La Garita is set back in the heart of old San Joan. I'd suggest parking in the garage or on the…read morestreet and not driving down in the neighborhood of La Garita because the roads are extremely narrow. Upon entering the restaurant we got seated immediately. We sat outside on the patio because the view is phenomenal. It took awhile for the waitress to come out and take our order. Maybe because we were hungry. Honestly though, I feel it was enough time to look over the menu and make the right decision as to what to order. The environment is so calm with the sound of the waves and the breeze coming through the open windows. It might be too much for some ( like my cousin ) but I love it. So our food came along in a decent amount of time. Our drinks first. We both got Passion fruit juice. 10 OUT OF 10 . I got the grouper with rice and beans. 10 out of 10 AGAIN (This place can't miss) the different flavors bursting on my pallet is just what I like. All the different sautéed vegetables in the top of the fish was a great call and super necessary. My cousin for the lobster mofongo. It had soooooooooooo much lobster in it. OMG and seasoned very well. That's not really my thing but it had seafood and looked so good and was dripping with the sauce I couldn't resist. The fried fish were had for an appetizer was seasoned and fried to perfection. I highly recommend this place. Is my fourth time here. I don't have PR without coming here.

Worst wait staff I have ever met honestly…read more We arrived at 5:18 and waited 90 minutes to get the food. It was insane!! Juice order had to be taken twice since they forgot. If it was exceptional food, it is one thing but this is below average at best. #WORST

It is right in the middle of San Sebastian street which also happens to be the heart of nightlife…read morein Viejo (Old) San Juan. this whole street is live, buzzing till midnight and sometimes till 2 AM. so if you wanna get the vibe/ feel of nightlife, come to this street (Calle in Spanish) here. We entered, every server was busy, we saw one empty high table, settled ourselves and ordered fish tacos, Chicken Empanadillas, and a couple of drinks (Mojito & beer). Fish tacos were really good, the best we had in the old San Juan area. we were there for 50 odd minutes and went to another bar. the ambiance was good but can't say the same about service but as I said above- this is the scene in every other bar in that street. so this is normal there. also, happy hour is from 3 to 8 (like other bars) one thing to keep in mind- whatever the restaurant/bar/pub you visit in this area - your food order gonna take time, as these all are mostly there for drinks, of course, food items are there in the menu, but it's gonna more then usual time, so if you are hungry, try other restaurants. Bar-restaurant in San Sebastian street- these are good for a couple of drinks & bar hopping. Note: To enter, they are asking for CDC Card (for vaccine check). You can also show a digital copy/Photo of it.

LOVE THIS PLACE! Our server whose name I cannot for the life…read moreof me remember was wonderful, and the doorman was adorable. Amazing FISH TACOS! Flavorful AF and even tastier with the hot sauce, so definitely get the hot sauce. They have happy hour from 3 to 8 - got tasty Mojitos and Pina Coladas. Also tried their little shots of frozen slushies for a $1 each - really liked the tamarind one. Also, I highly recommend and would double down on the Paellitas. If you've had Paella in Spain, these Paellitas are the mini-version-don't-wanna-share as they are smaller in portion. However, it was well seasoned and the 3 pieces of shrimp on top were fat and plump (just how I like my shrimp!). Sit by the front and you can also people watch to your heart's content. That's what we did and we ended up making friends with randos that stopped by.

They didn't have everything available on the menu but we came at a time before dinner and after…read morelunch. The passion fruit mojito was the best I have had. Had fresh fruit as you could see the seeds grinder, the mint so good and soooo worth it. The cafe con leche...as a coffee snob was AMAZING. Dark bitter chocolate notes with espresso taste and so very good. We had fried fish and kids menu with steak and everything top tier. Very impressed compared to anything else on the island. I Loved every part. If you like spicy ask for the salsa and it's a very good habanero tasting good on everything flavor. The service was good. They don't bother you but check in after every 15 minutes. Don't sleep on the atmosphere. It was amazing.

