What time is lunch?
One of the first things a visitor to Santiago will notice is that restaurants all appear to be vacant during traditional eating hours. It is not that Chileans do not eat, but simply that they eat at unusual hours. The first thing a visitor should be aware of is that Chileans do not eat breakfast. A Chilean breakfast usually consists of a cup of coffee and a pastry. A bigger Chilean breakfast consists of slices of toast covered with avocado, juice, and coffee. So don't go looking for an eggs and bacon breakfast joint in Santiago, because you probably will not find one. However, if you do need your fix of eggs and bacon, your best bet is to head for one of the American chain hotels, or one of the many higher end hotels.
With little or no breakfast you would assume that Chileans eat an early lunch, but if you were to assume this you would we wrong. If you head out for lunch at noon you will be the only person in the restaurant. The lunch crowd does not start showing up until 1:30 p.m., and at 2 p.m. is when lunch is in full swing. In Chile, lunch is the big meal of the day, and usually the best food deals can be found on the lunch menu.
The next food time is called "onces," which translated means "elevens." Onces is the U.S. equivalent of happy hour. The reason for the name is said to have come from the fact the liquor traditionally drank for this occasion had eleven letters in it. Onces is said to start around 5 p.m., but I have found that the onces crowd does not show up until around 7 p.m. The reason for the late start to onces is because onces usually morphs into dinner. Dinner crowds usually don't start showing up until 8:30 p.m. and by 9:30 p.m. restaurants are full. If you can't adjust to the eating times, have no fear because most restaurants are still open during the more traditional eating times.