Loved this local spot. The music selection was right on; Cardie B, Shaggy, Eminem, Lizzo and Nellie…read moreto name a few. The music vibe was excellent. Drinks were good, prices were perfect and the food was just ok. Not bad but ok. Ordered the chicken Caesar salad, side Mac and cheese and wings. The wings were huge. Mac and cheese was plentiful especially since I only ordered the side and the Caesar was good. I really enjoyed the music and the vibe. The staff was attentive and we were never in need of anything. They were constantly checking to make sure we were good. I find this really nice especially when gratuity is already added to the check.

I've been here twice for dinner and brunch and both times my experience could have been better…read more Service is slow, they don't have enough staff working, bathrooms aren't the cleanest. Food is mediocre and can use a bit more seasoning in my opinion. The positives are it's beautifully decorated, conveniently located in a popular area, the staff is nice and welcoming and they do host events. We did get a bit upset when we brought a small cake to celebrate our friend who was leaving our job and moving away and they charged us to cut the cake. The cake was tiny and we had to pay a fee to cut it and celebrate our friend it was a little ridiculous esp when it was only 4 of us in total.

#6 on the list‽‽‽ what¿ No this restaurant definitely…read morebeats out El Rincon and rinconcito hands down and the chef at Cocotazo is truly blessed with a gift. Close your eyes as you eat, listen for the coqui sounds in the background past the music. Makes you feel like your on the island. # 6 I dont think so, definitely top 3 for sure. Must have is The guava ribs with her mashed Malaga, The salmon and her bistec encebollado​.

The food was amazing, and the people were welcoming. Also they have a run club on Thursday.read more

Brilliant food I consumed the food like slimer from ghostbusters the plate was shaking in fear…read morewhile my stomach was yearning for more "more father" simply brilliant food and a brilliant place to eat at

Food is delicious. Everything i hav e had. Portions…read moregenerous Service attentive Homey atmosphere

Love it here! If you ever stop by, definitely get the shrimp empanadas. 10/10, hands down! And the…read morefrozen piña coladas always hit the spot. Definitely one of my go-to orders.

I was standing on the street, minding my own business, when the smell of roasted chicken came my…read moreway. I looked around and didn't even see a restaurant at first. When I finally saw where that smell was coming from, I was drawn inside and found some delicious looking food. To my surprise, they have oxtail today! The woman serving me behind the counter was really nice, didn't rush me, and I'll bet she was an owner. The oxtail was really, really good, and they have really good red beans. If you're on a strict diet, this place might not be the very best choice for you, but a for me, I'm looking to return next time I'm in this hood! The ambience here is great, with love plants galore, a patio... even a clean and functional bathroom! That lunch special was only like $16. Incredible.

It was a busy Thursday afternoon visiting an old favorite. We sat at the counter space and…read morepatiently waited for 1 of the women to serve us. It was very busy, but they can keep up well. Very pleasant we ordered from the variety of pre made food and one order from the kitchen only menu. We tried the roasted chicken with rice and red beans, 2 chicken Empanadas, and 1 order of fried pork chops with green plaintain (chuleta frita con tostones). Took about 10 minutes to come out, and it was very fresh and delicious. The chops were well seasoned and crispy. The tostones were freshly made and crispy. I put a ton of their homemade mojito (garlic) sauce all over everything, and my son proceeded to follow me with his meal. Their chicken was roasted perfectly. Moist and tender with flavors. They have a huge rotisserie pit behind the wall and out the way to save space. Genius. The Rice and beans were standard yet authentic. The Empanadas were a little dry, but I had to show my eldest about ketchu-mayo lol iykyk, then he liked it. He's a bit inexperienced in the cuchifrito area and almost got a brand drink. I had to cut him off and direct him to the fountain drinks because ,uh-uh, we drink from the house in a great cuchifrito spot son! I got him the passion fruit, and I got my usual sesame seed. He looked at me crazy y'all lmao I let him try my sesame drink, and he was somewhat impressed with it. But he loved his passion fruit already. The service was attentive, and I honestly don't know how the ladies balance it all. He was pleasantly surprised at the bill $32. 2 full large meals, 2 drinks, 2 Empanadas, and 1 alcapurria because I had to grab one when I saw the cook dump a fresh batch. I went home thinking damn I should have grabbed 3 more. They were loading fresh cuchifritos and I shouldn't have held back. Later always comes and left overs are always welcomed. Overall, we both loved it. Even taught him a few things in there. For the culture and the price point he loved it even more. I know for sure we will be back.

