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    Garcia's Restaurant

    3.7 (142 reviews)
    ModerateLatin American
    Closed Closed

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    GARCIA'S RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Garcia's Restaurant

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    Ecuadorian delish! Similar to La Colombiana and the Dominican soda
    Virginia T.

    Friends have been tempting us to try this place for a while. We finally had the opportunity to do so this Past Sunday early evening. We had reservations (thank goodness) and were seated right away despite folks waiting and waiting. We ordered right away, the food was as served right away and so were the drinks. The server was amazing! Even though they were out of a dish for the day (soup) she found a way to serve it anyway. Will definitely return. Not fine dining by any means but definitely nice filling, friendly atmosphere with extremely fair pricing. There can be long wait times and you do need to park on the street, but all well worth it!

    Caldo de bola
    Danny E.

    By far the best Ecuadorian food in the area. I come here almost every weekend and they never disappoint. The staff is friendly and pretty attentive. This time around we tried the caldo de bola and the encocado de marisco. Although prices have gone up due to inflation, the portions are just massive. The 2 areas of improvement are logistics and ambiance. The entrance to the restaurant is always complete chaos. Also the restaurant could use a little facelift, it needs a theme and better lighting. But if these are things that are secondary to you, you won't be disappointed because their food is bomb.

    Llapingacho
    Rosie B.

    It's true Ecuadorian flavor. Iv been coming here for the past 15 years! Great service and place. If it's you're first time here, try the encebollado de pescado. You won't regret it !

    Encebollado was delicious
    Michael O.

    Great dish the encebolllado. The staff were very polite and overall a joy to talk to .

    Bandeja
    Alicia C.

    I was craving Ecuadorian food and was so glad when my friend suggested this place. We all got coffee. I got mine with milk and it was ok. My friends got black and they returned it because it wasn't hot enough. we got empanadas de verde. It was good, crispy and cheesy. My friends got the encebollado and I got the bandeja. The encebollado was good but it needed more flavor and lots of lemon/lime. The bandeja comes with a huge portion of rice, seco de chivo, guatita (cow stomach) and two ceviches (shrimps and fish). Both ceviches were very disappointing. Bland and lack seasoning and lots of lemon/lime. Ecuadorian ceviche is a bit different than Peruvian. The shrimp/fish is actually cooked and not curate with lime. The guatita and seco de chivo were good. The seco was a bit salty but nice with the rice. Service and prices were ok. I heard the place has changed owner a few time.

    Josue S.

    I heard about this place and like always I turned into Andrew Zimmern on a new trip I drive 38 min from New York to New Jersey food is my heart and my soul so when I got in the restaurant it was about to close, I did it on purpose just a couple of people seating on the tables and the waiter rushing like he was one of the line cookers but that's not why I'm giving just 2 starts I'm giving to starts because of the super bad costumer service I spend $82.00 dollars and he didn't excite on say thank you! Not even on ask us me and my pregnant wife to have a sit and make us wait for 35 min when he told us it was about to be 20 min on the 35 min that I spend nobody sanitize any table not temperature read really poor cleanness how we know we still on covid-19 not hand sanitizer dispensers VIRUS HAZARD it's my last word. PD. At the end he was trying to fix he's behavior but WORKING ON THE KITCHEN IS HARD and if you can't rock GO TO DO pop and be justin Bieber and like happens to me at manny Mcdonald's the Spanish community believes I don't speak Spanish and start offensive words but I do well educated

    The hours posted on Google!!

    We got to the restaurant trusting their hours posted on google and when we got there it was closed!!! we travelled from Connecticut to New Jersey just go try their food and we are left stranded. Please update your hours so people dont go through this!!!!!!!!!

    Portrait of old name but same ownership
    Gianni A.

    I've been coming to this restaurant for over 5 years but today it took a turn for the worst. My wife and I ordered two different types of soups (sopa de bolas and encebollado emelec) my wife ordered the sopa de bolas which she started to put salt and pepper and said the it seemed water down. I received my encebollado and it looked normal but the taste was not the same, the soup seemed water down and didn't have much taste to it. I didn't eat anything for the whole day because I was so full but after 3 hours I started not to feel well. In my opinion things have changed in the restaurant and they are not being careful with the handling of the seafood.

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    3 months ago

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    The food was very expensive and not that great. Will not be going back. The flavor on the lomo salteado was not that great ,

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    2 years ago

    $42 for mediocre soup and a bottle of water in Union City? Nah, thanks! Plus be aware that they include 18% tip in every.

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    5 years ago

    This is good Ecuadorian Guayaquil style food. Encebollado & ceviche very good. I want to come back and try more!

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    4 years ago

    Llevo visitándolo por años, es un buen lugar para ordenar comida. Muy buen sitio para comer.

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    16 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    7 years ago

    Best Ecuadorian food that I've tasted in all of NJ. I love the encebollado. The best in town!

