it creates no friction (unlike cooking three different entrees for lunch)
c) No wasted supplies.
d) There are some really great restaurants on Bonaire.

Also, http://www.infobonaire.com/cactusblue/menu.html
or http://www.mainstreetbonaire.com/watta_menu.html
or
http://www.mainstreetbonaire.com/city_lunch.html

The last two sets of menu prices are in Guilders.

Get lettuce, cucumber and green peppers at the fresh veggie stand... some homemade salad dressing from Lost Penguin (the best ever), fresh bread and garlic butter, and a huge hunk of gouda cheese. Makes a great and filling lunch ! Then just start making the rounds for dinner.. lol.. you will quickly have your favorites.

I'm not sure what other restaurants do this, but Cactus Blue has 2 for 1 appetizer specials when you order an entree, so that helps, too!

No matter what you will enjoy Bonaire and it's food !

Allison, I think there are some great comments from the people responding. I prefer having a kitchen. I have stayed at Happy Holiday Homes for years because of the convenience of having cooking facilities and refrigeration. Compare the costs of hotel rooms and other rentals that have kitchens. That said I would agree that exploring different places to eat is exciting. The Lost Penguin or Exito bakery is how we start every day. Take out at Casablanca is a well kept secret. I have two little ones and I usually grab one of their special for them. Dinner is definitely in the restaurants. Except Pasa Bono Pizza, which we have at least twice during our two weeks. It is really nice to have a refrigerator for all the liquid refreshments and snacks and leftovers.

Thanks to all of you for your "Food for Thought"! Sound like a place with a kitchen will work best for us, then we can have the best of both worlds.

when you get your meal bill, keep in mind that it might be in guilders (altho most places will write in the price in US$). some places include a service charge too. we have friends who saw what they thought was $90 on the bill and left about $110 on the table and left. they found out the next day that it was really Nafl 90 which is close to $50 US. some waiter got a really nice tip.

Be sure and check your bill, it will probably be in guilders with maybe in small print US$. Some places also add in the tip, so check that too.

As for us we prefer a condo/apt with a kitchen. We prefer to eat in most breakfast and lunch meals and the go out at nite. Grocery prices are not all that bad and we take packets of instant oatmeal, coffee, tea, drink mix (like Koolaide), and then supplement at the grocery or the veggie market down town.

Have a good time.

Andy