By Nathy's With Love
Celebrating four generations of love and flavor at By Nathy’s Restaurant
By Joy Grant
Photography by Joy Grant
Walking into By Nathys, you’re subtly prompted to take your shoes off. No one asks you directly, but the barefoot staff and the spotless mahogany floors signal you to follow suit. Sliding off my sandals felt like I was entering a home, and in a way I was. Nathalie Walters family has run this restaurant for four generations making sure to pass down a legacy of food and love.
When Nathalie’s family immigrated to Limón from Jamaica over 80 years ago the region was less developed than it is now. There was no main road so they traveled by boat to get up and down the coast. Even during Nathalie’s childhood, she remembers using torches with kerosene for light and fire to cook the food. But none of those barriers kept the Lewis family from achieving their goals. When Nathalie’s grandmother first started the business, she sold pastries out of the downstairs unit while the family lived upstairs. When Nathalie’s mother passed away she left Nathalie’s family the house. Since then Nathalie, with the help of her husband and children, has transformed it into a full restaurant expanding the menu just over a year ago to include homemade local dishes.
As an owner, Nathalie is determined to ensure that customers have an unparalleled experience, from the service to the atmosphere to the ingredients in each dish. She wants to give people a place to come and have a great memory of Costa Rica for them to reflect on later when speaking about their travels. She emphasizes that she and her family remain welcoming and open to critique to ensure that customers are well cared for.
Brimming with pride Nathalie describes the food found in Limón as some of the best in the world. “Our food has flavor, it has rhythm, it has love.” She describes cooking with love as transmitting those warm feelings into each plate, and I couldn’t agree more. When Nathalie’s Grandmother ran the business, their family produced most of their ingredients only going to the store for staples like sugar, lard, and flour. She grew her produce and raised chickens and cattle on her farm. Although Nathalie’s family no longer has a farm they honor her grandmother’s traditions by growing as much as they can in their garden and sourcing as much as possible from local merchants. Refusing to use frozen or processed foods, each dish is made to order from scratch. Whether you opt for the banana pancakes or the vegetables in coconut sauce, you can taste the difference that comes from using the best ingredients available.
“You can eat Caribbean rice and beans anywhere but mine has my taste, my ancestors, my love, my family.” As I ate my lunch while staring out at the ocean, I could taste exactly what Nathalie so eloquently described. The spices all stood out and the blend of flavors showcased her family’s time-tested techniques. While many restaurants in the area rely on their ingredients to represent Costa Rica, Nathalie, and her family emphasize their roots in every way, preparing each dish with care and precision.
Nathalie aims to provide her guests with an authentic experience and showcase her family’s history. Whether it’s the Coconut bread at breakfast or the fried fish at dinner, each plate is a chapter in the story of By Nathy’s. While Puerto Viejo has changed a lot in the past 80 years, By Nathy’s ensures that many of its traditions are upheld offering visitors an authentic experience full of flavor and love.
