We're currently dining here, and from the moment my partner and I walked in, the experience has…read morebeen mixed. One of the hostesses was noticeably rude at the start, which set an uncomfortable tone. After being seated, our waiter hasn't been outright unkind, but there's a clear difference in how we're being treated compared to other guests. As a same-sex couple, it feels like we're not being received as warmly, even though he seems to be making an effort to remain professional. As a Puerto Rican, that's honestly a bit disappointing and feels out of place. That said, the food itself has been very good.

A gem. Sat outside & had a great night. Food, vibes, & service were all wonderful. Started out with…read morea complimentary soup & cod fritters (yummmy! & I don't even like fish, usually). The hot sauce on the table was nice, not too hot but a good kick, I usually do not like habanero based hot sauces but this was good! The Queso Frito was interesting in flavors & textures, delicious. El Conflicto was perfect, all the flavor of a pina colada but without the heaviness of syrups & sugar. The Pollo Borracho was super flavorful & filling, chicken cooked to perfection falling off the bone. My fiancé had the Carne Frita, it was super tender & a well balanced dish. Service was friendly & attentive. My only complaint- we were so full we couldn't even look at the dessert menu! Guess we will just have to go back.

El Refran is located right on Ashford Ave- you cannot miss it - it's a tiny little restaurant that…read morealways has a line. For that reason, I'd recommend going at an off time for lunch because it was great! They were out of a few items, but I ended up with a pork chop with guava sauce and it was so good. They were also sadly out of the tres leches cake but I popped back in later that week as they were closing and were thrilled they had some left. That may have been the best tres leches I've ever had. The drinks were also delicious! We'll definitely return next time we're in PR.

I recently visited Levant for my birthday dinner and was extremely disappointed by the way my…read morehusband and I were treated. There is absolutely NO signage anywhere in the restaurant stating that flash photography is not allowed. While we were quietly sitting at our table waiting for food, my husband took a quick photo of me with flash. Out of nowhere, Patrick, who identified himself as the General Manager, approached us in an incredibly aggressive and hostile manner and abruptly said "NO FLASH" with an attitude that was completely unnecessary and unprofessional. If there are rules guests are expected to follow, maybe the restaurant should clearly communicate them instead of having management aggressively confront paying customers. I asked to speak to the assistant manager who handled the situation much more professionally and was kind, understanding, and willing to listen. Unfortunately, Patrick's behavior completely ruined the experience and left a terrible impression on what was supposed to be a special birthday dinner. His behavior was racial profiling. No guest should feel singled out, uncomfortable, or disrespected simply for taking a photo when there were no visible rules posted anywhere in the restaurant.

The restaurant has the ambiance of a small town PR restaurant that you would find tucked away in…read morethe country roads of the island, with the long shared tables and the decorations. The wait was usual for Old San Juan. About 30-45mins. They take your name down and call you when there's a table ready. What they don't tell you is that the menu is a QR code on the table. Once you figure that you see a well organized and simple 2 pages menu with many PR authentic dishes listed. The waiter comes about 10-15mins later. And it's best to have all your order ready as they don't come back very often. The place is usually packed all the hours that they're open. Food: that's why they lost a star. Rice and beans, Madurai/amarrillos, scurrilous, delicious 5 stars, but the bigger, empanada, chicken with garlic lack the bite that you come to expect of PR food! They lack taste, "Sazon", they were bland and tasted more like someone forgot to season them and forgot the garlic. I'd tell them to go back to their food and make PR food like it's supposed to taste, not for the tourist, please!

First time visiting El Jibarito! What an amazing experience, delicious homemade food with lovely…read morestaff members. Even the locals come here of how good it is. You get tons of food for the price and would definitely come here again hands down. Feels like my fam is cooking back there in the kitchen haha. Highly recommend!

