Good Dominican food in downtown Lowell. The beans are good, and anyone who knows Dominican food knows if the beans are good, so is everything else. Case in point, even their chicken empanadas were good. Those are usually dry and flavorless unless if it's a dedicated empanada shop. They were good... giving it 5 stars because the quality for the price merits it. read more

The food is so good the owners are friendly is a nice place to go to eat the place is very clean

Love this place. Doesn't look like much, but when it comes to Hispanic food it's one of the best. A little hole in the wall. (I'm picky with Spanish food and this place satisfies). read more

Tried an empanada here today. They are small, but worth it for $1. I tried the pizza, but should have tried the beef I think. The pizza was so salty I almost tossed it out. Having said that, they were very friendly here and the A/C was cranked up on day when us gringos are starting to feel the heat. I will try and go back and try the beef and maybe something else. Empanda 2/5 Service 5/5 read more

Super cheap, huge portions! I ordered delivery and it was still hot but the time it got here. Meat pies are delicious. Plantains a little too oily for my liking - had to wipe some of it off. Chicken in sauce is tasty - got 3 large pieces. I never thought much of this place after passing it a bunch of times, but I will definitely be back. You really can't go wrong with the prices here if you're looking for a cheap lunch! read more

Sad that they sold the restaurant. Used to be my favorite place since I was a little girl, but don't taste good at all .

Don't flag this We paid just under $20 for enough good Puerto Rican food for three adults. There's no atmosphere. The fixtures and walls and just everything is outdated and kind of ugly and tacky. However, the food was good. There wasn't much choice of food: There are two choices for rice - white and flavored. The flavored was good. It had peas and onions and pits of pork (at least) in it. There were two beef dishes and one pork. They were all very tasty. For the price, I recommend a visit to Bani. It's just up the street from City Hall. read more

Bani Restaurant - a car parked at the corner of a street - Spanish Near Me - Lowell, Massachusetts

During the pandemic we used grubhub often. We were excited to see bani on there, but the food did not taste the same. It was very dry and bland. Is there a new owner? read more

This is my go to for Dominican food. For less than $10, you can order a large take away box of rice and roasted pork. It's a bit divey but what a hidden gem. The chicharron (I apologize for poor spelling) is also fantastic. I've taken many friends here and they beg to come here every time they visit! I'd recommend coming here around 12-1 on the weekends so that the food is ready but it not sold out yet. read more

The best spanish food around. I've been going here since I was a kid and that will never change. Food sells super fast so you have to get there fairly early. Have never had a bad experience and they give you a lot of food for the cheap price you pay. The yellow rice is phenomenal. Absolutely love this place. Another 10/10, I highly recommend. read more

2 potato meat balls 1 empanada 1 tray of rice and chicken For only $20? Why not? The potato meat balls were delicious! Minced beef inside of potato mash and then fried. The rice was really yummy! Rice, bean and seasoning. The chicken was really tender and juicy! read more

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When I was like 20 that the brother own the place it was the best but after so many years the food it's no the same sorry

Been coming here for years and the food is great , only problem I have is there are no prices listed for any of the food and the last Few times I have been here over the years I feel being white I was overcharged and the pricing is never consistent . Any time I walk in here with a Puerto Rican friend of mine my food is always so much cheaper ..... Needless to say I stopped coming here as I felt I have been getting ripped off .... Food is great but if you like being discriminated against and swindled then it's all for you ! I won't come in unless I have a buddy with me who can order in Spanish .... read more

My absolute FAVORITE place for Spanish food.. I grew up in Lowell and have been coming here since I was a kid... Then I moved to New Hampshire... And while there may be plenty of decent places to get the same kind of food around me, I still make the 40 minute drive down, and then 40 minutes back home.. because it's THAT good. The woman that works here is such a sweetheart, she's been there for as long as I can remember. They give you an unbelievably huge amount of food for the price, you really cannot beat it. They always have extras too, like empanadas for $1.. (those are always awesome to grab to snack on for the drive home).. now I have three kids and they are just as much in love with the food as I have been my entire life. Keep up the awesome work, we will likely be back next week! read more

Atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired. BUT if you're doing take out, the roasted pork with yellow rice is phenomenal! Tons of food (2-3 meals at least). And the roasted plantains with garlic are pretty good too. Definitely worth stopping by for a quick, tasty and very filling meal. read more

Maybe they've shut down. No hours posted and all locked up. Nobody answers the phone. And this was at 6:45pm on a Thursday evening. The interior lights were on, there were two bikes inside and we could see somebody moving around inside the kitchen area. We called the phone hoping to get to ask somebody inside if they planned to open. We called the number on yelp and got an automated answering system that didn't even mention the restaurant name. It was at this point we decided Bani wasn't for us :-( read more

I usually get Bani delivery on ubereats, either the small pernil or small chicken with yellow rice and both are moist and delicious and it gets to me really quickly. A small plate is $6.99 and a huge lunch portion. The stewed chicken looks good too and I'll probably try that next time. read more

Get the orange rice with the pulled pork, you will not regret it at all. I usually get a drizzle of one of the stews over my rice too. The pork is soooo good. Big serving of rice and meat for like 5.50! Really good rotisserie style chicken too. Such a hidden gem.. The other posters are right, its not fancy or anything at all, but I kind of like it that way. Also they run low on what they serve by late in the afternoon, best to get their at lunch and early afternoon read more

I love this place. You pay five bucks and get a to-go box STUFFED with chicken and rice (or whatever you ordered)!!! They do not skimp on the portions and I could eat the food all day. Every time I'm back in Lowell, I try to stop in. The atmosphere is not much to look at but who cares? The food is fabulous! read more

The decor and ambiance is very shall we say.... average....nothing special about the decor. Food is fabulous though. Get the Yellow Rice with Pork!! Excellent for two more meals. The owner is very unpretentious....he doesn't care what people think about the interior...definition of "hole in the wall." He just wants to make good food. If it works...it works. read more

Great Spanish food!!! I've been a customer for years and am always happy with the food purchased. I can feed a family of 5 for under $20 and we are all full in the end. I love the beef in red sauce on top of white rice and or yellow rice. I always get extra juice on the rice!!! read more

Love this place. I don't care how outdated it looks I mean come on they started as a Bodega and now they have a bigger place to feed more people. I been eating there for 15 yrs. Who have time to decorate when they're busy cooking delicious food for customers. Just saying! Lol pork shoulders, yellow rice, and they beef so phenomenal. I know there's no hours posted but they stay open usually till 5-5:30p m-f cooks starts leaving around 3:30-4p so it slows down. Lunch hours are quite busy. $5 worth get you a hell of a lot of food. read more

Went there around 3, maybe a big mistake, but still doesn't excuse getting dried out meat for too much money. He has a small hot food display/service station and a register. It was hard to see how dry the stuff was. Someone was eating at a table and seemed to be enjoying his food. Had gone in for pernil but they were out so I got some chicharrones, rice and half a small chicken for $16.80. That seems high even if the food was fresh and moist. He tried to sell me the whole small chicken for $8, which was over my budget (other reviews talk of $5 meals). Because I had to get back with some food I agreed to half the chicken at $4. We were so disappointed when I got home, never even ate much chicken. I felt like he was probably gloating when I left. Either don't sell dried food or offer it at a reduced price and say come back some day closer to lunch. Had really been looking forward. Guess I'll stick with Pollo Centro in Lawrence, always delicious, fresh and clean. read more

love the pernil and yellow rice. often come here for lunch to go or to grab something for dinner if I don't have time to cook.