Juan Santamaría International · MROC / SJO · Costa Rica

Private jet catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (MROC / SJO), San José (Alajuela)

Catering to your aircraft in San José (Alajuela).

Juan Santamaría sits at 3,021 ft in the Central Valley, and the Pacific-side beach trips and cloud-forest charters that fly out of it shape every order. We pack Costa Rican food for your galley and hand it over at the aircraft, with the crew meals on request.

Menu & order Download the menu

10 hours

ideal notice, last-minute handled

Plane-side

handover at the steps

Flight deck

crew and pilot dishes, on request

24/7

a flight attendant on the line

Three of us. All ex VIP cabin crew.

We know the galley, the diet card and the 5 a.m. re-plate — because we lived them. So we built the caterer we always wished we could call.

Camille

Menu & galley logistics

Fourteen years on VIP and head-of-state cabins. Can plate for twelve in a G650 galley and still land it hot.

Inès

Dietary & labelling

The one who reads every diet card twice. If it says no cross-contact, it means no cross-contact.

Sofia

The 24/7 line

Answers at 5 a.m. when the leg moved overnight. Same-day swaps are her love language.

The local tableCooked so it travels

Local specialities from San José (Alajuela) for your inflight catering

The Central Valley and Alajuela Province give a private jet menu its backbone: coffee from the volcanic slopes, pineapple and papaya from the lowlands, plantain in every form. An inflight menu for SJO uses them as they are eaten locally. Local specialities travel well when chosen with the galley in mind: gallo pinto is packed with rice and beans together, while eggs, tortillas and natilla come apart for re-plating. Private jet food from Costa Rica leans on corvina ceviche, kept chilled and dressed last, and on arroz con pollo that reheats without drying. Private jet platters of cut tropical fruit, cheese and heart of palm hold cold in the drawer all the way to the coast. Alajuela is cattle and dairy country, so cheeses and fresh cream for coffee are reliably good. In the green season, May to November, afternoon rain pushes departures to the morning, and the boards run lighter and colder to suit a shorter galley window.

Open the menu Download the menuPDF

Local specialities of Alajuela Province: gallo pinto, ceviche and tropical fruit packed for a private jet menu

01Gallo pinto with eggs and natillaRice and beans packed together, eggs and sour cream apart, re-plated in the galley.

02Ceviche of corvinaChilled, dressed last, lime and cilantro in a separate pot.

03Arroz con polloReheats without drying; kept in its tray, portioned per seat.

04Heart of palm saladCold plate, dressing apart, holds well in the drawer.

05Patacones with black bean dipFried plantain packed dry so it stays crisp, dip in its own pot.

06Tropical fruit platePineapple, mango and papaya cut by the seat, cold and sealed.

How it works

Three steps, one message

You message us

Tail, pax, diets, timing. One message — no portal, no quote form. Answered at any hour, by a flight attendant.

We cook & pack for a galley

Leak-proof boxes, marked by guest and restriction, with reheating times written on the lid.

You re-plate and serve

Two minutes out of the drawer. Whatever you ordered for the crew comes in the same delivery, and one clean invoice follows.

At a glance · San José (Alajuela)Juan Santamaría International Airport · MROC

The three founders, former VIP cabin crew, on a business jet airstair — private jet catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (MROC)

Dry-season departures from MROC fill the ramp with jets heading for Guanacaste, Papagayo and Tortuguero lodges, and each of those trips needs a different galley plan. Private jet catering here means pineapple, mango and coffee-based breakfast service, plus tropical ripeness managed so fruit is eaten on the day. We handle inflight catering for light jets and bizliners alike, and our in-flight catering is packed to be re-plated, not cooked. Aviation catering at SJO also covers cabin crew meals and, for state visits, diplomatic flight catering.

Restaurant cuisine, cooked on the ground
Fresh and local produce
Labelled by seat, diet and reheat
Aviation-ready packaging
High loader for large cabins
HACCP certified kitchens

Who we fly forTwo cabins, one standard

Business jet catering tray loaded at Juan Santamaría International, MROC, with Costa Rican fruit

Business aviationOur core

Corporate and VIP jet catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO)

Business jet catering at Juan Santamaría usually starts with a short brief: who is flying, which aircraft, and which lodge or beach is the destination. Corporate jet catering for a dry-season weekend to Guanacaste tends to be fruit, ceviche and coffee; VIP flight catering adds a private jet chef and a bespoke menu built around Costa Rican produce. Charter flight catering for MROC passengers who land from the north is lighter and colder. Luxury inflight catering here means ripe tropical fruit served the same day, not imported out-of-season produce.