BLAST-FROM-THY-PAST GANGSTER PARADISE*KITCHEN*CUCHIFRITOS…read moreTruth be told this flagship SAVOURY EATERY dating back into greater than fifty years will forever be pricelessly MISSED eternally! On many memorable cuisine days of the freshly specially CUCHIFRITOS menu dishes (using: Achiote Oil, Sofrito, Adobo, Aceite Oliva, Lard, Butter) truly having that unique Cuchifritos aroma fragrance, delicacy taste, unbelievable texture of Puerto Rican & Cuban hints of grandmas aboriginal TAINO secret recipe covert ingredients! Between the Mofongo marisco o puerco, Pollo or Steak with Rice and Cubano & Chicken-Steak Sandwiches, and warmth of Pollo stew, Sancocho, Sopon de Patidas de Cerdo, Fricassee de Pollo, Asopao de Camarones, Sopa Pollo de fideos, Chuleta de Jardinera, and the bizarre saucy marinated favorites of PIG'S ears, tongue, stomach, morsillas (blood pudding), Chicharrones, pasteles, yucca-plátanos con pescado! Yet didn't serve another two favorite El Jibarito o Tripleta? FRITURAS: Tostones, Alcapurria, Bacalaitos, Empanadillas, Pastelillos, Croqueta, relleno Papá, Pastellon, Pernil, Arepas de Coco, Ensalada de Bacalao & Pulpo o Ceviche, Bistec "beefsteak" encebollado and también los lo Potres de Flan, Tembleque, Flancocho, Queso, Arroz Dulce, Mallorca, pebidas de Coco, Guava con crema, tamarindo. People often came to this business regardless of the community deterioration of police statistics because of the reminiscent 1970-1970s blends of "comida" preparations hard to literally find that older no frills mixed combinations of methodology to "cosinando" dexterity not prevelant anymore as past Chefs either AGED or DIED with their extraordinary TAINO style Caribbean Island RITUALS like Caldo Santo (Holy Good Friday FISH Stew)! The older Misses working at this establishment had no choice but to be sarcastic strong Spanish women given the recidivism of Rift-Raft in this neighborhood of mix populace, especially a zip code of delinquents, criminals, and dastardly venomous attitudes of gypsy homeless, gang bangers, anger management loud-mouths entering the restaurant to cause arguments, disturbances, beggars pleading for tasty Latino Spanish's food of mamma's familiar morsels. These were the cheap eats of tasty MEALS of separated or divorce, and broken family authentic tasting home cuisine missed from mamma, wifey, side-Biscuit girlfriend,and death of homestyle cooker, and missed Holidays foods of those gone & remembered!

This is a cute, unassuming restaurant. Although it's on a busy street, it was pretty quiet on a…read moreSaturday evening. They have three outdoor tables and a bar in the front of the restaurant. The owners are Peruvian. To drink, I had the house red sangria. I loved that you could specify sweet, semi-sweet, or tart. I went for semi-sweet. It was nice and fruity and you could taste the wine. My husband enjoyed the strawberry pineapple wine punch, which had a bold pineapple flavor. They have several vegan entrees. I got the vegan chaufa with tofu. It was full of veggies and the fried rice was rich and well prepared. The tofu was nice and firm. I asked for hot sauce and they provided a red and a green option. The latter had cream in it. Our waitress warned that the red was quite spicy. It did have a kick, but it wasn't crazy and gave the dish the added flavor I was looking for. Their sweet plantains were satisfyingly charred for a crisp bite. Service was fast.

