PALERMO PUERTO RICAN... UN AMOR PROHIBIDO…read more Ay, Dios mío... I walked into Palermo Puerto Rican in Florida thinking I was simply going to have dinner. Pero NO. What happened that day was something much more dangerous... I fell in love. I ordered the Christmas Plate, and the moment it arrived at the table, I froze. Pork. Arroz con gandules. Pasteles. Plátanos maduros. I whispered... "No puede ser..." One bite, and suddenly I wasn't in Florida anymore. I was back in Puerto Rico during Las Navidades. I could almost hear the coquí, the music, the laughter of family, and somebody in the distance yelling, "¡Dale, que llegó la comida!" The pork was tender and full of flavor. The arroz con gandules tasted like Christmas memories on a plate. The pasteles... AY, LOS PASTELES! I wasn't emotionally prepared. And those sweet plátanos maduros came into my life like the forbidden lover my mother warned me about. I looked at my plate and said: "¡¿POR QUÉ?! ¿POR QUÉ TUVE QUE CONOCERTE AHORA?" Because this wasn't dinner anymore. ESTO ERA AMOR PROHIBIDO. Every bite brought back memories of Puerto Rican Christmases--the food, the family, the music, the alegría, the traditions. It was nostalgia, happiness, heartbreak and romance all served on one plate. And when the last bite was gone... I stared at the empty plate like the final scene of a telenovela. "No te vayas... todavía tenemos una vida juntos." Palermo Puerto Rican, you didn't just feed me. You took me home. And now our love may be complicated... it may be dangerous... it may even be forbidden... PERO VOLVERÉ. Because some loves are simply too powerful to forget. ¡QUE VIVA PUERTO RICO, QUE VIVA LA NAVIDAD... Y QUE VIVA ESTE AMOR PROHIBIDO!

Everything was delicious. Maybe put a Cuban on the menu?…read moreThe pork was so tender and flavorful. The mofongo was not dry at all! Sangria was perfect. Not to much citrus! I would come back again when in the area.

My family and I had been to this restaurant many times and never had a problem but on Saturday when…read moremy family and I went things took a turn. Our food was not good the rice was hard like it had been in the pot for a while. I ask for a pork crackling and it tasted old. My husband ask for a beef stew and the meat was poor quality more fatty meat than meat and other things we asked for were just not right. The service was horrible no one came around to asked if we needed refills on drinks. My sons food was brought to him cold after everyone in the table had their food for almost 10 minutes. At the end none of us ate and the plates were still there full. The waitress asked how everything was, I explained to her everything that was wrong with the food and service and not even out of curtesy did she mentioned let me asked the owner if a discount can be given or I am sorry for what just happen absolutely nothing, all she said was do you need a to go plate which I replied no why would I take that home. I am the type of person that doesn't like to complain but this time around I just felt like they did not care and they just needed to make that money. We paid $87 dollars for food that stayed in the plates that were brought to us, and I feel that it is poor customer service. For each its own but I will not be going back. when it comes to ambience of the location yes, they do have music and entertainment because there was a man going around the tables asking what song we wanted to request which I found was the only good thing that day in my overall experience.

This is my second time at this restaurant. From the outside kinda looks just like a regular…read morestorefront business but the one thing is the food is great! The service is good too sometimes there's a little bit of a way because it's always busy. Every time I have gone they've had karaoke and it gets a little loud but it's such a fun place. The pictures are from both times that I came I actually end up getting the same thing because the second time they didn't have chicken crackling. I'll definitely be back

The food is absolutely amazing I highly recommend. The food is always fresh. Huge quantities.read more

We will always keep coming back here to try new items from the menu…read more Food tastes like home, like your abuela just made it. Ambiance here is very nice, it feels like im at home. Service is good but very slow. Overal i still give it a 5/5.

Dinner and a show at Latin House Grill!…read more My best friend is Puerto Rican and she told me Latin House Grill has the best Puerto Rican food in Jacksonville. She wasn't wrong! The food was amazing! I got steak, plantains, rice and beans! There was also a late night performance by El Santi a bad that plays bachata. Everyone was dancing and the music was amazing.