I enjoyed my food here, but wasn't a 5 star because of the price…read more.. I heard many great things about this place, so I decided to visit with my friends. We stopped by for early dinner. Since we got here early around 6pm, the wait wasn't too long. I opted for the STUFFED AVOCADO WITH STEAK & CHILEAN SALAD It was everything I expected. The steak was well cooked. The avocado was very good. Both the avocado & steak added to make the meal very filling. The Chilean Salad had a good amount of cilantro & tomato. It helped balance out the meal. The rice & beans was a good compliment to it all. Everything tasted good, but I didn't expect to pay over $30 for this simple meal.

Visiting PR for 2 days before catching a cruise. Food and drinks were delicious. We had tamarind…read moremojito and pina colada. Drinks were very tasty. Customer service by Leilani was exceptional. We had fried cheese with guava sauce appie, Skirt Steak Monfongo and Beef and Chicken Empanada's. Chill environment. Would definitely recommend and we'd come back.

We were looking specifically for seafood paella in Old San Juan. This place was a ghost town when…read morewe visited in a week night. Service was very average, but overall the food was very good! So much food and truly a great variety of different seafood options. Presentation was fun in the wooden bowl. Food eventually got a little cold, but that is mostly due to the fact that there was so much food, it was hard to eat it fast enough. The lack of ambiance and a very average Long Island Iced Tea is what knocks it down to a 4 star for me.

Very good service Jake was nice and prices were very affordable. Employees speak English aswell…read more Not too busy and chill location

Mojitos are solid and in a nice spot, i stopped for an outside smoking lounging area stayed for an…read morehour jake helped me the whole time and to be honest jake made the whole experience

Food was amazing! Highly recommend the platter to share and try a little bit of everything.read more

This restaurant has been on my San Juan list and it happened to be near my Airbnb so it was a no…read morebrainer for my friends and I to visit. Since I've always seen the long lines outside this store when I passed by, we decided that we try to go in as soon as it opened. So, we lined up around 11:30am. We barely waited much and we got seated. The server that day was quick/efficient/friendly despite the fact that she was running a one woman show. And the food arrived within a decent time. My friends and I decided to order the PUERTO RICAN PLATTER with a side of a side salad. This platter comes with everything you could want & maybe something that might be a bit adventurous for you to eat like blood sausage. Despite that, it's a nice platter to share and try a bit of everything. It's really nice that if you order for 4 people, they give you exactly the amount of pieces that are divisible by 4 (so everyone can try 1-2 pieces of each thing evenly). It also comes with a decent amount of rice/pork as a supplementation, which was nice. It's a balanced meal. And I think the side salad did well to balance out all the fried foods. Overall, we really enjoyed this place. It's a great place to come with friends/families to share. It's a great place as a visitor to try a bit of everything. The platter is a great introduction of puerto rican fried finger foods. And it all taste great! From the presentation of the food to the service here, it's all good. I would recommend this place to others.

Visiting Puerto Rico for the very first time with hubby and we tried a restaurant that is from the…read moreroots of the talented Bad Bunny inspire Puerto Rican dishes from all variation. And walking into the restaurant you have an open view of the old city where you are able to enjoy some good food and drinks and vibe with the music. The drinks were made with perfection I tried both their mojito and limeade, which were both a good choice for a hot summary day during the winter time. Services was done smoothly and well and the bartender was very attentive to make sure we were good and that we got everything we ordered and very consistent with making sure we stay fulfilled with the service. Food choices they have so many good options I tried there grilled prawn and beef empanadas both were delicious the prawns were done with perfection not chewy at all nicely cooked and well seasoned had that grilled tasted to it. A good choice for my seafood lovers my next choice would be there white fish when we visit again definitely a good choice to go if you travel here for vacation especially if you are cruising

Stopped in for lunch. Staff were friendly & helpful. Service was slow. There was really no…read moreatmosphere just an open dining area with pigeons everywhere. The food & drinks were good.

