My wife wanted to take me to dinner for my birthday. Encanto is mere minutes from my home and the…read moreprospect of trying Columbian food enticed me to choose Encanto. My expectations were not high as I knew this location as Boardwalk Fries and a Portuguese restaurant the quickly went out of business - both of which I was not impressed with. So, I was really pleasantly surprised to walk into a tastefully, well decorated restaurant with full bar. Menus are on tablets with language selection capability - really useful and with pictures. The server came right away to offer help and explain some of the selections we were interested in. However, when we were eating, we were no disturbed. My wife had skirt steak. It was $30, but when you consider the cost of a skirt steak at the grocery store these days and that it came with 2 sides of your choice, I think you would agree its value. I had fish with garlic butter sauce. Don't know what kind of fish it was - didn't ask - but it was delicious. It also came with 2 sides and was only $20 as I remember. I enjoyed a Club Columbia beer with my meal and finished with a fantastic Columbia coffee. (I'm usually a cream and sugar kind of guy, but I took the chance to taste it without sugar and then finished without ever adding it. It was that good.) I had their flan for desert and really enjoyed it. A little thicker than Mexican flan with an almost cheesecake like consistency. My wife had a passionfruit desert which really didn't interest me - not a passionfruit fan, but after 1 taste I found myself going back for another and then another. Overall great food and experience. A note that others have pointed out. When I got the bill, the bottom line was like $97 and that usually includes tax and mor recently a credit card surcharge. I was about to add a tip when I notice 20% had already been included in that $97. So, my meal cost was only $75.00. If you choose to eat here, remember this.

We had an amazing time celebrating my friend's retirement. The food was delicious and we ordered a…read morelittle bit of everything. The stand outs were the mini Colombian empanadas and the guacamole served with chicharron, chorizo and tostones. Everything was served quickly and freshly made. The staff is amazing and friendly. The vibe is fun and lively. They also have live entertainment on Saturdays starting at 7:30 pm. Free parking on site. If you've never been then this is your sign to go. I know I can't wait to return.

Right this down in the Big Book of Knowledge For Life. "YOU GET THE BEST FOOD ON THE PLANET IN THE…read moreDINGIGEST, DIRTIEST, OUT OF THE WAY PLACES. In a random parking lot in the middle of south jersey, I found the best empanadas on the planet!!! Food so good that I travel and hour each way, drop $100 each time, and am always extremely pleased. The owner isn't just a great guy but he's a mad genius. Things that I would've never thought to put in an empanada, he Severus Snapes it together and I've yet to have a bad one. Some examples: Chicken alfredo, Nashville hot chicken, roasted veggie, Philly cheesesteak, mac and cheese, Dubai chocolate, and Fruity Pebbles are just a few. So pack your pepper spray, and your narcan and prepare yourself for a taste sensation

I ordered delivery and made a fulfilled request , that the empanadas be separated. We wanted to…read moreget a full experience, so we ordered 1 of each, and cut them so we could share. Each empanada was absolutely incredible!!! it is so hard to decide my favorite. The first one I ate (kids have shellfish allergies) was the Rasta Pasta, oh my, oh my , OH MY!! Please do not change the recipe! Absolutely delicious/perfect!! Did I mention, OH MY!! After basking with my tastebuds on the Rasta Pasta empanada, i returned to the sampling table and tried the Jerk Chicken empanada. SCRUMPTIOUS!!!!! Gave my son a hug for stumbling on a GOLDMINE All the other empanadas AWESOME!!! Working on how to bring these culinary delights to family down south,so we can share the wealth.

This was my first visit. I tried the pulled pork rice plate which includes rice, beans and potato…read moresalad. Pulled pork was perfectly seasoned. I loved how moist and juicy the pork was. The potato salad was smooth with some chunks of potatoes and a light crunch from the veggies. My favorite was the beans that pair perfectly with the rice and meat! All this for only $12!!! Wow! I highly recommend it. I also tried their beef empanadas. They were excellent. They're fried to order and homemade. There's a lot of filling and the beef inside is perfectly seasoned. The last time I had empanadas this good was at my Puerto Rican friend's house where his grandma made them! A close second was in Rincon, Puerto Rico. These are that good. They're a must try. This a lovely local neighborhood corner takeout restaurant. You can call ahead to order your food to avoid the the wait. The owner and staff are all very friendly and happy to answer any questions and provide recommendations. They have a tv in the waiting area and some drinks for sale. Inside is very clean and everything looks new and well organized. The food all homemade and delicious. Portions are very generous and a great value for what the charge. I'm looking forward to trying more of their food. I highly recommend it! It's definitely worth a trip to check it out. Support your local restaurants.

