The food was very tasty, the pernil was very juicy.... Not a dry piece. The morcilla was good but…read morelack a little pepper sauce. The service was great. The place was very clean, they even had a sink in a corner to wash your hands. There were not too many people, but the people were arriving. Overall, I would highly recommend it.

Oooooiiiii!!! The Legendary La Ruta de Lechon (Pork Highway)…read more AMBIANCE Parking: Can definitely get busy during peak hours and weekends, but there's usually attendants and nearby parking options helping direct traffic. There's paid parking and street parking. All in all come early. Seating: Huge open seating areas with picnic-style tables and plenty of room for large groups, families, and celebrations. Take your pick, close to the live music or the local river for a more natural feeling. Vibes: The area keeps you busy from souvenir shopping, listening to music, or just Chinchorreo (like bar crawl but with pork)! The spot itself is alive on the weekend with music, people dancing, pig roasting and for a calmer pace, enjoying the scenery of the mountain, flow of the river and the chirps of animals around. Great place for a nice food adventure for families, friends, or just rolling through solo. FOOD / DRINKS Combo Plate (Recommend) I know it's important to save room to chinchorreo but especially if this is your first time, this should be your base. Lechon - Pick your protein, obviously I got pig - it was juicy, flavorful and tender slices of meat, and a nice piece of crispy skin. Morcilla - not your usual sausage but a rich flavorful with a chewy spiced earthy flavor. Pasteles - kind of like a tamale which was a savory soft doughy base. Arroz con Gandules - If they're out of their seasonal pasteles, then this is a nice savory with a lot of lot of lively flavors and seasoning. The portions overall were generous and very "family style" feeling. This is not tiny trendy food--you come hungry. CUSTOMER SERVICE Awesome! Props to the people that work the weekends for their consistent friendly service. TL;DR OVERALL 5 Stars. Good food, reasonable prices, and a one of a kind Puerto Rican vibe. From the mountain scenery, live local music, smoky aroma, and the general playful energy - this was a highlight of my trip I won't be forgetting for a while. When in Puerto Rico, La Ruta de Lechon is a must and make sure to stop by El Rancho Original. TIPS * Come hungry and come early (for parking and to get the best parts of the lechon). Weekends are the best as it is livelier.

Great food, good prices and friendly atmosphere!! A must…read moreplace for lechon whenever we visit the island!!

The Ruta del Lechon "the pork highway" in Guavate, Cayey is a located about 45 minutes from San…read moreJuan. My friend mentioned that this was her favorite place for traditional whole spit-roasted pork and we headed that way for lunch. It is not a fancy place but the flavors are so worth the trip! The place was packed with locals and visitors alike. We stood in line, selected and pointed to what we wanted and we paid at the other end of the counter. They have open coveted seating and they have fans going. Lively music played in the background. We left with our bellies full and happy with our delicious adventure.

Sábado 8 de julio de 2023 nos fuimos de almorzar en Caguas!! Centro y Corazón de Puerto Rico nos…read morefuimos para Borinquén Atravesada que es un campo un poco alto. Comida criolla y un ambiente tranquilo y familiar. El mofongo riquísimo y el Servcio muy bueno. Luego empezó a llover y cuando eso pasa en el campo el ambiente se transforma. Tiempo amplio estacionamiento y mesas exterior e interior.

This is definitely a locals only stop right in the midst of la routa de lechon. The piña colada guy…read moreat El Rancho Original recommended this place to us because we said we wanted Alcapurrias. We ordered a few crab alcapurrias and beers. The alcapurrias themselves were a bit disappointing, overly fried and not a lot of crab. However we ended up having a great time sipping Coronas and playing pool. The clientele was entirely locals from the area - we definitely got some surprised looks but in a friendly way. A few cowboys even showed up and parked their horses outside before coming in for a beer and an empanada! Overall this place is great for the experience rather than the food. Come here after your pork dinner to get away from the crazy loud music and play a few rounds of pool while overlooking the rainforest.

