Service was barely existent, over priced for what you actually get. They forgot to give us three things we ordered on top of everything else so that was an even bigger disappointment. The pork was beyond salty, so much so that we could not eat it. I'm on my third bottle of water as we speak and I ate an hour ago. My mother asked for a menu for catering and they gave her an old fax order that was placed to them from a school in Hackensack and on the back is where the "menu" was printed, quite professional. Not returning that's for sure, going to try somewhere else. read more

Not only do I love to eat, but I love to cook...........and I make an amazing pernil. Sadly, this gringa has not mastered arroz con guandules......or the delicious Puerto Rican dish of rice with pigeon peas. Old San Juan Express to the rescue! This was my go to take out place to provide the sides for my roast pork shoulder this week. Arroz with guandules is excellent. Pastellitos with chicken are wonderful also...... Sadly, the mofongo was a little dry......maybe just an off day. Old San Juan Express has about 10 tables for dining in. The prepared dishes are in warming trays that you can choose to eat in or take out. Ample parking, friendly counter help. Me gusta! read more

Just had an amazing dinner. I had perni sandwich & the bread was good and fresh.. & empanadas were soo good! Lots of flavor and the waiter was very tentive to everyone. Again amazing food and I will continue to dinner here from now on. read more

Love trying new local restaurants. Let's start with the bad - this has to be the very first Spanish restaurant that I have been to that they did not give beans with a main entree. I ordered dinner special stewed chicken which, specifically stated that you get rice with beans and salad or soup. I got nothing, but rice and chicken for $11.25 and I did not even get change back from my $12.00 for take out service. This was a bit over-priced compared to what I get at Mario's on Main Street. The chicken was tasty, but I did not like the service and I strongly believe in good customer service. That's what keeps me going back to restaurants. read more

Went in on a Friday afternoon. Not busy at all. Staff member was eating at the counter and looked bothered that I came in. I was not properly greeted nor was I given a overview of the meals that were prepared. I had to ask which each dish was even though I had some idea. The worker clearly had an attitude as she asked me, "To go?". I got the pernil with yellow rice and beans. Looked tasty..was tasty but very salty! I've had better. Also the portion was somewhat skimpy compared to what you get at other Spanish restaurants. The rice was not filled to the top like I was expecting. The meal was about $8. Would I return? Not likely.. I know better spots. read more

This is definitely a hidden GEM. I could see this restaurant on one of those Food/Travel shows as a Top Pick. Pernil (roasted pork) is one of the restaurants fastest moving dish served with a side of your preference. The shrimp mofongo (shrimp in garlic sauce over green plantains) is a close first . It's kept very authentic as it is served in the "Pilon" which I believe adds more to the flavor. This atmosphere is cool and friendly and the classic Latin Salsa played throughout the restaurant transports you to the "Island". I can see this place becoming one of my favorites and I'm sure many agree that the ample parking and the BYOB is a great perk. read more

Awful service. They brought out the wrong dish (ordered grilled chicken breast) when I told the guy it wasn't what I ordered he tried to play it off like yes a chicken breast is part of half a chicken. The half a chicken was over cooked didn't even eat it. read more

Second time ordering online and once again only half of my order was in the bag. I called and was disconnected. The beef stew meal I ordered literally had 2 small pieces of stew. This place certainly isn't worth it anymore. Paid $50 for $10 worth of food. Never again. read more

Visiting from Out of town stopped into this place and the food was amazing definitely coming back read more

Old San Juan Express - Mofongo de Chicharron Arroz Con Gandules and Lunch Pernil Special - Spanish Near Me - Hackensack, New Jersey

Very good sazón excellent service, great music, and the best thing BYOB .love this place I will come back soon read more

Old San Juan Express - Spanish Near Me - Hackensack, New Jersey

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I ordered a chicken mofongo to go. Turned out to be very average.. The plantain was too dry and so was the chicken.. The curry with the mofongo was better but make sure you ask for more curry, coz it just isn't easy to gulp the dry cooked food otherwise.. It's good for a to go order and the ambience isn't that great for a dine in. I might give this place another try and hopefully this time I can savior the taste! read more

Finally I found a place like my favorite restaurant on the island. I remember when they had a place on route 46 the recently I find this place on the boulevard. It is alil rough but once you get over the idea of a kissing feet style service you'll enjoy the food. I was so please to find a place that cooks like home. Keep up the good work read more

Authentic Puerto Rican Food in Hackensack!! I was having a 3 Kings dinner party and was looking for a caterer who could deliver real Puerto Rican food, and this restaurant delivered the goods! I ordered a whole pernil which was quite succulent, moist and juicy, with the skin crackling. This pork was cooked to perfection!! The accompanying trays of rice and beans were quite good, and the tray of yucca seasoned in garlic and olive oil with sliced red onions on top was so delicious. Everything was cooked to perfection. I also ordered a salad and avocado tray, and this too was quite fresh. The portions for each tray were very generous. The young lady who took my order was quite nice, and my order arrived perfectly and on time. I will be ordering from this place again! read more