Awesome and cute little restaurant, would definitely recommend calling at least an hour or more in…read moreadvance to reserve a spot. The food was great; the portions were about medium sized, not too big or small. We didn't order appetizers, but it would probably be the perfect amount of food if we did. Our server was so nice and the environment was really peaceful for a full restaurant. They were playing calm indie music. If you're looking for Italian in Old San Juan, this is a great choice, even for picky eaters.

Downloaded Yelp just to properly review this place; the ambiance was fantastic, the service was…read morebeyond incredible and the food absolutely phenomenal, I'm still dreaming of the Tiramisu and the Carbonara!! I'd rate this place 20 if I could!! It's a gem and I will definitely be returning soon

Great service , great food.. very traditional food!!! Every time I visit San Juan, I make sure to…read moremake a stop here!!

First time visiting El Jibarito! What an amazing experience, delicious homemade food with lovely…read morestaff members. Even the locals come here of how good it is. You get tons of food for the price and would definitely come here again hands down. Feels like my fam is cooking back there in the kitchen haha. Highly recommend!

After a year I think is time to give this review a well deserved update. I keep coming back to this…read moreplace, I really love it--its one of those places that just gets it right! They offer a variety of herbal cocktail, with unique flavors and creative takes. My husband had a mezcal-base drink with herbs and he loved it--so much that he ended up having a few haha... I went for the classic Old Fashion which was OK, not great. I switched to a Moscow Mule after and that one was really good. Verde Mesa wins you over with freshness, balance, and a clear point of view rooted in farm-to-table cooking. Dishes feel vibrant, intentional and thoughtfully composed rather than heavy or overly manipulated. With that said, we began with the Kumamoto oyster, fresh and sweet. Then we had one of their classics, the sourdough toast with spread. This time they served it deconstructed--bread on the side and the spread separate-- and honestly, I like it better. The bread stays perfectly toasted, and you can built it yourself exactly how you want. The ribeye tartare was a pleasant surprise--rich, flavorful and paired with 'platanutres' (plantain chips) on the side, which complimented it really well. The only small note is that the chips were a bit too small to really build a proper bite with the tartare on top. Maybe using mariquitas would make that pairing even better. Also the tuna tiradito was well balanced with passion fruit, sesame seed vinaigrette and 'ají'. For mains, I had the pork cheeks stew, which was incredibly tender, soft and packed with flavor-- definitely a standout. My mom had the seared yellowfin tuna that came beautifully plated and the tuna had a vibrant red color that looked so appetizing. She really enjoy it, and said it was amazing. My husband had the mahi mahi fillet that came on a white cabbage stew and fish broth--he said he'll come back just for that single dish, that's how much he liked it. We saved some room for dessert and tried the tembleque and the tiramisu. The tembleque wasn't the most traditional version, but it had a subtle ginger hint that really worked and made it feel a bit more elevated. The tiramisu was also a great way to end the meal, creamy and indulgent. Overall, I would said the food matches the space-- artistic, cozy and a little whimsical. It's the kind of place where you slow down and enjoy each plate rather than rush through a meal.

I stumbled upon this place while wandering Old San Juan. The menu looked eclectic and interesting…read more The interior decor was also eclectic and interesting. Some dishes that I enjoyed: * Torched scallops * Tomato ceviche * Verde Mesa rice with chicken longanisa kofta add-on * Yellowfin tuna with roasted pumpkin and burnt daikon caramel The dishes sounded Asian on the menu, looked Asian in presentation, but tasted completely Latin -- that was the most interesting part of dining here. Verde Mesa rice was their signature dish, but I thought the components were weird. It had rice, vegetables, walnuts, cranberries, and Parmesan mixed together. It was a haphazard mess (1 star off). I added the chicken longanisa kofta, but not sure that tied the rice together either; it may have added to the scattered chaos. It was $40 for the chaotic rice mess and chicken longanisa kofta. I would have preferred something with less ingredients and better execution.