My daughter and I went to Puerto Rico last week for her teammates Quinceañera. In our way back from the beach at Luquillo, we hit some HEAVY traffic going through the small town of Piñones, which is on Highway 187 on the north side of Puerto Rico. We were HONGRY and since we weren't going anywhere we decided to stop by this restaurant/bar called Iguana Bar.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. The atmosphere was electric- the locals were playing pool and screaming and cheering. The salsa music was blaring. The traffic wasn't moving. The grills were smoking from the carbon. The smell was intoxicating. The breeze from the ocean was warm. All this going on during a Sunday evening around 8. It was exactly as the vacation I pictured it to be.
The food was just as amazing. The food was in a glass display and was beckoning to us. What we saw on display were traditional Puerto Rican food- empanadas de pork, beef, Pollo (chicken), camaron (shrimp), octopus (pulpo), jueye (crab), and carrucho (conch). Each of them are $2.
There were also alcapurrias, which are deep fried fritters that are plantain based with different meats inside of them. I wanted to try them, but what I ate prevented me from trying them.
We ate bbq chicken skewers which are called "pinchos". These are epic!!!
The size of the chunks of meat are incredible and they are served with a piece of bread also slathered with bbq sauce. I was told by our friend who is from Puerto Rico that sometimes they put garlic on the bread as well. That would have made it even better. I'm not complaining. The pinchos are $4 each.
There is also a full bar. We didn't have a server, which I was ok with.
Please trust me in that place like these are safe to eat from. They may not look clean, but they are. The Iguana Bar takes both card and cash. In the event that I do return to Puerto Rico, this is going to be an unavoidable return. I usually don't go to restaurants more than once on vacation due to me wanting to try different stops. This was a true exception!
Thank you, Iguana Bar!!! read more