OMG, wonderful. One bite into my food and I already knew I'd be coming back, again and again. The mofongo with chicharon is to die for. The food was so amazing, not a word was spoken during dinner, with the exception of ordering drinks or asking each other for bites our food. Ordered alcapurias that were fresh and so very yummy. My husband ordered breaded steak which was very full of flavor, tender and juicy. My son had a cuban sandwich, also very tasty. The food is worth absolutely every cent they charge. They could definitely use some music, but let me tell you, the food was so good, I tuned everyone and everything OUT. Service was excellent and very friendly, met the owner who was also charming and friendly. Can't wait to go back!!! read more

Their food is excellent! would def recommend it. Empanadas are so good as well as the pernil! normally not a pork fan, but they do it sooo good that you can resist. everything i've tried there so far has been good. read more

OMG, this is not Puerto Rican food. The place should not be named old San Juan. its a poor representation of the name. The food was bland. the rice was nasty, beans nasty and pork chops mos definitly could have used more seasoning. Once was enough for me to never return to this place ever again. Stand clear of this food if you know what real Puerto Rican food taste like. Def not worth it at all read more

Date night is always fabulous when we go here! All their meals are awesome fresh and plentiful! Parking is sometimes tough but worth the wait or walk! read more

Food was mediocre, service was ok but the fact that they automatically add 20% gratuity to your bill is ridiculous! Never going back.

Super disappointed. My husband and I were craving Puerto Rican food so we ventured out to this establishment. Everything we ordered was super salty and overpriced. The mofongo was gummy:( We had to throw everything away. We will definitely not be returning or recommending. read more

I order from this place often and it never disappoints. Their food flavors are always amazing, the trifongo (moforgo with fried plantains, sweet plantains and yuca) is awesome, the mofongo de chicharron with that sauce they give you is amazing (I think is the beef stew sauce cause it is awesome), the chicharron de polllo (fried chicken chunks) very tasty and the flan de coco is the perfect way to end your perfect meal. read more

Hidden/in set on summit Avenue, you can miss it. Went on a Monday afternoon and we were the only customers at the time. First time visit. The time between ordering and receiving was approx 20 min. However the wait was worth it. We had the red snapper and chicken chicharron and both were very good. I would recommend to them on the chicken to remove the grissel as it gets in the way of truly enjoying the white meat.No alcohol served and they handle a higher volume of quick take-out orders. I'd recommend having lunch and or dinner specials as they are well priced. Ambiance is more like dressed up lunchroom..casual wear. They do also deliver but make you order early as they close at 9pm for those late night snackers. read more

Old San Juan Express - Red snapper in garlic sauce - Spanish Near Me - Hackensack, New Jersey

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First and last time ordering in this place. I ordered 2 pollo guisados (stewed chicken), with maduros (plantains). The chicken was not throughly cooked. It was pink and even red on the meat itself. Plus it was dry. How does Puerto Rican restaurant serve this meal without caldo is beyond me. The plantains were dry and were likely sitting all day. Too overpriced, but I'm sure they do that knowing it's a majority white area.Would not recommend this place at all. read more

Lovely owner. We were treated as family visiting abuelas house. Food was good. The place felt like we were in San Juan with its decor.

The pernil with rice and beans was delicious and a huge portion. There were hardly any fatty parts or chewy skin you sometimes get at other places, and I was very happy with that. The roast chicken was also very good. read more

I updated my review based on my recent experience. I ordered a mofongo and it was delicious. I decided to call the restaurant as oppose to using the online service which sucks. The staff was friendly. I would definitely return. read more

Felt like I was back in Puerto Rico. Staff was very friendly and the food was fantastic. It was a little pricey but it was so good. read more

Old San Juan Express - Mofongo - Spanish Near Me - Hackensack, New Jersey

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Great tasting food and warm service. Came in as a pit stop before heading to six flags and I made a good choice. I recommend the monfongo with chicken. Flavorful throughout and it's accompanied with a great sauce. Best I've have had from a restaurant. I will be coming back read more

Unfortunately I was not impressed with their service. When I told them my name I was told that it was a really big order. After waiting for about another 50 minutes I was asked if I needed utensils I replied where is my order I order about 1 hour and 10 minutes ago and it went down hill from there. The bottom line is we ordered online and waited a long time. Although the food was very tasty I believe that they can not handle multiple orders during a busy weekend rush. Due to that result I would not recommend this restaurant. read more

We went the other day to take out we ordered pork rice and beans the pork was so salty it was not edible. The rice had no flavor. The woman that worked there I think the owner or manager was very RUDE to the costumer behind me. I will never go back to this establishment This is NOT the same owner as the one on route 46 in Saddle Brook. Zero stars if I could read more

The food is good , however if you order delivery be careful. My order was missing a couple of items and the driver said everything was there. Then when you call the restaurant, it's an answering machine- can't get a hold of anyone. I had to order online- good food but service sucks... read more

Don't waste your time!!! Came on a Groupon, only to learn half of the menu isn't available with a Groupon. Which they do not include on the Groupon listing, and the only reason we came here. Food was poor, burnt steak and very bland "Uncle Ben" style white rice, we were missing food from our orders and As previous reviews mentioned the food has become worse over the years which shows why the place was empty. Management was terrible, did not even attempt to speak to us when it was obvious we were unhappy. If your looking for a real and authentic local Puerto Rican restaurant, I recommend "pasteles y algo mas" which is about a town away and well worth it. Won't make this mistake again. read more