Just the other day I was craving Peruvian food, today I was walking around in Harlem and looked to…read moremy right and that's how I stumbled upon this place. Don't be turned away by the name! Now if you are anything like me, you understand how important it is to enjoy food that is fresh. I rather a plate of food that is extremely fresh over the taste & how well seasoned the food is, thankfully, here I got to enjoy both! I was worried about the fish. To many times have I had fish that was under seasoned. This fish was amazing. It was soft, seasoned well, had a lot of meat and I'm extra happy I didn't swallow (or shall I say choke) on a bone like I am prone to doing lol The fish dish was served with fried plantains and a side of some type of coconut sauce. I didn't think it would pair well together, I didn't really even think that I needed it at all. But, I took the plantain, put some fish on there and poured the coconut sauce over it and boy, I am so happy I had this meal today. It was fresh, well balanced, and light. Fortunately, there were enough plantains to fish ratio, even if it doesn't seem so in the pics. To this point, my partner had the lomo saltado, and he is not a man to ever choose red meat (it's a beef dish) after he was done he was like "wow, isn't it weird that this doesn't feel heavy at all". I took some of his food and can attest to this also! I walked in really really wanting the ceviche, cuz how do you go into a Peruvian establishment and not opt for that lol? There were three things on the menu I was in between and I am satisfied with the dish I had. On the table, there is a little menu that says you get a free dessert for writing a review on Yelp or Google. I didn't tell the owner I would write a review. He saw me taking pictures and I assume he knew exactly what I would be doing when I left. I thought it was a matter of doing the review and getting the dessert perhaps on your next visit, or doing the review before you leave. Which, I did neither. It was nice of him to bring the dessert. It's a passion fruit cream brûlée, which I have never heard of before or had. The passionfruit is prominent, but not sour at all. I had no clue what exactly I was eating beforehand, but knew just on the flavor alone. It was sweet, soft and light. Ohh, honorable mention- the chica morada (between me and you, I might've have two cups) something I NEVER do lol. I'm a sucker for corn, purple corn at that, and anything that is specifically cultural to a place, that you can't just get anywhere. It's refreshing, tasty, and not too sweet. Would recommend this spot! I look forward to going back and trying other dishes on the menu.

It was a long, eventful rollercoaster of day... desperately in need of some sustenance, we looked…read morefor a spot in route to our final destination. With one of my favs, we decided to visit Amor Cubano, based on a found memory of their champagne mojitos. It was a cold Saturday night in January and all the stars aligned. We pulled and found parking right outside the door. We entered and was seated immediately without reservation even though it was crowded and the first week of NY restaurant week. We perused both the regular and restaurant week menu. In an attempt to keep it simple we went the regular menu and ordered everything at once. Of course two champagne mojitos and empanadas to start. For entrées, we went with Arroz Con Pollo (for me) and Churrasco- grilled skirt steak (for my partner in crime). Customer service was good, food came quick and hit the spot. We enjoyed it all while listing to the live band. This was a nice ending to an eventful day. Just A Note: A tag on IG... gets you a spin of the bonus wheel. I snagged a gift card for my next visit.

Great food and service for a girls dinner. They also had live music on Saturday nights. Great vibes…read moreand decor was pretty. Would def return

It's been a while since I've had really good Puerto Rican food, and La Fonda did not disappoint…read more We started off with chicken pastellios and my bf got the red sangria while I went for the Puñeta drink(which was sweet, but not overally sweet. Sooooo good). I was craving Mofongo and the pernil Mofongo was definitely the best option. Mofongo can sometimes get dry so the fact that there was a lot of calldito (the soup/sauce) I was livingggggg. They had a really cool back area of the restaurant and it was fairly quiet so you could have a conversation and hear each other. I would bring bug spray in the summer though, I did get bit up a few times. Service was great. The servers were lovely and I will absolutely be coming back! I would check their Instagram, I had no idea when I made reservations that there was an event happening. It was a Friday night and they were teaching/having chess matches! So random, but a lot of people were there! The group is called @Chess_Place on Instagram if you wanna learn more.

