I had an Alma birthday gift card so it was time to use it on a Saturday night. We had a reservation…read moreat 6 but arrived earlier to enjoy the Bar and some apertivos. A good list/variety of Cocktails including Zero. Dan is the Man and not only made drink recommendations but navigated the menu for us. Lessons in Alliteration and the Mezcal y Manaca were my favorites, Guayabita and Vieja Escuela were also enjoyed. We started with the Patacon Salvaje -Calamari, avocado etc-just wanted to look at it as it was a work of art-tasty, Tequenos-their version of cheese sticks-the Guayaba sauce takes it over the top! First course-Alma Caesar salad-order it! Brussel sprouts, kimchi dressing-enough said, Caribe Atomico-have never had scallops (thinly sliced) this way before and loved it-the sauce wants to be spicy but stops at savory and the rice cracker complimented nicely-basically a Ceviche and another must try. Entrees-based on recommendation went with the Solomo Criollo (prime NY strip)-came out medium rare as ordered and Yuca with Chimichurri was a perfect side. The Duck Attolado stole the show! Exquisite spiced Duck breast over a bed of rice similar to Paella-delicious! Service was attentive and engaged-Kez took great care of us. Prices are at a premium and rightfully so as you won't find these creations on every corner. Perfect spot for date night!

First time in but it won't be our last!…read more Service was amazing. Our server, Spence, was great! Very knowledgeable about the menu and always there making sure we had what we needed. Do not sleep on the cocktails! The Lessons In Alliteration will bring me back here, it is so well balanced and goes down a little too easy. The food was incredible. We started with the Tequeños and Patacón Salvaje (the best bite of the night for me!). Then came the Caribe Atómico (a little too salty) and Caribbean Surf & Turf Salpicón. For our entrees we tried the Duck Atollado (the rice in this dish was amazing and so flavorful) and the Pelao Guayanés. Everything was well prepared and so tasty. Dessert was the Vanilla Quesillo and Cacao+, would skip, dessert was our least favorite course.

I swung by Arepi for a bite to eat after their "Groove Garden" event next door. Food came out…read morequickly and was a good portion size for the price. I got the "Party Beast" arepa which came with a heaping pile of shredded pork over some delicious cheddar cheese. I also got a side of yucca fries which were good but I'd probably skip next time as the arepa was SOO filling on its own. Love having this gluten free friendly option nearby!

This was our first time trying Venezuelan street food. I fear that they have spoiled all other…read morerestaurants of this type for us, everything was beyond good. The best thing we ate was the Pop Queen Cachapa. (Creamy chicken avocado salad & Venezuelan cheese). It was so flavorful, I will probably order this every time. The seating is limited, we went at an off-peak time so it wasn't a big deal.

Arepas Pues is a great casual spot in Downtown Silver Spring for Colombian and Venezuelan street…read morefood. Everything feels homemade in the best way that tastes comforting and flavorful! I got the Bandeja Paisa con Carne Asada, and it was SO good! The portion was big and the carne asada was delicious! If you're craving reasonably priced, authentic, hispanic comfort food, I'd definitely recommend giving Arepas Pues a try!

If you've arrived at this place, then you're in the right space! The food is a wonderful…read morecombination of Cuban, Venezuelan, and Colombian cuisine. I ordered the Ajiaco, a homemade chicken soup with large chunks of chicken, corn, and other veggies. Flavorful, but not salty. The tostones with steak and guacamole on top was excellent, the bottom is a crispy plantain mashed down flat. They place the steak and guac and then drape it with this sauce. It was large enough for two people. I really enjoyed this; flavorful and filling. The steak was tender. You can sit in or take your food to go. The staff is very nice and will explain what the dishes are like if you're not familiar. They have so many things to explore outside of arepas. I look forward to coming back soon!

Treat your senses to a burst of flavor in a cozy and warm atmosphere. Arepa House has something for…read moreeveryone to enjoy and savor. Treat yourself and your friends to a delicious meal at this local gem. You won't regret it.

I ate food from here last night. I was up all night with food poisoning. I have eaten here before…read morewith no problems but something was not right last night. I hope it's corrected because I don't wish this on anyone. Unfortunately, I will not be returning! You lost a great customer.

Sometimes I just go for the guac & chips. LOVE the chips, usually get a second bag. Just the very…read moreYummyest!!! Love the chicken bowl too!! The guys in the truck are always so upbeat and happy to chat even though they're hopping!!!

This is a no brainer!!! You gotta stop in if you're anywhere remotely close or in the area!…read more This is tucked away between a major highway and a Costco shopping area. Very simple to get to and quite a decent amount of parking. I went on a Saturday Afternoon and it wasn't too busy at all, but it should be with how amazing the food is! Vibes were pretty dope. Lots of outdoor seating and some music playing. Ordered the Pernil Arepa, Chicken Rice Bowl, and Pulled Pork Rice Bowl. If you're afraid of flavor, this is not for you, because the flavors were amazing! And you can customize your bowls with add one to your liking such as roasted corn, avocado, cheese, plantains and more! Loved it and will definitely make it part of my itinerary whenever I'm in the area.

Brazza on Steaks is such a solid place for good Latin American cuisine. The owner seems to be very…read moredevoted to the quality of the food and the steaks really could not be any tastier. I do think that a mix of the steak and other dishes is a good balance but it would've been great to have more greens as an option. But then again, this isn't something that is unique to this restaurant alone or the type of cuisine. I would love to watch a great soccer game or other sports event here to root on a local team. It is the perfect combination of solid food, genuine vibes, and great service.

