Comments on: Take a Boat Ride to Lunch at Lago Dos Bocas

By: Courtney

Courtney — Tue, 21 May 2013 03:08:13 +0000

We drove to Dos Lagos after going to the Camuy caves and Aricebo Observatory. We ate at Paisaje Escondido and really enjoyed our food. Everything we tried was delicious and eating on the lake was relaxing. I tried to look at each of the restaurant websites and this one seemed pretty cute. The restaurant did not disappoint. On our ferry ride back to the parking area, the captain gave a small tour (in Spanish) of the surrounding area and we were able to see a nearby waterfall. All in all a great afternoon! Wouldn’t have made it to this restaurant if it weren’t for this website!

By: Gwenn

Gwenn — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 12:53:41 +0000

Some of the restaurants are open during the week, but the boats don’t run. You would have to call each one for exact schedule and for directions on how to get there by land route.

By: Wanda Gonzalez

Wanda Gonzalez — Mon, 28 May 2012 17:08:42 +0000

Planeo visitar el área con mis hijos que vienen de vacaciones y me gustaría ir el miércoles 22 de Agosto.¿Tendrán los restaurantes abiertos? Por favor dejarme saber ,estoy planeando la visita con anticipación.¡Muchas gracias por los detalles!

By: Lindsey

Lindsey — Sat, 26 May 2012 12:13:53 +0000

We combined Lago Dos Bocas with the Cavernas de Camuy and the Caguana Indigenous Ceremonial Park. It was a lovely day. We had lunch at Rancho Marina, a lovely place. We ordered salmon and grilled chicken breast and the food was great. The desserts are really delicious!

By: Audrey

Audrey — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 14:16:01 +0000

I brought my husband and 7 and 12 year old children for an early dinner (at 2:30) this past Sunday. We went through an 6 hour 15 minute ordeal, so I want other readers to be aware of what to expect there. After parking we walked down to the boat launch, where there were about 15 people hanging around. It was not really clear that we had a choice of restaurants and after a little confusion we were assured we would be on the 2nd trip out to Abuela’s in about 30 minutes. Since we weren’t starving and always travel with the assumption we won’t come by that way again, we agreed to wait. I was concerned about being out after dark since we were staying in the mountains but about 45 minutes later we were on the boat out. There were a couple big parties and some smaller ones like us, as well as several empty tables, so they did not appear that busy. The wait staff seemed bewildered to see us when we asked for a table. After sitting there for 25 minutes, (we found our own menus) with the staff avoiding eye contact with us, I cornered an employee and asked for service, when she came to the table I asked how long dinner might take, she left to check in the kitchen and assured me it would be served quickly because we had already sat there for so long. With this promise we ordered; snapper, two different mofongos and the children’s chicken strip platter. We also ordered drinks that came in another 15-20 minutes along with four cups of conciliatory soup, a chicken base with pureed plaintains.
An hour and 10 minutes later our food arrived, but they forgot the childrens plate, which came out another 10 minutes later. At this point we were starving, and ate quickly. We asked for the check and were surprised to see 15% gratuity added in for our table of 4. When we asked about it they said, it was “optional”, but c’mon. Then the real fun started, we queued up for the boat, and because there were more than 12 people ahead of us, I knew we were in for another 40 minute to an hour wait. It started to pour rain, I brought the kids back up to the restaurant and we took turns checking on my husband. When the first boat came there was a stampede for the boat and about 20 people crammed on the boat pushing ahead of us in line. To his credit the driver got off, folded his arms, and informed them only 12 could sail. My husband berated them in his best Spanish and after 10 minutes or so some folks who had been in the front of the line stepped off. We were soaked, it was pitch black out and my kids were begging us to walk back to the car. Not having a clue were we were, walking was not an option so we had to wait it out. Eventually another boat came and we got back to our car, at about 8:45. We were staying at the state park villas on Lago Caonillas so we had a treacherous ride ahead of us in the dark. (which we had tried to avoid with the early dinner.) The bottom line is, the food was very good, sangria was good too, but the service was the worst I have ever experienced, even by PR standards. This might be a better trip for a group of 20 or 30 somethings who come out at noon and can devote several hours to drinking and eating. I expected to be there 3 or 4 hours tops. When my daughter got back to the car she said poignantly, “and all I wanted was a hamburger.” BTW, at your recommendation we had hiked Cueva Ventana, been to the Ceremonial Park and stopped at Cafe Gran Batey for coffee and convo with the lovely Morales’. All those activities went perfectly. Oh well, some day we will look back on this and laugh…

By: Josh

Josh — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 10:30:38 +0000

There might be some validity to the daily operation of the ferries. Residents utilize them as real transportation. I’ve been there twice, once on a weekday for a boat ride, and once on a weekend to eat at one of the restaurants. On the weekday visit, there were kids who had gotten out of school, and waited at the dock for a ride to their homes —- delivered right to their back yards, which was pretty cool. That explains the early hours of operation, too.

I enjoy the experience, because it visually very pretty. The lake is like a valley surrounded by lush, lush, deep green mountains, which at places slope upward sharply from the waters edge. It made me feel like I was traveling the Amazon. Not that I’ve ever been to the Amazon, but that’s what it makes me think of.

By: Mr. and Mrs. John McMahan

Mr. and Mrs. John McMahan — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 19:33:21 +0000

We are residents of Lago Dos Bocas and eat at El Fogon de Abuela often. It has become a place to take unexpected visitors and out of town guests. We love the food and the convenience it affords us. Our guests love the food as well as the experience of visiting us by boat. It gives them a relaxing ride as well as the opportunity to see the native birds and fauna.
We highly recommend the experience.

By: Francisco

Francisco — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 21:58:30 +0000

Restaurant El Cacique is the 5th, check this article:

http://www.elnuevodia.com/asisecomeenlamontana-752887.html

By: Erma

Erma — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 22:44:26 +0000

Thanks for your information! I loved it!

By: Luis

Luis — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 14:24:30 +0000

This is one of my favorite trips to take whenever I have stateside friends in the island.

I have combined the trip with the Cavernas de Camuy, Lares town square and the Caguana Park in Utuado.

Great choice!

PS I also prefer “El Fogón de la Abuela”, Luis the owner and ferry captain is a great guy who always welcomes you as family. Highly recommended.