As for food, staying at the Inca Lodge means you get a meal card valid for use in the staff cafeteria. It covers 4 meals a day and the food itself isn't fancy. As a vegetarian, my choices were far more limited, usually to a combination of mashed potatoes, rice, soup, bread, and vegetables, depending on the day and meal. For a meat eater, there were almost always two selections of meat/fish for most meals. Yes, it's not gourmet food, but given that we were paying $500 each for a week's worth of skiing/riding, accommodation, and food, it was definitely the best deal to be found in Chile, and there were occasional flourishes with yummy desserts. The cafeteria was a great place to get together during the day to meet people, catch up with friends you'd just made, and swap stories with guests and staff.

If you don't fancy eating at the cafeteria for every meal, there is still the option of going up to the dining room. I did this a couple of times for dinner, joining some people I'd met on the ride up. The food there is superb and the menu changes every day, and each table is attended to by at least two people. The important thing to do if you do want to eat a meal in the dining room, though, is to check with Juan, the maitre d', earlier in the day to see if there's space. There are two sittings for each meal. The later sitting will usually have more free space, as the early sitting will be full of families with kids. Obviously, there is an additional charge for the privilege of eating in the dining room. I don't remember the costs for all the various meals, but for dinner I had to pay 12,000 pesos, or about US$22 (drinks are extra). If you stay at the Inca, definitely splurge for the dining room for at least one dinner.

For those staying at either the Octagon Lodge or the hotel, all your meals will be taken in the dining room (although there is always the option of sitting in the cafeteria instead).