The restaurant at Hotel El Velero is not the cheapest nor the best in Playa Hermosa. The food is acceptable, if unremarkable, but the prices are high, compared to other resto bars along the beach (off the beach is another matter).
And if you avoid the tourist-oriented joints and try one of the local-run establishments, you can get similar fare for half the price. Pretty much every eatery has the same basic menu: chicken, pork, beef, or fish with rice and beans. Oddly, almost every dish everywhere also seems to come with french fries. (All hail McCain's!)
As you'd hope at a seaside restaurant, the El Velero fish is very fresh. One afternoon, one of the expat fishers was exclaiming about his catches for the day, and that evening, they were on the restaurant menu! Typical seafood appearing on the menu were red snapper, tuna, mahimahi (which seems to be used as a catch-all term for any sort of white fish), wahoo, and lobster. Their fish ceviche was very pleasant. For those afraid of taking a chance on fish, fries, rice, and beans, there are North American standards such as grilled cheese sandwiches and hamburgers.
El Velero's claims to fame are its twice-weekly barbecue nights on Wednesdays and Saturdays. You get the same food for the same price as any other night, except you can watch it being barbecued on the outdoor grill. Yes, it does taste better.
Aside from the guests, the crowd that tends to hang out at the resto bars are slightly down-at-the-heel North American expats. If you'd prefer a more tony bunch of expats, visit Ginger restaurant up the road.