In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Tantalo Restaurant

Casco Viejo, Panama City

Panama

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

We arrived from Guatemala to Panama City in the afternoon and spent the first day getting settled in our hotel room and scouting out our neighborhood for a convenient ATM and the little tiendas and restaurants nearby.

The next day, we made our first trip to Casco Viejo, a UNESCO section of Panama City that is quite attractive and hip. Visiting The Old Town is definitely worth the time for the photo opportunities, the museums, the Presidential Palace, the souvenir shops, and for the variety of restaurants and bars.

Tantalo Restaurant, Hotel and Rooftop Bar

After walking around town a bit, it began to be close to lunch time. Our selections were numerous, so we didn't know where to go. This one place had a Trip Advisor sticker on the front door, advertising the fact that it won an award of excellence in 2014 so we thought we would take our chances.

The name of the restaurant was Tantalo.

Inside are high top tables and chairs

A long bank-style couch lined one side of the restaurant with low tables in front. There was a bar with stools in the back and the rest of the restaurant had high top tables and chairs. Music was playing and people were chattering. Large windows allowed lots of daylight into the restaurant and provided everyone the opportunity to people watch on the street while eating their meal.

There was also free WiFi.

Our waitress

Alexandra was our friendly waitress and she played along with Billy's flirting, continuously making sure I was comfortable with it. Alexandra and I bonded over our hand signals saying we should "smack" Billy for his outrageous behavior.

With attentive service and a welcoming atmosphere, we felt immediately comfortable in Tantalo.

Balboa, Panama's national beer

It's the tropics, so the heat and humidity outside is high. We ordered the national beer of Panama, Balboa, and they were $1.50USD each.

Tantalo's Menu

Pierre de Janon Janson is the chef and he describes his menu as a fusion of international cuisines, with influences of Indian, Mediterranean and American recipes adding a Latin touch!

Prices are in U.S. Dollars, as Panama uses the Dollar as their currency.

The seafood menu

As you can see, there are lots of choices that sound delicious! Pierre has presented a very attractive and creative menu.

The bar with a terrific mural on the wall

The artwork in Tantalo was quirky, fun and well done. The mural you see here captures the view of a street in Casco Viejo that leads to the sea.

Both business people and tourists populate this favorite place and we hear it gets jumpin' in the evenings with live music, shows and comedy routines.

Chicken chipotle panini with plantain fritters

We ordered this chicken panini and a Greek salad and split the two meals. Each order came with iced tea. With tip, our bill was $13.50USD.

Greek salad

There was no shortage of the Greek olives or Feta cheese. The salad was crisp, fresh and flavorful and went beautifully with the chicken panini.

Artwork on the pillars in the middle of the restaurant

Here you get a close up of the unique artwork in Tantalo. The artist has smaller canvases for sale at the cashier kiosk.

Notice the large windows and glass front door which bring in lots of natural light. Unconventional lanterns hang from the ceiling.

Our waiter, Sam in his Panama hat

Our waiter, Sam, was awesome. He had flair, a bit of drama and theater to him and was very attentive. He practiced his English with us and made our dining experience fun.

If you make it to Casco Viejo, definitely check out Tantalo. It will be worth it!

Tantalo Kitchen/Hotel/Roofbar

Esquina Ave. B y calle 8va, Casco Viejo, Panama, Tele: 507. 262. 4030

Emails: sleep@tantalohotel.com, or eat@tantalohotel.com

Website: www.tantalohotel.com

For more stories and photos of Panama, click here

About the Authors

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli are recognized retirement experts and internationally published authors on topics of finance, medical tourism and world travel. With the wealth of information they share on their award winning website RetireEarlyLifestyle.com, they have been helping people achieve their own retirement dreams since 1991. They wrote the popular books, The Adventurer’s Guide to Early Retirement and Your Retirement Dream IS Possible available on their website bookstore or on Amazon.com.

Trending on Retire Early Lifestyle

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.