The food was great. I purchased a Groupon voucher, worth up to $80.00. I was overcharged on the taxes more than 20% to the tune of $18.00. No matter how delicious the food was, I'm definitely not eating there again read more

First and last time. The staff seems miserable to be at restaurant working. No pleasant greeting. The waitress messed up my order, I ordered Chicken a la plancha and they bought me a half chicken (supposed to be baked but grease drippings everywhere). The chicken was very hard and fork didn't go through without pressure (possible re-warmed sand not fresh). I told the waitress order was incorrect but the owner or manager with the unhappy face said it would take a while to change and bring me what I ordered. I opted to leave as is, but didn't touch chicken due to toughness and no attempt to credit my bill. My husband ordered mofongo with shrimp and he got 3 medium size shrimps with the vein still in them. I was going to give a smaller tip since the waitress messed up my order but they had PRECHARGED 20% gratuity! Complete disappointment and terrible experience. read more

I bought a Groupon for this place in the hopes of finding a local restaurant to frequent. I am reeeeaaaallllyyy disappointed to say the least. There were only two other tables with couples already eating besides us plus the owner and a waitress. We waited for 1/2 hour before we got our plates. Did I mention the food is already prepared buffet style? Apparently it takes a 1/2 hour to put food on a plate and walk it over to a table. In that time we were waiting, at least three customers came in, ordered take out and left and the two other tables vacated. The fact that the owner himself was on the floor, we were right in his sightline, there were no other diners and still we were overlooked is beyond me. I don't get it. When we asked for the check, I showed my groupon on my phone. He said he wasn't aware I had a Groupon so he had to redo the check. I told the waitress as soon as I sat down that I had a Groupon to avoid such an instance. After he totals everything up, he charges me $8.50 on top of what I already paid for the groupon. When I asked why, he said he charged us for the drinks we had and the tax and tip. First of all, I asked the girl when I told her I had a Groupon if there were any restrictions or exclusions. She said no so we ordered bottled sodas not the cans that were apparently part of the Groupon. It is not my problem that the owner did not have good communication with his employee or did not train her well. He should have taken care of us from the beginning since he needed to know everything from the get go and stop using his waitress as a scapegoat. God knows there was NO ONE in the entire restaurant!! About the tip, It's common knowledge that the tip isn't included unless otherwise stated in any instance, not just for groupon. The owner took out the tip but didnt even bother to tell me. So I ended up double tipping and paid $12 altogether. I mean really....? He's a cheat and a poor business man. Not only did he not acknowledge us but he ripped us off too! It's shameful and disgusting. There's just no excuse when it's the OWNER mistreating his own customers. If it wasn't for the food being good, I would give it no stars. read more

Ordered the food to go and when I got home I realized they had forgotten my side order of plantains. The food was mediocre and definitely not worth the money. This place is extremely over priced for the amount of food you get. I would not try this place again. Wish I had seen the reviews before I went here. Very disappointed. read more

Went in with a restaurant.com coupon. It's close to home and my kids love Spanish food. Never again. They need a basic lesson in restaurant management. Service took forever, gratuity was added for a party of 3(unheard of it) they manually added my bill wrong and overcharged me, they also rang up the wrong price for one of the meals. It took forever to get the check and even longer to get a take out box. The pernil was very good. Skirt steak was ok.(21.50)French fries tasted as if they were in oil that was very old. My kids couldn't eat them. And that is a first! This place needs some help.. Hopefully the owner reads this and attempts to retrain employees on the basics. We even had to get our own menus when we walked in. read more

Food was OK, but small portions. They only had one person upfront, taking orders, answering phone and serving the buffet line during lunch. Watch out for hidden fees, Oxtail stew on the menu is 6.95, ended up costing 11.95 for 3 small and 2 medium size pieces. And to top it off, we got charged 15% gratuity fee, without being served, just for eating in. Wha?!? Would have come back, but with the hidden charges, No thanks! read more

If you want homestyle cooking then this place is perfect. Hole in the wall but good food. Don't knock it until you try it.

I would have given them 0 stars if that was an option. Love Puerto Rican food, but this was just awful. Tried a groupon and one would think it is a good way to introduce yourself to a new customer. Well the introduction was indifferent staff, long wait time, and very poor food. The mofongo was old, dry and had almost no meat. The chorizo appetizer had at most 4 small slices of meat and the rest all bread. Not only the worst Puerto Rican food I've ever had, but one of the worst meals ever. Very disappointing on all levels. Definitely won't go back. I also agree with others about the hidden charges. Save your money, time, and taste buds and dine elsewhere. read more

Being born and raised in Puerto Rico, I am a tough critic of Boriqua food, but I like this place. They have some very tasty dishes! I always get their pernil and rice and beans. I liked going to the one on 46 but I think they are renovating it or it closed. Either way out of many spanish places this is my favorite. read more