From the owner: Authentic Spanish, Puerto Rican, food great tasteread more

This spot is one of the best and love that it's so intimate and consistently delicious! I order a…read moreminimum of 4 empanadas bcuz I know I won't be able to stop eating after the first bite .

Delicious empanadas, friendly service, fair prices. They even have a text to order service which is…read moreappreciated. They are in a separate shop next to Trenton farmers market. Clean and fun decor inside. Definitely recommend! We tried the beef, cheesesteak, cheese, Oreo and buffalo chicken. All hit the spot!

My first trip to El Gallo Tropical was to try their fish tacos as part of my goal to find the best…read morefish tacos in/around Hamilton Township. I'd known about them for years, but they were kind of out of the way for me. The place is small and unassuming, which gave me high expectations, as sometimes I find myself having lower expectations for a more "Mexican" decorated place (I'm wrong as often as I'm right). As far as the Fish Tacos went, they do not serve the Baja style fried fish tacos that I'd grown up on out west, so it was a downer when the plater arrived and I saw the tacos filled with chopped fish cooked in broth. That said, at least the taco was well filled and the fish had a very good flavor. The broth turned out to be a major issue, as the (very tasty) single layer tortillas were soaking up the broth while I ate the first taco, and the second and third tacos both split at the seams and fell apart after one or two bites. A second tortilla may have prevented this debacle, but I won't order fish tacos here again. I'd have loved a fish soup made in this style. The next visit I tried Tacos de Tripa (fried pork intestines), which is my current go to taco style. They were very good, and I enjoyed the heck out of them. They were nice and crispy as I'd requested, and the excellent tasting tortilla made them an excellent choice. My wife had a cheese tamal that had ribbons of poblanos inside as well, and it was also very good with the poblanos providing a nice balance to the heaviness of the cheese. I'd get both again in a heartbeat. My third visit was at lunchtime, and I opted for a Torta de Chili Relleno--essentially a chili relleno sandwich. It wasn't the first I've ever had, and it's a fave torta when I see them on the menu--which isn't often. The torta arrived with a nice sized chili relleno along with the usual smear of beans, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, and a couple pieces of queso fresco served on a lightly toasted roll. Overall, the torta was very good tasting, and it went down nicely. However, I wish they used a little firmer roll instead of the soft one they did use. The torta was big and warm, and a crustier roll would have been better. The soft one used was near to collapsing under the weight of the ingredients. Fries are an option on the many torta options for a couple dollars extra. In retrospect, I'd have liked to have added a layer of fries to the sandwich for a little extra kick. All in all, El Gallo Tropical is a place I'll continue to go to. The staff is very friendly, and the menu is extensive (too big?). Although I had them initially at three stars after my first visit for fish tacos, the second (4+) and third (4-) visits have raised them up, and I'm rounding up to a four.

Just WOW!!! Best tacos I've had in a long time!! Order takeout and ate half before leaving their…read moreparking lot! Everything was delicious and you can 100% tell how much love that's put into their food! Service is speedy and staff/owners are incredibly friendly! Definitely need to check it out if you're in need of some authentic Mexican food!

I came here with a supper club group. There were 7 of us. The atmosphere was great. Not really…read morecrowded on a weekday. Our food was delicious. I like that the menu is on a tablet and you can choose English if you don't speak Spanish. The waitress was very helpful. And at one point the owner came over to speak to us about our food. There was a little mixup with one dish but she fixed the error. As a perk if you leave a review you get a shot. So one of our companions left a review right then and the whole table got shots! It was great. I would definitely recommend this lovely place. I gave it 4/5 stars ONLY because it's street parking and parking is hard.

The food and service are simply amazing. Take out literally takes 15 mins or less. So we just sat…read moreat the bar. The music and vibes were on point. I've been eating here for years. However, this was my first time order Mondongo from here. When we got home, we noticed there was BARELY any tripe in there. In a whole bowl, there were 3 pieces of tripe. They used a lot of filler like carrots, potatoes, celery and etc. that's my only complaint about the food. The chicharrones were flavorful and the bistek was juicy! Food here is pretty good. Just don't order the mondongo.

Came on a Thursday afternoon to grab a quick bite to go. Sat at the bar and was given a menu…read morequickly. Sadly this place is super dark, definitely a dive bar experience. I ordered the pabellón empanada, who was very tasty, the meat was delicious and the masa was very good. I also ordered tequenos but I wish they were not in a plastic container since they are fried. The side sauce was ok but edible.

