Lilly's Café in Bocas Town

Some --- particularly Atlantic siders --- like it hot

Lilly’s Café in Bocas

photos and article by Joel Inwood

If you’re in Bocas del Toro and want to try an attention-grabbing mix of Caribbean and international food, Lilly’s Café, located over the sea behind a pink building just off the main drag on Isla Colon, is a local favorite.

You can get anything from curried tuna to quiche, but Lilly’s is best known for her delicious and ferocious “Killin’ Me Man” hot sauce. You can get wings or a fish salad made with it, or just have it on the side to add to your sandwich or steamed veggie pie.

The Killin’ Me Man is not killing you softly, either. It packs a wallop that only a true picante vet can coolly brush off without sweating, but it’s not so strong as to be inedible by anyone except the meekest weenie. Its complex flavor will definitely pique the interest of the hot sauce connoisseur, as well.

If you show up at Lilly’s for breakfast, with or without the yellow tear jerker the Chicken in a Hole sounds good. It’s a fried egg “nestled inside a piece of bread,” according to the menu, and it comes with a fruit salad and coffee or tea. Or if something less fancy but equally filling is what you’re looking for, Lilly’s has a porridge that’s right up your alley.

The location is picturesque. Lilly’s has two tables out on nice new looking dock just below a bar style seating next to the kitchen, and both have a perfect view of the water and islands in the distance.

When you stop by Lilly's, the hot sauce isn't the only thing you can buy to take home with you. She also sells a variety of soaps, creams, oils and other natural products

dining