Hidden Gem and Unassuming is exactly how I'd describe El Criollo Restaurant in Dracut. Last night…read morewas date night with my two girlfriends and we met up with some of our foodie friends for another food adventure--this time, it took us to the Caribbean. Criollo is located in a small strip mall and doesn't look like much from the outside, but as soon as you open the doors you know you're in for a treat. The decor is polished and cozy with a nice bar area; the kitchen is semi-open so you can see the flames as your food is firing. They have fantastic Caribbean and Puerto Rican fare with beautiful, thoughtfully crafted cocktails. Everything was fantastic from start to finish. Here were some of the highlights: -Chicharron: crispy pork belly bites, need I say more -Alcapurria jueyes (Fried crab fritters): golden, crispy fritter with a crunchy exterior and soft, savory inside with flavorful crab filling. The fresh bites from the onion slaw were a nice touch with these. -Chicken empanadas: dip these in the pink sauce with a touch of their spicy sauce and you're in heaven. Slightly crisp and flaky exterior with a tender, chewy bite, perfect for holding the delicious filling. -Mofongo with shrimp and garlic sauce: if you've never tried garlic sauce on Mofongo, I highly suggest it. It's creamy and garlicky in all the right ways. The shrimp was cooked perfectly and the Mofongo brought me right back to my trip to Puerto Rico where I first fell in love with it. -Churros: truly the best ones I ever had. It was a last minute add on because "why not!" and the best decision! We made reservations for 6:30pm and when we arrived it wasn't overly busy, but by the time we left every table was filled. And that's no surprise based on our experience.

Small but very nice ambiance and the food is great! Good…read moreportions and the menu is diverse. The owners are super nice and the staff very friendly. Presentation of dishes are excellent. The flavors are really unique, with the definite Puerto Rico touch. Prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get.

Ordered for an office meeting and everyone thought the food was good. I order the burrimongo which…read moreis burrito filling wrapped with mofongo instead of a tortilla. Im actually from northern Va/DC area where I've tried various mofongo dishes, some good and some just meh, so for me, I felt the mofongo tasted meh...it lacked flavor or seasoning. I mean it was ok IMO but I probably would order something different next time.

For a quick weeknight dinner, I stopped by Empanellie's. While browsing the menu, I decided to try…read morethe jibarito - a sandwich made with flattened plantains instead of bread, filled with lettuce, tomato, and a choice of protein ($14). I picked the euphemistically named "steak," which turned out to be ground beef that wasn't even well-browned. The combination of lettuce, tomato, and simply seasoned ground beef tasted a bit too much like a Crunchwrap Supreme. Fresher and twice the size, sure - but still within that same flavor palette. Even the fried green plantains, which should've added some texture, had steamed into mild sogginess from the foil wrap, despite me ordering it for dine-in. Maybe I'll try the Cubano or the empanadas next time. The jibarito was fine, but definitely overhyped here and on Google Reviews.

First time there. Found online. Owner told me, after I order…read morethe steak tacos, that they would be the best I've ever had and they are in fact the best in the world. Well. Not sure about the world, but hands down, the best steak tacos I've ever had. Took 15 min to prepare and worth every second. Every bite was delicious. If you haven't been there, get there!! You are missing the best food around. I will be back without a doubt. I can't wait to to try the rest of the menu.

This is my favorite takeout in Nashua! The Canoa is life changing. Make the trip. The owner Tony is…read morethe friendliest guy ever. This is a gem in a hole in the wall location. Don't sleep on it!

I've been eyeing this place on my delivery app for a while and I finally ordered last night. The…read moremenu has so many tasty sounding dishes that it was hard to decide what to order, but I eventually decided on the ham and cheese sandwich, fried chicken and sweet plantains, beef/onions and rice with pigeon peas, and alcapurria. They offer different sizes for the meals so I chose small portions of each to try a few different options, but each helping was still quite large! The total for all of this food ended up being around $25 also so it was an amazing deal. The food itself was AMAZING: Ham and cheese sandwich - with lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayo, this sounds basic but it was SO GOOD. The bread was pressed down and nice and toasty, and the proportions of the ingredients were just spot on. A really great and affordable hot sandwich! Fried chicken and sweet plantains - the chicken was a little older since I ordered at the end of the day, but there was still enough moisture in it that it wasn't dry. The batter was also really well seasoned with different herbs and spices - it had a really nice rounded flavor rather than just being salty. The plantains were also nice and caramelized - a perfect sweet bite! Beef/onions and rice with pigeon peas - The beef was a little bit dry but still full of flavor and felt like it had been cooking in the sauce for a while so it was pretty tender. The rice and pigeon peas were really really good though - I will likely choose this as my side moving forward. Not sure how to describe it but it was really flavored with spices but not overly powerful in any direction. Really delicious rice. Alcapurria - My favorite! I had these in Puerto Rico and this version was nicely crisped with a ton of flavored minced meat in the center. The texture was spot on and just so savory and memorable. I want to go back to try the chicharrons, the tres leches cake, the chicken stew, the empanadas, and so many more things on this menu. It's really a gold mine for dishes and so so so delicious!