As a team we are going for a 4.5 rating. So I do 5 , my wife does 4…read more Get here early opens 11:30 on Sunday about 11 for parking and to get in. They do have valet parking and it is a good idea to use. Roads are narrow and parking is hard to find. Plantain Soup given when you first meet the server. Very good. Beers are $18 Caasita mule $14 very good Arepas con bacalao $18. very fish forward, good. Pigs feet and chickpea stew $19. Aguacate Camarones $27. They have their own hot sauce. Rojo pique, very good $14 Service was very good Note they have a James Beard award.

Food is good, service could have been much better!!…read more We got in line and we were seated within 10 minutes of arriving Initially our server was very attentive, took time to explain the menu however after we got our food it took us over 45 min to pay even after asking 2 times. Decor is nice, food is good. Drinks could have been a bit better prices are reasonable

Kept seeing a bunch of reviews on how amazing this place was and honestly it's up there…read more To start off, I'm not really a sweets guy so my take is going to be a little off from the general public. We were able to snag a reservation but for a late time which was about an hour and a half before close. The service was super great but one thing I wished they mentioned that the bottled water was going to be a $40 charge lol. Makes sense for any upscale restaurant though. Should've mentioned we wanted tap so fair warning, ask cause you WILL get charged haha. We had a group of 10 and for how big the group was, the food came out pretty fast. I don't think we ever had a time between drinks to entrees where we were waiting for food to come out. We got the watermelons mojito for drinks since it was the most raved about. It was good but personally nothing crazy for me. 8/10 score on that. We also curry popcorn chicken, the ahi tuna lollipops, the empanadillas and the goat cheese quesadillas for apps and honestly overall 9/10. This is where I don't like the sweetness part of this meal. The empanadillas were what I was most excited for but it was more sweet then savory which sort of lose my appetite a little. I think if you like that kind of taste then it's going to be good. It wasn't a bad taste at all. Just too sweet for my liking. The curry popcorn chicken was good and the lollipops were great. Again, nothing crazy. The goat cheese quesadillas was good as well but again, too sweet for my liking. Now on to the entree, they didn't have the porkchop since we came late so I ended up getting the porkchop belly dish. When it came out, it looked amazing but then I got a whiff of it and smelled cinnamon. That's when I was sort of disappointed. It was like eating pork but tasting Cinnamon Toast Crunch and as said before, it tasted great but too sweet for me. This one was way too sweet to where it seemed like a dessert item. I just had poor luck and got one of the one items that were sweet. This doesn't tank the rating down whatsoever because I also should've read it had cinnamon. It would've been great if they made a dipping sauce or something to pair it with and not have it on the pork belly itself. I got to try other dishes my friends got which were good as well but I wish I got to try something else. If I came back I would try the sold out item which was the pork shank or the sea bass. I know for a fact the sea bass was amazing. Had a bite of it and thought "I'll come back for that" Overall, 10/10 experience and nothing bad about the place but gotta try different items when I go next time. I understand the hype now

This restaurant was a must-try after seeing everyone rage about it online, and it definitely lived…read moreup to the hype. Out of all the restaurants I visited in Puerto Rico, my friends and I came to the agreement that this was definitely the best one, and I can't believe we almost didn't come! To start off, the staff is super nice and made us feel welcome. I may be biased because one of them complimented my "gracias" (lol) but they were accommodating and patient as we had a hard time deciding what we wanted to order, since everything looked so good! The pinchos de atun was a must-try since everyone online was talking about that dish in particular, and it was AMAZING. The tuna is so fresh and complimented so well by the sauce and the rice cracker. The ceasar salad was flavorful and a great addition, since we didn't have much veggies at that point in our trip. And the sea bass!! SO tender and delicious. We also got the perfect lady cocktail and the guava & cheese bread pudding, and both were perfectly sweet and balanced out the rest of the meal. Everything about this place was amazing. The inside of the restaurant is very pretty and it's located near La Placita, so easily accessible to the nightlife if you want to party afterward. I will definitely be recommending Santaella to all my friends and coming back if I visit San Juan again.