Alright. So this is my official review for La Fonda -- the restaurant I told y'all is connected to…read moreAbuelita's Desserts. Same location, same love, same culture. First of all, sometimes I don't even realize how Puerto Rican I am until it's time to eat. And then it hits me. Heavy. If you know, you know. My mom and I had been low-key grieving this old Chinito Spanish spot on 116th that we grew up on. That place was a staple. Birthdays, celebrations, random Sundays -- we were there. And the chuletas? Elite. The Spanish food was honestly better than the Chinese food, and it was that beautiful cultural fusion that only East Harlem really understands. Asian families who lived in Puerto Rico, speaking Spanish, cooking with that blend of spices -- it was magic. When it closed, it felt like we lost a piece of home. So ever since, we've been like... where are we getting our chuletas now? And let me explain something very clearly: when it comes to a Rican and her chuletas, we do not play games. Don't tell me you make a good pork chop and then serve me something dry or bland. No ma'am. I'm looking for: * That crisp but tender edge. * The smell that hits you before the plate even lands. * The cebolla on top. * The juices already doing what they need to do so I don't have to add a single thing. * That perfect bite when the rice and chuleta meet on the fork. So when we saw La Fonda attached to Abuelita's, we were curious. A guy inside was recommending dishes, saying he comes all the time for lunch. My mom spots "chuletas" on the menu and immediately says, "Let's try it." And I'm nervous. Because what if it's not right? What if it's breaded? I didn't want breaded. I just wanted it fried. Simple. Classic. Done correctly. Baby. When I tell you I was NOT disappointed? I have found my new chuleta spot. Perfectly fried. Flavorful. Juicy. That bite with the rice? Exactly what I've been missing. You can choose your rice. My mom got yellow rice with red beans. I asked for the rice of the day -- and listen, that rice of the day was a moment. Yellow rice mixed with little pieces of chicharrón, some plátano in there, beans -- just layered with flavor. That's the kind of rice you don't leave behind. My mom also ordered the corn fritters. Did I taste them? No. Because she tore them down before I could blink. And when my mom goes quiet and just wolfs her plate? I already know it's good. The ambiance? Beautiful. The bar area feels very Puerto Rican -- colorful, warm, nostalgic. On the other side, there's spacious seating if you want to dine in properly. It's quaint but roomy. Comfortable. It feels like somewhere you can celebrate something or just come in on a random Tuesday because you need good food. And the food? Delicious. Period. If you're looking for authentic Puerto Rican food in East Harlem that actually hits the way it's supposed to hit, go to La Fonda. Try it. Get the chuletas (trust me). And then come back and tell me what you think. Because these spots? They have my heart.

The food was super good man and my fiancé loved it they were super chill and the service was nice…read moreall I can say is I 100% recommend this to anyone

Do not bother with this place. Really EXPENSIVE; Yellow rice, Black beans, Tail with 3 BBQ ribs =…read more$25 "Lunch special" according to the hostess. So it's not even a FULL SERVING. Not worth it. I think as a Dominican since they cater to other people they charge whatever they want and expect no complaints. For one person it's too much MOVE ALONG, GO FURTHER UPTOWN AND SAVE SOME MONEY.

When you visit Cuchifritos, expect a constant line and no air conditioning. The staff isn't super…read morefriendly, but they are highly efficient and keep the crowd moving quickly so you get your food fast. We ordered a lot to try. The arroz con gandules was a solid, well-seasoned base for the meal and came in a generous portion. We also grabbed a couple of pastelillos. The pastelillos con carne and the pastelillo con queso both had a great crunch and were packed with filling. The alcapurria was fried well with a solid exterior, and the inside was full of seasoned meat. To finish it off, we had the bacalaitos, which were huge, savory codfish fritters with crispy edges. It gets hot inside and you will have to wait, but the efficient service and excellent food make it a strong 4 star spot.

I returned here although the quality of fried foods has gone down. Acapurrias are not made with…read moreplatano but with yucca ... taste is not the same!#@!? Plain mofongo from here had bones and gristle in it ... disgustingly unpalatable! I must find another cuchifrito joint which makes its acapurria wit platano!