Government flight catering boxes sealed for a delegation at MROC, San José (Alajuela)

State & royalDiscretion, protocol

Government flight and VIP aviation catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport

When an official aircraft lands at Juan Santamaría, the menu has usually been agreed days earlier. Government flight catering and head of state flight catering share the same discipline: traceable ingredients, sealed packaging and a single point of contact. VIP aviation catering for state visit aircraft catering uses Costa Rican products where protocol allows, from coffee to local seafood, and nothing is opened until the principal's staff clears it.

The *San José (Alajuela)* inflight catering menu (SJO)Or write your own, we cook it

Cold private jet platters with ceviche and fruit, SJO, Costa Rica

Cold galley

No oven · served in four minutes

Corvina ceviche with lime and cilantroChilled

Heart of palm salad with avocadoSauce apart

Private jet platters: pineapple, mango and papaya cut by the seatChilled

Gourmet inflight meals: cold casado with rice, beans and plantainRe-plate cold

Private jet snacks: plantain chips, cashews and guava paste with cheeseChilled

Hot gourmet inflight meals of arroz con pollo and plantain for MROC

Hot service

One oven · re-plated in twelve minutes

Gallo pinto with scrambled eggs and natillaOven

Arroz con pollo with plantainOven

Private jet platters: grilled sea bass with coconut riceSauce apart

Patacones with black bean dipOven

Gourmet inflight meals: beef casado with picadillo and riceOven

Make a request Download the menuPDF

A dish sealed and labelled for one guest's diet

PrincipalSealed

Nut-free · gluten-freeChecked by two people

Special meals

Dietary requirements and aviation catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (MROC)

Costa Rican cooking leans on rice, beans, corn and plantain, which makes gluten free and vegan simpler than usual, but the allergen hides elsewhere: lard in tortillas, fish sauce in ceviche marinades, peanuts in snacks. Kosher, halal and kids meals are packed sealed with their own card, and special meals and allergen free trays are prepared on a separate board so they never touch the standard kitchen line.

Allergens

A sheet per guest. Separate boards, separate boxes.

ii.

Halal & kosher

Sealed, certificate in the same box.

iii.

Children

Their own menu, nothing to cut at altitude.

iv.

Plant-based & wellness

Vegan, low-carb, light — composed, never compromised.

Crew & pilot mealsOn request

Pilot meals and crew meals at Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO)

Turnarounds at MROC are rarely quiet in the dry season, so crew meals are packed to be eaten one-handed in the cockpit. Flight crew meals and pilot meals are ordered with the trip and billed like everything else on the order, on request only. Cockpit meals can be split, with different meals for pilots when the operator wants captain and first officer on separate dishes, and crew meal boxes are sealed and marked CREW. For the cabin we pack something colder and lighter, because the galley is busy when the Central Valley rain arrives. Crew catering at SJO stays something you ask for, never assumed.

Meal passMROC

Cabin crew

Box

Marked crew

Galley

Oven 6 min

Order

On request

Marked crew

Meal passMROC

Pilots

Box

CPT ≠ F/O

Galley

Cold or hot

Order

On request

Two dishes

Juan Santamaría International Airport terminal and ramp, San José (Alajuela), Costa Rica

To the steps, on your slot.

Airside · plane-side · day or night

DeliveryEvery FBO

FBO catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO): delivery to your aircraft

The day's gate access decides how FBO catering reaches the aircraft at San José. We coordinate catering delivery to the FBO with the handling agent, check the general aviation terminal's rules and confirm the apron slot. Ground handling catering is simplest when we know the tail, the parking position and who will meet the trolley. Handling agent catering here is a short phone call, not a complicated chain.