The reviews for this place were all over the place so I was hesitant to go now that they are more…read moreof a Venezuelan restaurant. I was honestly really shocked to walk inside and have it look more like a hole in the wall bar than a restaurant, plus the giant tv screen with security were pretty off-putting. We decided to not be so judgey on the dark decor and instead test out some plates from their extensive menu. Hubby ordered a shrimp arepa and a chicken arepa. He preferred the shrimp arepa, I liked the chicken better. I ordered a Patacon con todo (a large plantain fried and filled like a sandwich with meat, cheese, lettuce, tomato and pink sauce). The sandwich was good, but had way too much sauce. My son had the steak with rice and beans, and the steak was awful. It was chewy, overcooked and full of fat. The beans were also not that great. Overall, I didn't feel like the customer service was great here (our server was fine, but nothing to really note), the place is super dark and gloomy (the music was not even good), combined with the giant security cameras...it's a miss for me. If you are single and looking for a place to grab a drink and some real food, I think this would be the place for you.

Holy God, Almighty, where do I even start? This is hands-down the best place to eat if you need to…read moregrab something on your lunch break in Trenton. Immediately when you walk in, it's clean, it's spacious, it has plenty of seating. You have plenty of space with your dishes when you go to sit down. You can look out the window and enjoy your lunch. The food... my God the food. I can't wait to come back here again. I will say they give you enough to last you to the next lunch day lol. But I will be coming back with updates when I try more things here. I got the steak platter and all the ingredients are so fresh, it's so well-made. Nothing tastes old, the flavors are amazing. I really have nothing bad to say. I will say the only hiccup is the workers don't really speak English, however, they do provide you with the phone so they can translate what you're saying, which is great. I waited an appropriate amount of time for dish like this and will be telling everyone I run into about this place. It's peaceful, the music is calming. You're not overly loud like a lot of these restaurants. It's clean, and the food is great! I found my new lunch spot. Update: went back the next day with my leftovers from my previous visit. Decided to try the beef empanada with the sauce that I missed the first day. Some kind of cilantro not spicy sauce. Also got the tres leches. Hands-down the best tres leches I've ever had in my life. And when I tell you that sauce puts the empanada over the edge. That's exactly what it needed. I will be coming here all the time!

Ordered the rice with shrimp but please note that it has ham and chicken with a couple of plátano…read moremaduros. Very delicious, this will be on my lunch break again. Also ordered their empanada pabellón, cheese, black beans, chicken and maduro. Note that it's a corn masa so it's gluten free and so so delicious I'm definitely coming back. I ordered on the phone and when I walked in 15 minutes later my food was ready. Service is fast and friendly. Cute decor and you can sit on your lunch break.

We come here as often as we can As always Never a bad meal…read moreTry the braised short ribs for at least the fifth time Just Great You need to try the empanadas as well Lastly Nina our server was wonderful In other words Great Food and Service a must visit

Took a stroll downtown Bordentown which had a couple interesting shops and a large number of…read morerestaurants. Decided on under the moon cafe and loved the atmosphere and ambiance when we first walked in. Different mix matched tables, glasses and plates. Loved the ceiling tiles and comfy looking benches. I love duck and when I read duck Mac and cheese with cherries I was lost in wonder of the combination of flavors so of course I had to order it. Surprisingly it was very enjoyable. The Mac and cheese was nicely made cheesy, noodles weren't over cooked and over all had good flavor with pieces of duck and a few cherries mixed in. I also ordered the burger which was cooked as requested medium rare and was topped with bacon and an onion ring. I upgrade to the Parmesan truffle fries.which I was slightly disappointed in. I didn't see or taste the Parmesan but there was a slight truffle flavor. The fish tacos I heard were good but not really blacked and the vodka sauce was just okay according to others at the table.

I ordered delivery from Mama Dude's while staying at a local hotel and totally desperate for a…read morenutritious meal of real food. There were so many choices of bowl ingredients that I worried maybe I went overboard by adding almost everything. But amazingly, the entire menu of ingredients and sauces was so thoughtfully chosen that probably any combination of them would go well together. Both the shrimp and curry tofu were delicious, as were all the toppings- especially pressed watermelon- and the peanut and aioli sauces. Super unique and satisfying- highly recommend!

We decided to try this spot after church services on a beautiful Sunday afternoon…read more When you approach the front, it's nondescript. We didn't think it was open. But once opening the doors, a vast airy space appeared before us. One of the wait staff approached us and kindly took our orders. From the large-printed menu that stood in eye sight we were able to make our bowls. The shrimp, cucumbers and leafy greens were fresh and very tasty. The honey mustard sauce I added to the salad hit the spot. We were the only sitting to eat. Others, which were few, took theirs to go. The music playing in the background was not overbearing. We carried on a good conversation for over an hour without being disturbed. We appreciated that. Mama Dudes sits in a strip mall amongst other businesses. This should not stop you from giving Mama Dudes a try. p.s. the unisex bathroom was clean and large enough for a wheelchair.