Bridgewater Family To Open Authentic Costa Rican Restaurant

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Learning to cook from her mother, Ana Lorena Chaves, has always loved to share her Costa Rican recipes with family and friends.

Now Chaves and her Bridgewater family are pursuing her food passion and opening a restaurant, Delicias De Lore in Raritan on Friday.

"It's been years of people saying she should open a restaurant," said Chaves' son Joseph Garro who will be working in the restaurant alongside his Costa Rican family.

Delicias De Lore will open at 9 E Somerset St. in place of the former Castillo Fresh Seafood, which closed in October 2022.

"This is literally family-run," said Garro. "Anyone working is family."

Garro will be working as a server and running errands, his mom Ana Lorena Chaves will be the main cook, Garro's uncle Heiner will prep food, and Garro's sister Lesly will fill in wherever help is needed.

The restaurant will open at 9 a.m. on Friday and remain open until 10 p.m. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be served along with coffee. The restaurant is also BYOB.

Dine-in and pick-up will be offered at first.

"Delicias De Lore is a restaurant inspired by the delicious dishes made in Costa Rica. Chef Lorena Chaves has been making meals that put smiles on everyone's faces for years and decided it was time to share with the rest of the world. Our goal at Delicias De Lore is to have you feel a part of our family and have your taste buds transport to Costa Rica with every bite. We hope to see you soon," according to deliciasdelorenj.

For more information visit instagram.com/deliciasdelorenj.

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