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    Page 1 of 4

    Garcia's Restaurant Reviews in Other Languages

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    El Conuco Restaurante

    3.2(114 reviews)
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    I recently visited this restaurant for the first time. When we walked in, we were seated quickly,…read morewhich was a great start. There was also a DJ playing and the music was really good, creating a fun and lively atmosphere. One thing to keep in mind is that they do not have a parking lot, so street parking is the only option. The prices are also on the higher side, but I was still open to seeing if the experience would be worth it. We ordered the picadera Dominicana and the waiter asked if we wanted guacamole. At no point did she mention that it would be an extra charge, so we said yes assuming it was part of the dish. We also ordered a passion fruit sangria pitcher, which was delicious and a good size for sharing. The picadera itself was good and we enjoyed the flavors. Unfortunately, the experience changed when the bill came. Since we were splitting the bill, they charged the appetizer as two separate portions, which ended up costing more. On top of that, we were charged $13 for a very small cup of guacamole, which they labeled on the receipt as "decorative guac" (it was presented as a Dominican flag in the middle). For just an appetizer and a pitcher of sangria, our total came out to $70. What really left a bad impression was when the server brought the bill back and pointed out where the tip section was, as if we didn't know how to read or weren't planning to tip. That felt unnecessary and a bit rude. It's unfortunate because the food and atmosphere had potential, and I likely would have given this place a much better rating if the lack of transparency about the guacamole charge and the comment about the tip hadn't happened.

    This place is fantastic. Authentic Dominican food, great service and atmosphere! They also have a…read morein bar area the back and plenty of dining space.

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    Picadera

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    Maracaibo - Arepa Bowl

    Maracaibo

    4.4(65 reviews)
    0.2 mi

    Well, now. Finding truly authentic Venezuelan cuisine wasn't on my 2026 bingo card (as the cool…read morekids say), but I'm definitely stamping this square. Dios mio, what a meal! There was not a bad bite to be had. We might've cut the roofs of our mouths with the crisped-to-perfection Patacón, but I don't care--I think all sandwiches should be encased in fried plantain instead of bread. And the succulent pernil filling? Dios mio otra vez! Though, tbf, when is pernil ever a bad choice? Then there was the stuffed-to-the-brim Cachapa filled with carne mechada and Venezuelan cheese. It was enormous. Like, Jesus pulling from the neverending fish basket enormous. It never ended. We had to take it home. But before we did, I practically ate all of the arepa, which was the sweetest, bursting-with-corn-flavor arepa I've ever had outside of South America. It was so good, I practically cried with every bite. Tears of corny joy, mind you. We got an entree of grilled fish (Filete de Pescado a la Plancha), which came with a complimentary side--in our case, arroz amarillo cuz I gotta have my grains. The fish was perfectly crispy on the outside, meltingly tender on the inside. As with everything else, it was also way bigger than it had any right to be. Finally, we ended with what we THOUGHT would be a small item--the Arepa Arcoiris Llanero--but we were mistaken. It was stuffed so full of fresh avocado, shredded chicken, and various veggies that it had to be further encased in a paper wrapper for fear of the arepa wrap giving up on its job. We didn't make it more than a few bites before having to regretfully pack it home, but those few bites were chef's kiss. Venezuela has long been on my bucket list (who doesn't want to see Mount Roraima or Angel Falls?), but until I can get there, I'll be more than happy to "settle" for coming to this beautifully modern paradise of culinary delights. Throw in the huge portions and unbelievably low prices, and it's kind of a no-brainer to make the trip.

    Nice, lively spot with a Venezuelan flair. Interior is modern and nicely done. They offer…read moreentertainment on certain nights and there are spurts of loudness. This is compliments of an antique radio featured when they make a certain cocktail table side. They use a couple of nice props for Instagram photos. Service is cordial and friendly. Food is good with some hits and a few misses. Appetizer Venezuelan sampler served on a Ferris wheel Entrees Arepa bowl with pork Cachapa with steak Dessert Churros w Dulce de leche- a bit of a miss Overall it's a nice experience if you want a lively Venezuelan dinner.

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    Mamies Cafe - Encebollado

    Mamies Cafe

    4.0(26 reviews)
    0.1 mi

    Love the food, service, and ambiance. Whenever we are in the area, we are sure to stop and dine…read morethere. Lots of antiquities to look at.

    Because it was ecuadorian independence day I wanted to pick up from here. Just like someone…read morementioned, this is definitely Garcia's competition and I definitely wanted to go somewhere else other than there. I like Mamies Cafe so much better! Here's how: They're yellow rice is so flavorful. I love their rice. Their encebollado mixto was rich in flavor, soft and easy to chew. The guatita in the Bandera was just made and was silky smooth. The sauce in that dish was mmm and the tripe soft and moist. I try to almost always get seco de chivo when I see it on a menu and that's what I did here but unfortunately it was dry. I get it chivo is tricky to make. Maybe it was made earlier in the day but I'm used to the dish being like a stew. But the seco de chivo wasn't bad! The quaker was the best way to end the meals. The tarrin serves about three 8 oz cups. When I went yesterday they only accepted cash and I don't know how long that'll happen for but bring cash! I paid about $43 for 3 meals and a quart drink. Parking can be tough so you should probably call ahead and pick up your order. There are parking meters which is 30 minutes for a quarter. I am definitely coming back. But wouldn't order the seco de chivo unless I'm craving it.

    Photos
    Mamies Cafe - Empty plate

    Empty plate

    Mamies Cafe - View of cashier

    View of cashier

    Mamies Cafe - View from the cashier. Where the tables and chairs are put aside.

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    View from the cashier. Where the tables and chairs are put aside.

    Garcia's Restaurant - latin - Updated September 2026

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