Chef Dania Fallas Zúñiga

***READ THIS**** Dania was absolutely incredible, in every category. I cannot say enough good things about Dania and her assistant Esperanza. The communication during our preliminary conversations were met with very fast responses, accurate descriptions of services offered, and thorough in her responses to my often detailed concerns. Once we contracted through TakeAChef, we corresponded through WhatsApp and in about 1 hour we planned out our 3 dinners, each with: appetizers, dinners and desserts. Dania and Esperanza showed up the first day early and got right to work. She served quesadillas as an appetizer and taco dinner family style with a passion fruit custard dessert that literally changed my life—and we are from Texas where we eat these dishes tri-weekly!! After the first night we cancelled our restaurant plans that we had scheduled 2 days later and asked Dania to come for a fourth night—best move ever. Day 2 was a traditional Costa Rican dinner, day 3 was barbecue and day 4 was surf and turf…each with amazing appetizers and delicious desserts. My sister is vegan and she was in love with everything that was prepared as well. Not only was she a great chef, but she was a joy to talk with, made a great suggestion on a waterfall hike that was also a vacation highlite, and was meticulous about cleaning up afterwards. We were so blessed to have met her and the first thing we will book when we come back is her services. AND, she came in under budget!!!! Only regret is not hiring her for breakfast and dinner. What a great person, you will NOT be disappointed.

Dania was incredible! Her and her team were very personable and made our experience unique and exceptional. We stayed at the Compass house in Tamarindo and she arrived promptly. She personalized a dinner menu for my wife’s 40th birthday and it exceeded our expectations. The food was great along with the Chef! Thank you!

I booked Chef Dania for our first night in Tamarindo to treat my friends after a long flight for my bachelorette. Unfortunately, we arrived late due to flight delays, but the chef was already cooking when we got there. It was such an incredible meal—we had taco night, and it was so delicious, probably my favorite meal in Tamarindo. I highly recommend Chef Dania. Thank you for making our first night amazing!

Dania was such an amazing part of our trip to Tamarindo. She prepared our family of 5 a family style Costa Rican BBQ and we were all so impressed. I knew it would be good but I didn’t know it would be incredible. She has true talent and her passion comes through in every bite of food. We will be talking about this meal for years to come. I’m officially saving Dania’s information and will have her cook for me again in the future, and happily refer her to friends travelling to the region.

Dania was one of the highlights of our trip! She is so kind and candid. We had several vegans and we were all wowed by her plant based options. The carnivores were also impressed! Her dishes were innovative and homey. Esperanza's tortillas were also amazing! If you are trying to find a chef who is professional, tidy, offers food with a Costa Rican fusion and/or good plant based options I highly recommend Dania! Scratch that --look nowhere else, just book Dania for your chef and you're welcome!

It's difficult to summarize our experience with Chef Dania because of how amazing it was. She truly felt like apart of our family by the end. We've talked about her cooking every day since we left Costa Rica. The food / menu was incredible. It was amazing Costa Rican dishes with the freshest ingredients. Every night we thought the food could not be better than the previous night but it was 5 nights of stunning meals. One guest was gluten free and it easily accommodated. Chef Dania's speaks English fluently and was great for our group who wasn't overly proficient in Spanish. After every meal the kitchen was spotless. I cannot recommend Chef Dania enough. We felt so grateful to have such an amazing experience, and we are already trying to figure out when we can return to CR to enjoy her cooking again.

Chef Dania is the absolute best!! She brought so much love with each of the dishes that made the whole dinner very special. She is so so wonderful and we can’t recommend her enough!! Thank you chef Dania for putting so much love and thoughtfulness into your very delicious food!! You really made our trip :)

Chef Dania was absolutely incredible. I could not have chosen a better Chef. She was punctual, engaging, attentive and an absolute delight to be around. I loved her excitement about her cooking and the joy and love she put into her dishes. The presentation was phenomenal and the flavors were exceptional.. I wish I could bring her to the states to cook for us all of time. She is absolutely the best.

Chef Dania absolutely blew our minds with every dish. Will be my first choice when returning to the region.

Chef Dania was absolutely wonderful!

Dania was an incredible addition to our trip to Costa Rica. I appreciated her upfront communication, attentiveness to last minute shifts due to changes in our schedule and preferences (we love spice!), her ability to explain what she was cooking, when and how, the fresh ingredients she used and the beautiful displays. My two year old loved watching her prep and all of our foodie adults loved asking relevant (and not so relevant!) food questions. As a bonus, Dania was able to help us navigate local recommendations for many things. Our group came from many parts of the US and we've each invited Dania to visit our homes if she is in the area because we loved her!

Chef Dania was amazing. She took our desires for a birthday menu and delivered. The food was divine. Her menu thoughtfully progressed and every aspect of every dish was well thought out and executed. Every course was absolutely delicious, but I will be living in the reverie of her mango chayote salad with ginger garlic aioli for a long time. I cannot describe how incredible the flavors and textures of that dish were. She also brought a bottle of wine to complement the meal which was so kind (and delicious). This was the highlight of our trip and if we ever come back to this area we will be sure to book her again.

We would hire Chef Dania for every trip to Costa Rica!!

This entire experience has been amazing!! My husband and I traveled to Costa Rica to celebrate our anniversary and I thought it would be nice to get pampered at our place on our anniversary night so I started looking for private chefs. I came across takeachef and staying asking for bids. Chef Dania submitted an awesome menu that considered my husband dietary needs. I was sold! She was very responsive and answered all my questions. She kept me posted as the date approached in her arrival time. When she got to the property we were getting massages but she didn't interrupt at all, just quietly let herself in and started cooking. She explained all the dishes and had really great conversation. You can tell she is passionate about food and cooking (she told us about the food she grows and how the dishes she served incorporate loa and seasonal ingredients.) The food? DIVINE. I could be served her Caribbean seafood soup every day of the week and not get tired of it. And that was just the first course! Every dish was incredible. My husband nearly licked his plate and I almost did butby the main course I was full and satisfied. Overall a perfect night

I rendered the services of Chef Dania Fallas Zuniga on October 17, 2021 in Costa Rica and her services were AMAZING. Not only did she ask if we were allergic to any specific foods but she took her time to thoroughly explain every meal she prepared. Her food was absolutely delicious and I would definitely book her again in the near future. She made everyone feel at home and was so attentive to detail. This was my first time booking a chef through Take A Chef and because of her, I will always remain a client of this service. Thanks Chef Dania, the group still talks about your Filet Mignon! I would definitely rate Chef Dania a 5/5.. She deserves it!!! Thank You, Malachi

Before I even got to my destination Chef Dania was very involved and inviting.. It was a pleasure to have her be our guest.. not only we had some friends that had allergies issues she made sure to explain each dish.. Each dish was amazing and was presented beautifully.. Dania if you ever get to read this, just know you've made new friends from NYC and everyone can't wait to hire you again.. It was a pleasure to meet you and your assistant... thank you for making my 40th amazing and going beyond to help with decor and the cake was amazing...

Dania was an absolute dream. Not only was every dish she made delicious and satisfying, but the variety she offered made every meal incredible! Dania was our chef for 4 days, both lunch and dinner, and we planned our days around her amazing food. We were 8 people, with one of us being vegan, and she had a lot of variety for us all! She was also very friendly and knowledgable of both food and the local area (Costa Rica). Next time I'm in Costa Rica, I will be sure to book her in advance because I do not want to miss the change to have her be our cook again.

Dania was unbelievable! She was incredible with our children and they loved having the opportunity to make tortillas alongside the chef. We feel so lucky to have met her and grateful for her amazing cooking!