Ismael was a great waiter, super knowledgeable and kind. Spoke very good English as well. The food…read morewas divine. Everything we had from the creamy soup, to pastels to Churasco steak with risotto. Don't forget the coffee flan, omg! Oh and he makes one mean Expresso Martini. Must try in Cayey.

Nice little hidden spot on the way to Ponce. They have inside and outside seating as well. Food was…read moregreat!!

It a little over a half over drive from San Juan and there's no picturesque view from your table…read more But it's worth it. Cool rustic vibe, delicious food, and top notch service. I recommend the breaded pork loin. It comes topped with a mushroom and cherry tomato sauce and served over a bed of mashed malanga. Generous portion and filling, I wasn't able to finish the whole thing. Some appetizers I'd also recommend are the alcapurrias and the Montaditos de yuca with spicy crab and salmon chicharrón. My kid liked the rabbit meatballs. They are known for their cocktails, so order one. Overall, a great spot to hit up on the weekend, especially with a group of friends or family. Kid friendly atmosphere with open areas for them to play. If you're going with a group, I'd recommend carpooling since the there's no parking lot. Parking is on the side of the road. Will definitely be back. They take reservations, so call ahead because they get busy.

This was a nice treat. I loved the vibe. Great music. Friendly service. To top everything off the…read morefood was delicious. Every dish was good. The montaditos were excellent appetizers. We had the spicy crab and salmon and the smoked salmon ones. For the main course I got the quail with mamposteao rice. For dessert I had the tronki flan. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Sábado 16 de marzo de 2024 nuestra salida de almuerzo de los sábados. Llegamos a este local por…read morereferencia de la comida. Como siempre somos los primeros en llegar. Local limpio y ordenado. La comida se prepara al momento y todo salió en 30 minutos. Porciones grandes y excelente sabor. Servicio muy bueno y ambiente familiar. La comida estuvo muy buena.

Slow service more than 1 hr we waited for our food. The appetizer came after the food. The…read morealcoholic drinks are weak. No parking.

Food was great, but it took forever and the waitress was super lost throughout our dinning…read moreexperience. Food and music were great, the facility was great, but service needs to be improved. This place has lots of potential.

After arriving to pork highway a little later than expected (6pm) and discovering most restaurants…read morethat specially serve lechon (roast pork) were closed, we went to La Placita de Guavate for some pork dishes alternative to lechon like the 'Can can' and pork chop tomahawk. Staff was friendly and was helpful in translating some dish names. There was also a happy hour until 8pm for a smaller sized cup of mojito - only $3! You can tell that the liquor was on the light side but for someone like me, I didn't mind it. I got the shrimp (camerones) dish with mofongo as a side, my husband got the can can, and our friends got the pork tomahawk to share. The 'can can' dish was HUGE (can feed two in my opinion)! It's basically a bone in pork loin chop with the belly and skin attached fried to a crisp. Drooling at the moment.. Overall lively atmosphere, nice staff and good food!

I'm on vacation so I'm going to keep it short and simple. A group of us spent the day driving and…read morebuilt up a great appetite. I came up with the idea of taking them to the pork highway. However, we were quickly disappointed to learn that most of the fire pit roasted pork locations were closed. We almost decided to head back to the hotel but I made one more search and found La Placita open. I called to verify and the response was enthusiast and welcoming. We were so happy. Then we get there and this amazing professional takes us to our table and immediately starts providing the friendliest and caring service. We joked about my horrible "spanglish" and I assisted my party with their orders. It was busy, we were starved and some where borderline hangry. But then the drinks and appetizer arrived. Happy Level 1 achieved. Then after a few extra minutes, the meals start arriving. Omg! Everything was amazing. Get the Tomahawk! Get the Carne Fritas! Sides were also great - rice & beans, tostones, sweet plantains, mamposteao rice were all amazing! I hate myself for not remembering our waitress's name. I want her manager and the restaurant owners to know how special she is. If it helps - we were a party of 6 that came in at around 7:30-7:45pm on 4/22. Thank you and we will return on our next visit to PR! Great environment, great people, even better food! Muchas Gracias!