I first heard of this place when Yelp sent an email with suggestions on where to eat in the area…read more Having never had Venezuelan food, I was curious about it. I looked at their menu, then set out to learn about their various entrees. My husband agreed to give it a try. Before going, we settled on trying "Pabellon Criollo" which is considered the Venezuelan national dish. We were here on a Saturday around 5 p.m. and were surprised to see a few large parties dining in. Also, people came in to get their takeout orders. Not sure as to how the ordering worked when dining in, we made our way to their counter. The owner, Carlos, spotted us and got 2 menus. We confirmed that we wanted to dine in. Carlos is very friendly and welcomes customers with a smile. He also was our server. To drink, I had a lemonade while my husband had a can of Coke. We let Carlos know that we were both having the Pabellon Criollo. This dish consists of black beans with a bit of shredded cheese on top, white rice, carne mechado (which was shredded), 2 arepitas (small arepas) and some platanos maduros. When the food came, it was obvious that the platanos were freshly made. Carlos also brought a bottle of brazza sauce (also called "salsa de amor). He told us we could put it on any item we wanted. It's a mild sauce which is mayonnaise based with cilantro. We enjoyed this dish. Everything was mildly seasoned yet still well flavored. Nothing went to waste! When it was time to pay the check, Carlos rang us up. We both say we would like to return and try their steaks. From start to finish, we had a great experience.

I got to try Arepateca at National Night Out. I have seen them at the local farmer's markets and it…read morewas great to finally give them a try. They have two arepas marked as vegetarian. They let me know the Sweet Domino arepa can be made vegan with no cheese. I ordered this and really appreciated how kind and accommodating the woman at the register was. The arepa came out quickly and HOT. I had to wait a little for it to cool before taking a bite. The black beans were so flavorful!! I love how well seasoned they were. The sweetness of the plantains added a nice contrast to the savoriness of the black beans. Additionally this arepa was PACKED with filling. I was shocked how small yet satiating this meal was. Overall I would definitely order this arepa again and am very thankful they were able to make a vegan option for me.

I finally got to check out their brick and mortar location! It is a cute, dimly lit cafe that has…read moregames, beer, wine, coffee, tea, and very cozy seats. I didn't count the tables, but maybe you can seat about 20, and there's a table in the middle that I saw a bunch of folks standing around. Connect Four and some other games were on there. It has been a long time since I last had them, and I was excited for my friend to try them. We each got an arepa, and we split tequenos and chicken empanadas... Yes, we were hungry lol. The chicken salad arepa I was as good as I remembered, and I got a glass of white wine that complimented it perfectly. It was my first time having their tequenos, and they were nice and cheesy. I'd take those over mozzarella sticks for real. There was only one woman working, and she was efficient in handling orders. I would come back just to hang out... But if they got music, that would really set the vibe.

Great addition to the relocated Southwest DC Farmers Market (now at the southern end of the wharf)…read more Arepas were made to order and even after walking home they were hot, fresh, and DELICIOUS!! These are probably the best Arepas I've had in the DMV!

Delicious crispy pastelitos. I ordered three mix-n-match pastelitos with shredded chicken, ground…read morebeef & potatoes, and sweet plantains & cheese. Shredded chicken was all right (a bit dry, in my opinion), but ground beef and sweet plaintains were great. The beef one is my favorite by far -- very juicy and flavorful! The sweet plaintains one was pretty unique, both sweet and savory. The texture of the pastry was crispy, and the accompanying cilantro lime sauce complemented the pastelitos well. Only con is that they take a pretty long time to make (maybe 20 minutes?), but the vendor makes everything, including the pastry dough, from scratch, so I can't complain about the fresh quality. Next time, I'll try their empanadas, which look delicious. Great friendly service.

Went here to grab lunch with a larger group and was very thankful for the patience of the woman…read moretaking our order. Very friendly and was helpful with recommendations. It's a small seating area, but we managed to find a spot that worked. We ordered three arepas, a cachapa, tequeyoyo, and a pastelito. To drink we got a tamarind beverage. The arepas were all very tasty and just what we were looking for. They had a good texture, were a decent size, and were stuffed with filling. The cachapa was something new for us. It was full of cheese and generously topped with chicken. The picture on the menu is very accurate. The sweetness of the cachapa provided a nice contrast to the savoryness of the chicken and chimichurri. The tequeyoyo was a great option to have for the kids as was the pastelito. All of the sauces paired well and we ended up mixing and matching. The tamarind drink was a real star and was a great tart contrast to all the food. I'm realizing more and more that I just want tamarind drinks. Overall, great experience and will definitely come back when I'm in the area!

The Tequenos are some of the best I've ever had! Arepa could've used some more salt on the beans…read moreand avocado. Ordered online and everything was done so quickly, would definitely come again!

I stumbled upon Arepa Zone about 10 years ago on a random trip to DC. I remember it having good…read morereviews and I had never had an arepa before so I had to try it. I ordered so much food and loved all of it. I couldn't wait to get back to DC to get it again. Eventually, I ended up moving to DC and Arepa Zone is absolutely one of my favorite places to grab a quick meal. It has truly become one of my favorite comfort foods. I usually get the patacon which is huge and very filling and they have different variations of it at their other locations. You can eat it with whichever meat option you'd like and it's just so flavorful and always fresh. If you're here for the first time, I recommend the tequenos as well. They are just so simple but so delicious. Service is always quick and great!!

I wish this place was open when I went to UMD!…read more This was my first time having arepas (and Venezuelan food in general), and I loved it. Even though they're known for arepas, the pabellón bowl ended up being my favorite it tasted like a comforting, home-cooked meal in the best way. The staff were also super helpful and took the time to explain their options. The space itself is so modern and clean and there's a cute little market area on the side with things for sale. Would absolutely go back!