Restaurant Club Columbia - Bogota, Colombia

Restaurant Club Colombia is a restaurant in Bogota, Colombia from a popular beer company that features popular Colombian cuisine. The restaurant, located at Av 82 # 9-11, Bogota, Colombia, is walking distance from the JW Marriott, where I was staying. It is also far enough that you may prefer to take a taxi. The restaurant is about 1 mile (1.2 kilometers) from the hotel. We arrived to dinner early, which meant we were easily able to find a table for eight. But the restaurant fills up quick.

The restaurant is located within a quaint two-story structure at a major intersection. The exterior features a moon-shaped driveway. The exterior features lush vegetation, giving the restaurant the feel that it is located deep within a rain forest. Ferns and plants cover the exterior grounds with lush ivy growing up the sides of the building. The cement portico has tiered section leading into an opulent entrance warmed by a nearby fireplace. The restaurant felt like we were in a home, and the structure was likely someone's home at one time. The rich wood accents, dim lighting and extravagant wallpaper provided a cozy atmosphere, belied by the din of many other diners.

The menu featured numerous local dishes as well as variety of other selections. I had heard of a popular dish called Bandeja Paisa, which is a mixture of beans, rice, fried plantain, carne molida (ground meat), chicharrone, avacado and arepa. On the menu, it was listed either as Cazuelita de frijoles al estilo de medellin or Cazuela de frijoles con sus garnituras. I am really not sure which it was, because the waiter pointed to both when I asked for Paisa. The price was excellent, coming in at around ten dollars for the massive dish. The menu has a large selection, which the group I was with explored. Two people had the green soup which had a thick beef rib cooked in the broth. They said it was delicious and I can attest that I might have tried that as well. My portion was easily two meals. I mixed the ingredients together after snapping a photo to remember what the dish looked like. The beans came in a separate bowl. They weren't heavily seasoned, but didn't need to be once they were mixed with the other ingredients.

The service at the restaurant was excellent. In spite of the crowd that soon followed our arrival, we were not forgotten by the waiters. With a large group, it is easy to be lost in the shuffle. The waiters kept our glasses topped up. Several at the table were sharing bottles of wine, while the other half enjoyed the house beer. There are three styles, which included ale, red ale and black ale. I tried all three. I like the basic ale best, although I am normally a fan of red ale. I wasn't a big fan of the Club Colombia red ale. With all of the bottles of wine that were flowing, I was expecting a bill for eight people to be out of sight. With appetizers, drinks and entrees, we got out for about 100,000 Colombian pesos each. That works out to about 33 US dollars. Not bad for a meal that included appetizers and drinks.

I tried several nice restaurants during my trip to Colombia. Club Colombia wasn't the fanciest, but the food was good, the service was attentive and the prices were reasonable. Over all, it was a nice dining experience. The atmosphere was probably the biggest sell. It is a nice, comfortable, warm, inviting environment to eat and share stories with friends. And it didn't feel like anyone was trying to rush us out. I think we stuck around for about two hours before heading back to the hotel for a nightcap. Overall, a place I would recommend if you find yourself in Bogota.

All photos are my own, with the exception of the title photo taken from the restaurant website. My photos did not come out very clear due to the low lighting. But they may be reproduced with prior permission.

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