Local guide · Aruba
Real Aruba Lunch: Local Counters, Plate Lunches, Food Trucks
3 spots · updated May 27, 2026
Lunchtime on Aruba is when the island feeds itself — not tourists. The hotel strips go quiet, and the local population pours into the snack bars, take-aways and food trucks that have been running the same plate-lunch rotations for decades. Rice with stew, a side of funchi or pan bati, cold juice from a styrofoam cup. This is how Aruba eats.
- When
- Most local lunch spots open around 11 am and sell out by 2 pm. Get there before 12:30 for the best selection.
- Try
- Plate lunch with stewed chicken and ricePan bati (Aruban cornbread) as a sideFresh fruit juice or a cold Malta
- Good for
- visitors who want to eat like a local on a budgetworking people looking for a fast, filling midday mealanyone tired of tourist-priced food
Where to get them?
Order: most good reviews from locals first.
Mel'sEagle Beach ·· 495 reviews
KOAL RestaurantOranjestad ·· 153 reviews
Soul & Beans On WheelsSavaneta ·· 53 reviews
More tours
Eagle Beach & Noord Village SnacksMore about this guide
The plate lunch is the backbone of midday eating on Aruba. Usually a heaping portion of white rice with stewed chicken, beef or fish, a vegetable and sometimes a simple salad. The portions are generous, the prices reasonable, and the turnover fast. Locals know which take-away has the best chicken stew on a Tuesday, and which food truck parks near the industrial area on weekday mornings. Noord, Oranjestad's back streets, and Savaneta all have their regulars. If you see a queue outside a snack bar just before noon, join it — it means something good is about to come out of the kitchen.