Beautiful restaurant with outstanding, creative dishes…read more My husband and I ordered one app and two entrees. The portions were very large, and we would have been fine with just two menu items! To start, we had the roasted eggplant, lamb 'picadillo', date sofrito, 'Feliche' yogurt. Really delicious and probably best for sharing among 3-4 people as it's a bit heavy given the lamb. Nevertheless, it was really good and we finished it! For entrees, we tried the (1) rice with rabbit, sweet plantain in its leaf and the (2) breaded pork loin, mushroom cream, cherokee tomatoes from San Lorenzo, tostones. Our server was super excited when we ordered the rice with rabbit and I understand why. It was insanely flavorful. Also a massive portion haha. We really enjoyed this. The pork loin was delicious as well, especially with the mushroom cream. Plantains are one of my favorite foods, and these tostones did not disappoint. The restaurant itself is beautiful. It's a nice mix of modern decor with homey, vintage elements. There is a very large outdoor space, but I'm really glad we ate inside. Definitely recommend - especially for a group that likes to share!

What a perfect dining experience. The staff genuinely seem thrilled to work there. They made us…read morefeel so welcome. They were also so excited to recommend dishes from their expansive menu! Beautiful layout with roomy indoor seating arrangements and a lovely outdoor seating space. Bathrooms were pristine with a changing table Food: Corn fritters with cod & heirloom tomatoes - light and delicious, packed with layers of flavor. Nice blend of textures from crispy to the savory tender fish and the tomato crisp Chicken thigh chicharrones - wow. So good. Tender and flavorful Prawns - plump and tasty. Soaked in a wonderful stew I would say 3-4 dishes is good for 2 people with a healthy appetite Would 100% like to come back the next time we are in Puerto Rico

I highly enjoyed La Cueva Del Mar! I wanted a mix of Latin and seafood and this was the perfect…read morechoice. It was recommended by one of our tour guides so it is a great option for both locals and tourists. It had a nice atmosphere and very large menu with many different types of options. The Frutti di mare was one of the best pastas I've ever had! It had almost every type of seafood you could want. A great option for someone who wants to try a bit of everything. It was large enough to satisfy you but not too large where you have to take leftovers it back to your hotel. It also came with a salad and delicious bread. My husband ordered the yucafongo pollo, and was very impressed. It was also filling and well made. The drink menu also had a lot of options. I went with the sangria which was super tasty! It's more on the fruity side. Our service was great and we didn't have to wait long for a table or our food, although it seemed busy. Whether you live in the area or are just on vacation, I would recommended trying it out!

This is the "main restaurant" in the Embassy Suites Hotel and Casino…read more It's seafood based and has a pretty extensive menu. We got the Tuna nachos and the shrimp tacos to share. Everything was fresh and delicious! The portions were perfect for sharing and had a wonderful flavor! The shrimp tacos were lightly breaded and had a good flavor. The nachos had fresh ahi tuna and a great flavor with the seaweed salad! The service was good and fast too! The price was a bit high, but it's what you expect in a hotel lobby.

Look, were we at an alcapurria spot ordering pastelillos? Yes. Do we regret it? Absolutely not…read more We got one each of vegetariano, cebolla y queso, pollo, and guayaba con queso. The vegetariano was mid, but the other three? No complaints. But honestly, the food is only part of the story here. The vibe is everything. Salsa playing, high energy, warm service. We rolled in late and hungry, looking for sweet refuge from La Placita crowds, and they welcomed us like we belonged there. The music started out mixed, but at some point it shifted to Contra La Corriente front to back. We were enjoying our pastelillos, singing along to No Me Conoces, minding our own business when... el apagón. Not the whole Placita, just a couple spots including this one. The staff didn't miss a beat. Flashlights came out, mood lighting appeared, and nobody rushed us. We finished our food. We paid. We left happy. 5 stars because some experiences are bigger than the sum of their parts. This was one of them.

