As we grow older it is safe to say that our preferences and taste changes, we are more aware of what we enjoy and we are spending our own money so we become more demanding, the crowded bar with very loud music, people spilling drinks and picking fights might no longer sound like fun; instead a nice bar with a good service and a good selection of food and drinks may be our preferred choice.

The community of Santa Ana in the west side of San José, Costa Rica offers plenty of good bars, here are some options:

Let’s start by saying if you want to do some bar hopping City Place shopping center might be the right place:

Latitud 9°: In City Place shopping center, Santa Ana. This place is classy, with indoors and outdoors sitting, they have a great selection of cocktails and fusion flavors. Modern style lounge and good music.

Hinchas FC: “Hinchas” stands for “Fans”, so as you might guess this is a soccer inspired bar, not a sports’ bar, since it’s more sophisticated than that, they offer special events and live music with local artists. Hinchas is also located in City Place.

Tap House: This bar has been around for several years, so those that live in Santa Ana are familiar with it, they are not also located in City Place, and this is your typical sports bar. The food is what you can expect to find at a sports bar: chicken wings, hamburgers, nachos, etc. Good beer selection, a relaxing atmosphere and good service.

Chichis Sports Bar & Grill: This is a bar with a lot of years in the market, in Santa Ana they are located in Terrazas shopping center, and it is probably the fanciest of their four locations, televisions in every angle. They are famous for their chicken wings, they have 17 different sauces. Good service and despite being a sports’ bar the crowd usually sets out a nice atmosphere. The other three locations are in San Pedro, Pinares and Heredia.

Tico Pub: In Momentum Lindora, the place is cozy, has indoor and outdoor sitting. It’s a nice place to stop after work for a beer and a quick bite.

MAD Burger and Beer: Located in Plaza del Rio (close by Swiss Travel), this bar offers amazing burgers and a wide variety of craft beer and other alcoholic drinks of course. If you like burgers, this your place.

Bambuddahbar: This place just opened, in the second floor of City Place Santa Ana, it is an interesting concept, restaurant and lounge, the food offered is oriental fusion style, good selection of drinks and DJ’s are usually at work with live music. Ladies night every Thursday, after office from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. with selected drinks in a 2 x 1 offer.