Nice place to spend a Friday night! Went with friends and it was karaoke night. The DJ was friendly…read moreand had a good music selection. It was cool to see the owners there and the service was good. The queso frito appetizers are delicious

I wish so much success to this restaurant! My friend took me here as it's one of his favorite spots…read morein the area. We were the only guests when we arrived. The staff was so friendly and appreciative when hearing that it was my first time visiting. The waitress even brought out a sample of their goat dish. We ended up ordering the oxtail and chicken brown stew. Everything was super delicious and I believe the chef came in and checked on us. Overall ambiance was very cozy with Caribbean decor. Please check them out if you're able to!

I dropped in here for lunch today. I was greeted right away (it is unusual to be greeted in a…read morefriendly way in Jamaica restaurants normally LOL) and given a menu--and I already knew I wanted a lunch special with jerk chicken, based on the web site. There was island music playing in the background to set the vibe, along with a map of the Caribbean at every table. My jerk chicken came out quickly and was delicious. The plantains were the perfect consistency, which is important to me because some places dry them out. I asked for a side of pepper sauce and it's quite hot, so consider yourself warned! While I was dining, the owner, Peter, came over and was chatting with the patrons. The ladies at the next table clearly knew him well, and I love that there are local relationships at the restaurant. It was fascinating hearing about his transition from the finance industry in Trinidad to being a restaurant entrepreneur! I only wish I had had had space to try the rum cake. It would be a joy to come back to Irie Diner and support a local business!

Update: Still catching this truck at the Ramona Flea Market on Sundays. A little disappointing, but…read morethe last two times I've been here they did not have the Pastor. However their tacos are good (better than 2 years ago) and you can't go wrong with the chicken, steak or carnitas. In addition - They still have sautéed onions and jalapeno on the side, yum!

I am in town at Marriott in Orange Park. Went over for a late afternoon meal. Ordered the Asada…read moreBurrito and it was amazing! Absolutely perfect! Could eat there three times a day. Great job!

The food is all on point! Great portions, and very flavorful. I also really enjoy the king fishread more

This place looks like a run down convenience store but don't let that stop you! We happened to be…read moreat a business closeby and were recommended to come here and I'm glad I didn't let the run down facade stop us. The food is made fresh and is absolutely delicious My husband got the chicken and I got the pork as well as the potato balls and plantains. OMG a party in your mouth like being in Puerto Rico. Junior took great care of walking us thru all the options. Great people working here and again the food is top notch. We are quite a distance from this place but we will make the trip!

The food was absolutely delicious and the service was excellent! The restaurant was clean and…read moreambiance was very pleasant. The owners were super polite & friendly. I can't wait to go back to try other things on the menu!

This place has so much potential but the service is lacking. We sat and waited forever to get food…read moreand to get checked on. I even got up from the table to sit outside a few times. The food is ok, there is nothing that great about the food here, It tasted a little bland for me. I had the steak, white rice and beans. Their Mondongo is sooooooooooo good though. The establishment is clean with a nice seating area outside. The servers are nice and the music is good.

Nice little spot on Beach. They've always got music playing and the good is quite good. The…read moreservers are awesome, very friendly and helpful. A nice assortment of juices and the beers are always cold. Since it's attached to a smal tienda you can get fresh meat, spices and food stuff. I love their chichirones which is cracklin for us gringos. Order some and get it cut up so you can pop it in your mouth for a mid-day snack.

The best in town!!! Always super friendly and kind. I always stop for my Chicharrón and Rojo salsa…read morepicante as a treat maybe 2-3 times a week. Every time they are amazing. Can't wait to stop in again

Love this place! I've been ordering from here damn near since they opened. The food is always…read moredelicious and fresh. Customer service has always been great for me. I love the restaurant! Reminds of me of restaurants in Puerto Rico. Great music and always clean.

I picked up a catering order from here and service was friendly. But I was a little disappointed in…read morethe things I ordered. Pastelilo de guayaba barely had guava in it...it was just empty pastries basically. They were not enjoyable. Empanadas were ok, the taste was fine but honestly not that very impressive. Rellenas de papa were fine as well. Maybe I need to come and sit down for a meal because the catering wasn't super impressive unfortunately.