Our story
Two cooks, two countries and a flower called Santa Rita
From Barcelona and Patagonia to the old town of Panama City. And now, to Costa del Este.
Niño Muñoz grew up around stoves. His father and his grandfather were cooks, and by 21 he had opened his first restaurant in Barcelona. Geraldina is Patagonian, from deep in Argentina, and has worked restaurant floors since she was 18.
They met, they built a life together, and in 2014 they arrived in Panama with their two children. They were passing through. They ended up falling for Casco Viejo: its balconies, its lived-in walls, that mix of ruin and splendour you will not find anywhere else on the continent.
They bought a property. Two years later, in 2016, they opened Restaurante Santa Rita.
Why it is called Santa Rita
In Panama, the vivid flower that climbs the walls of the old town is known as veranera. In Argentina, the same flower is called santa rita. One name for two countries: there was no better way to say what this restaurant is.
The old world and the new, on the same table
The idea was easy to state and hard to pull off: put the craft of Spanish tapas and the passion of the Argentine grill together without either kitchen losing its character. Not blending them — everyone does that — but letting them share a table.
A decade later, it works. You can start with hand-carved acorn-fed Iberian ham and creamy croquettes, carry on with a seafood black rice and finish with an imported skirt steak over embers with Patagonian chimichurri. And it all makes sense.
From Casco Viejo to Costa del Este
For ten years, Santa Rita has been a fixture of the old town: flamenco nights, live music, tables of neighbours and tables of travellers who came straight from the airport to have dinner.
Costa del Este is the natural next step. It is where much of the city that visits us every week works and lives, and it was missing a house that does both things well: the Tuesday working lunch and the long Saturday dinner.
The second home is not a copy of the first. It is the same kitchen, the same team behind it and the same cellar, in a space designed around how the east side of the city lives.
“From where we come from to every plate we serve, we are committed to excellence and authenticity in every detail.”Niño and Geraldina · Founders of Santa Rita
Our houses
Two restaurants, one kitchen
Santa Rita Casco Viejo
Our first house, open since 2016. Avenida Eloy Alfaro and Calle 11, Casco Antiguo, Panama City.
Santa Rita Costa del Este
Our second house, opening soon. Costa del Este, Panama City. The same menu, in a space built for the east side of the city.
Come and meet us
Book in Casco Viejo today, or join the Costa del Este opening list.