Man I haven't been to this place in over 12-15 years. On the way home we felt like eating some…read moreauthentic Caribbean food so we stopped in. Place is under different management but the food still hits! Service was great also.Definitely will be back in the near future.

I may have died and gone to Heaven I have found the Best…read moreEmpanadas in Springfield and can't wait to try the Cuban. Affordable and well worth the wait

Now this was a bit more of my standard for Puerto Rican food. The selections were aplenty and the…read moreplace was bustling with people in and out. They specialize in PR sandwiches on Pan de Agua bread so they didn't have any Pan Sobao which was frustrating at first. I then gazed over at the fritura that they had and to my delight they had fresh alcapurrias and empanadas! They were absolutely delicious and made with fresh ingredients. They had plenty of sweet bakery items too. Service was brisk but very friendly. People come here seriously determined to get their food and the they are out! The place was bright with plenty of windows and pretty clean. There's parking too!

This place has the absolute dirtiest food style there is..I saw mice droppings near the food!! They…read moreuse left over food thats is days old..The people are also extremely dirty..There was a dead roach in one of the boxes they gave us..Please do yourself a favor and stay far far away ...

I Love coming here their food is so tasty and delicious. Brings me back to my highschool days is…read morePuerto Rico. Everything is a good price and taste fresh.

This establishment feels like home. Cozy inside with that…read moreauthentic decor. Food was amazing and tasty. The young lady that served us was polite and nice. Can't wait to go back. Plenty of parking. I used maps to get there and it brought us around another building . Don't panic just drive around .

They never disappoint! There's a large variety of choices on the menu that are full of flavor,…read moreemployees are cheerful and friendly and it's always ready on time for pick up orders. We go here often!

There is no dispute about how tasty this place is. Every bite tastes homemade, so you know it's…read moremade with love. They didn't have everything on the menu when we went and honestly that's okay, because just about everything looked and smelled good. It seems like someone's aunty is just cranking out whatever she does well and you've got to appreciate that. We got the pork dinners which come with salad, rice and beans. The rice was on point. The pork was delicious too and filled with flavor. Some other reviewers suggested that the meats can be dry. This was our experience, but it's likely how the food is being stored and not how it's prepared. It was still good and a decent bang for your buck, so check it out. We also enjoyed beef empanadas that were served hot and crispy with tons of juicy meat inside. The owners were really friendly and outgoing, joking and being playful with customers. It makes for a welcoming environment. We will go back.

Super friendly owner and the food is straight fire!!! Especially love the fried chicken platter!read more

This place is amazing! I ordered a platter for a party and it was the best thing. The alcapuria was…read moremy favorite but everything was delicious. Highly recommended!

Great Puerto Rican food, a big selection on the menu and excellent service! Best plantains in Bostonread more

Absolutely amazing food. Menu is small but everything we had was authentic and delicious. They even…read moremade me chuleta kan kan pork chops that they normally only serve Thursdays and Fridays. Trust me they are a must try. Rich deep flavor crisp outside yet still moist inside. The yellow rice is extremely flavorful cooked perfectly. The pernil was seasoned perfectly through and through flavor burst in every bite not overly moist like most. The arepas were flavorful and deliciously seasoned crunchy and authentic. The yucca also had such a good taste almost like onion potatoes. Finally the flan was one of the best examples of authentic flan I've had anywhere creamy rich caramel flavor. Very well done. It's an awesome family owned/run place and there are only maybe 5 tables. Highly recommend! Must try!

I walked in and immediately was brought to PR with the food and art. The empanadas were delicious…read moreand the service was so wonderful! I would go over and over, it's a fun vibe.