FBOHandling agentGround handlerGA terminal

High loaderLarge cabins, bizliners

Aircraft provisioning and airport catering at Juan Santamaría International Airport (MROC)

Larger aircraft at SJO call for galley catering loaded through the main door or, for bizliners, by high loader. Airside catering delivery follows the handling agent's instructions, and aircraft provisioning is planned around the cabin layout. With the apron at 3,021 ft and the afternoon showers in the green season, we pack trays in sealed carts so nothing is exposed on the ramp.

Mention it when you order

HACCP kitchen

Certified, inspected, with cold-chain records filed against your trip.

All FBOs served

Whichever terminal you park at, handover is at the aircraft, on your slot.

Diets read twice

Allergen sheet per guest, halal and kosher on request, sealed and labelled.

One clean invoice

Itemised and trip-report ready, sent after the leg.

About the airportMROC / SJO

About Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO): airport catering for business aviation

Juan Santamaría International is the main gateway to Costa Rica, an airport catering challenge that mixes commercial traffic with a busy general aviation apron. At 3,021 ft, the Central Valley gives mild temperatures and dry-season clarity. General aviation at MROC handles charters to the coast, medical flights and corporate jets, and FBO services and ground handling services are available on the field.

Business aviation

MROC is a business aviation hub for Costa Rica: executive jet catering and business aviation catering for flights to Papagayo, Tamarindo and Tortuguero begin here, and inflight catering for bizliners on longer legs north or south is packed in advance. Aviation catering and in-flight catering for cabin crew meals and diplomatic flight catering all go through the same handling agent, and the dry season decides how busy the ramp is.

Customs & food import

Costa Rica's agricultural service restricts fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy brought in on international flights, and food waste from aircraft is regulated. Ordering catering on the ground at SJO means the galley is stocked from local suppliers and the waste follows the airport's rules, so there is nothing to declare on arrival.

ReviewsFrom the crews we cater for

5.0 / 5

★★★★★

Average rating from the cabin crew and pilots we cater for.

Leave a review

★★★★★VIP AIRLINER

“Despite limited fridge space, we wanted the 12 guests at MROC to enjoy vegetarian wraps and colourful salads without a complicated cabin service. The desserts supplied by The Galley Girls were straightforward to check against the written menu before the cabin handover. Keeping the crew provisions identifiable helped the colleague taking over service understand the order without another long explanation. I appreciated the emphasis on final order confirmation throughout the private jet catering arrangements.”

Chloe M. | Chief cabin officer

BBJ

★★★★★CHARTER

“Choosing smoked salmon bagels and sliced fruit for 6 people at SJO was straightforward; the challenge was making it work with a small galley worktop. We changed the quantities of canapés, and The Galley Girls reflected the request in the final packing list. This experience of private jet catering services gave us a useful reference for managing storage requirements on another departure. The snack boxes remained as originally requested, which was reassuring when we checked the latest version with operations.”

Chiara N. | Charter operator

Gulfstream G450

★★★★★LARGE CABIN

“Menu approval at Juan Santamaría International Airport covered chicken skewers with a couscous salad for 2 guests, leaving us to organise the service around a tight boarding window. I want a private jet catering company to understand cabin service sequence, and this order gave us a useful starting point. We described our serving sequence to The Galley Girls and asked for the sauces to be packed accordingly. That left time to check the canapés properly before the passengers were ready for the next part of the service.”

Nicolas J. | Chief flight attendant

Falcon 8X

Ordering for MROC, in shortAsked by crews

How much does private jet catering cost at San José?+

Cost of private jet catering at MROC is driven by menu and season: coffee, fruit and rice dishes are plentiful, while premium fish and imported cuts are priced accordingly. Tell us the headcount and we quote.

What is the lead time for catering at MROC?+

If a government aircraft is arriving, tell us as early as you can: the protocol office clears the menu first. Everything else at MROC is straightforward, and last-minute orders are handled.

What about customs when bringing catering into Costa Rica?+

At MROC, food from abroad is subject to agricultural rules and is usually declared and, if not allowed, removed. Ordering from us means the galley is stocked from local, cleared sources.

Can you bring food on board at San José?+

Food from your origin can be refused or discarded at SJO. For official flights, local catering handed over at the FBO avoids both customs and protocol problems.

Is catering part of a charter into San José?+

The charter pays for the aircraft and crew. Meals for passengers and crew are ordered from us and billed on their own, whichever season you fly in.