This is not a polished, Instagram-perfect restaurant and that's exactly the point. That's why I…read morelove it so much. Tucked inside La Placita de Santurce, its a small, casual, almost hidden spot that's usually packed with locals. Think plastic chairs, outdoor tables, music playing and a constant flow of people coming in for a quick bite or drink. Feels more like a neighborhood hangout than a restaurant. I've been coming here for years and this is what I've learned, take it from a local. For a quick bite, alcapurrias are a MUST -- especially beef or crab. Also the "pastelillos" are amazing-- corn beef, chorizo, morcilla... Everything freshly made to order. Now, if you want to sit down and enjoy an authentic Puerto Rican meal, here are some of my favorites: chuletas fritas, chicharrones de pollo, bistec encebollado and carne frita-- of course with a side of rice and beans or tostones for the win. Bottom line: you come here for flavor and authenticity, not comfort. Enjoy

PHENOMENAL This is…read morenot just a restaurant, this is a dining experience. This is upscale elegance in a relaxed environment. This is global techniques blended with locally sourced Puerto Rican ingredients. From the moment you walk in, you feel welcome. I was there to celebrate my birthday (a reservation is a must). I asked if I could be seated in a different section of the restaurant, and even though they were packed, they said absolutely and found me a lovely seat in the bar area. The staff is knowledgeable and attentive. I suffer from severe food allergies but wanted to experience their tasting menu. My server spoke to the chef directly and then took the time to walk me through every option. I TRULY appreciated that they did not take anything off the menu but rather told me how they could adjust for my allergies. That is very rare and so very much appreciated that they went that extra mile for me. I highly recommend the tasting menu. It's 5 courses and they give you 3 options to choose from, within each course. And for the price ($85), a great value. Everything was delicious but I highly recommend the Breadfruit Gnocchi, Rainbow Runner Crudo, and Criollo Duck Mofongo. Chefs kiss! What I also noticed was, even though they were insanely busy, they didn't make you feel rushed. The invited you to savor the experience - which I did. Next time you are in San Juan, make a reservation and go. You won't be disappointed!

Cocina Abierta was literally downstairs from where we were staying, so it was an easy choice for…read moredinner. They have a lovely outdoor seating area, but we opted to sit inside for the ambiance, which turned out to be a great call. Service was excellent from start to finish. Our waiter was knowledgeable, attentive, and gave great recommendations. We decided to go all in on the $85 per person tasting menu. The food ranged from good to very good, and there was a *lot* of it. Standout dishes for me were the ceviche and the desserts, both of which were exceptional. The beef empanadas and breadfruit gnocchi were also highlights. My one criticism is that the tasting menu didn't feel particularly cohesive. We started with yellowfin tuna, moved on to wood-roasted fish, then suddenly shifted into Italian territory with breadfruit gnocchi in a rich buttery sauce before continuing on to beef steak and duck. Individually, many of the dishes were delicious, but together they felt more like a sampler of the restaurant's assortment of dishes rather than a thoughtfully sequenced tasting menu with a clear theme or progression. That said, the quality of the food, generous portions, and outstanding service made for a very enjoyable evening. If you're looking to experience a wide range of the kitchen's offerings, Cocina Abierta delivers.

We were in the area shopping around and exploring. It was earlier in the day so not many places…read morewere open, we saw signs leading to this food truck. They had such poor service, they were not helpful in providing menu items or recommendations. Very impatient. The truck was pretty small, clean interior, and drinks were organized. They had limited seating with NO shade/umbrellas. After they took our order we waited over 40 minutes for three boxes of food. The platter came with meat, veggies, two sauces, and another side of choice (I chose fries). We all got Chicharrones, it was very juicy and tender. And the exterior skin was surprisingly really crunchy! Super tasty!! The fries were mediocre, cold and thick cuts. Portions were filling, none of us were able to finish. I don't recommend, plenty of other restaurants that offer the same items with better service and shorter wait times.

Love Trifongo Taino the bartenders are amazing and the food is fresh and delicious! If you come to…read moreLa Placita you must make a stop at Trifongo Taino is right in front of Paraiso.