La Chola

Our family liked the food very much. We ordered fish with trifongo, pork rib with green rice, steak. We all were very satisfied. My wife said the trifongo is the best trifongo/​mofongo she had in PR. My son finished all the pork ribs, it’s a large portion. The rice that came with the steak was salty though, otherwise, it would be perfect.
They only had menu in Spanish, Angel kindly explained in English.
Call before you go! The schedule in Unilocal is not very accurate, or don’t take seriously any schedule in PR :).

We wish we discovered la Chola earlier, went for dinner tonight and had the most amazing dinner and service I ve had in puerto rico or anywhere for that matter.
Our server Angel was amazing, even though he was on his own for both the bar and tables, he was still able to manage to provide great service to over 20 people.
Yea, they should of had more staff but I don’t know why they didnt, clearly some staff didn’t show up, it happens.
The food was absolutely amazing, we were blown away at how good it was compared to the other restaurants we’ve been in, unbelievable value for the quality and presentation, hats off to the chefs.
We had the la causa, trifongo and churasco, all were amazing.
Angel explained everything on the menu to us which really made a big difference, such great service.
Can’t recommend this place enough.

Amazing food and excellent service! Since we cannot understand the menu, our waiter Angel explained the ingredients and the way of cooking from beginning to the end with great passion, the beer glass was chilled to reserve the temperature, our order were very tasty and beautifully displayed. Highly recommended if you Adler in the neighborhood.

Nice, open atmosphere and good service.
The tostones were the best I’ve ever had, anywhere. The pork ribs were also very tasty.

This restaurant was even better than the reviews said. I am a New Yorker visiting and looked for a great authentic spot to eat and this place surely didn’t disappoint. I went with my girlfriend on a Sunday evening and Paul was our waiter. I understand basic Spanish but he took the time to explain each item on the menu and I settled on the Ceviche which had a great taste. A little kick to it and the churrasco which was perfectly cooked with the plantains which were to die for. Paul was a great waiter and super nice and my girl got the chicken and rice which she enjoyed. Place was closing after a whole but they let us stay long as we want and were all pleasant. Would recommend to anyone! Enjoy!

While visiting PR from Chicago we decided to try Caribbean food and La Chola didn’t disappoint!
Almost everything about this place is a smash hit. The ambiance, open area, large tables, outdoor seating and festive decorations make you feel loved and entertained. The food was amazing but the service did fall short a bit. The waiters here are polite but they move at a slower pace than I’m used to. Things here are very casual so if you feel neglected by the server don’t take it personally.
But when the food arrives all will be well inside your mouth! We ordered the churrasco with the egg on top, the arepa de cerdo and the civiche mixto. The steak was cooked perfectly and packed with spices and flavor, the civiche was cool, tender, diverse in seafood and plentiful, and the arepa cerda was stacked under this amazing spicy saucy slaw– the pork itself was juicy, tender and dipped in a jerk like sauce.
Overall food was dope, try this place ASAP.

Ceviche Nikke –fish mixed with Japanese flavors
Chaufo Mixto — the beef and chicken were a little over cooked so they were w bit dry but the overall floavo was amazing.
Overall a great meal…

Incredible food!!!
My family and I tried the Ceviche Mixto and the Ceviche Neikka — both are FANATASTIC and probably the best I’ve ever eaten (and I’ve had quite a lot).
The Yucas Fritas were top notch and were smothered in a delicious chimichurri sauce.
We also had the Chaufa Pollo which is like an amazing fried rice with yummy crunchy pieces of scorched rice. great flavor!
Combined with excellent service, this place has been my favorite so far in PR. We will definitely be back!!!

Pescado arepas — light, crisp, delicious… not at all some bland fried thing. The traditional chicken dish was perfectly seasoned, cooked. The waiter was prompt and kind. He chased us a block down the street when we accidentally left something behind after our meal. Great tunes accompanying the food.

From the outside you will never imagine what a great restaurant it is. Really good Peruvian food, drinks and prices. The service is a little slow but if you are not in a hurry it is worth it.

I was just in Puerto Rico about 3 weeks ago and found this place while googling a good place to eat. So glad that we decided to come here after reading the good reviews. My boyfriend and I had the trifongo (casava, green plaintains, and sweet plaintains) with the fish stew over it and the ribs with trifongo. Both were delicious and flavorful and FRESH. Parking was a pain but we did get lucky with a spot across the street, I would say take a taxi if you decide to come here. The prices were great, inexpensive compared to a lot of eateries in San Juan.
My only complaint is that they didn’t have any special alcoholic beverages or non-​alcoholic drinks, they did have a sangria though. They also normally have Chicha Morada but they were out of it when I was there. They didn’t have much of a bar selection period. When I did order a drink of vodka with sprite and liquor, there were fruit flies in it!!! Just becareful and check your drinks from the bar.
Yes I’m still giving them 5 stars based on the food and service because it really is that good and our waitor was awesome.

As luck would have it, this gem was located only 1.5 blocks away from our house in Ocean Park. While in PR we tried a wide array of restaurants from simple to fancy and La Chola definitely stands out. As far as bang for your buck, these guys take the cake! I kid you not, I still dream about their rice!
Don’t be thrown off by the location, it’s a perfectly safe area of San Juan. The décor is simple and a bit random, and the staff are effortlessly friendly (that seems to be a trend in PR, nice folks everywhere).
On to the delicious food. Our small group ended up eating here for 2 nights. We had pretty much every dish their small yet legit menu has to offer. Here are some of the standouts:
— Ceviche — I tried one in a different place every day of our vacation, and these guys do it justice. Try all of them if you can!
— Arroz con Mariscos — Damn, that rice is out of this world! Lots of cilantro, just how I like it.
Chaufa, pulled pork in a dish or apps is ridiculously good. These guys do not have a huge menu, but they do it well.
If you are in the mood for some amazingly flavorful food in a casual setting that will be way easy on your wallet — look no further!

Was actually planning to go to another restaurant on this block but it was closed for the holiday weekend. Stumbled across this place and the Unilocal reviews sold us. Trust them, it’s all true — ceviche pescado, trifongo, arepas, all amazing. They were out of lemon juice, though, so we couldn’t get the pisco sour…
Several babies in here and they seem to be doing well. Definitely island time service but if you’re not in a rush and here to eat then it’s great!

I recommend La Chola if you like roast pork, an authentic Spanish (Peruvian) experience, good music and atmosphere. If you’re looking for a typical tourist experience Not your best bet.
If you’re in Condado, on Ashford Ave etc, you’ll need to cab it, but it’s great to get out of the typical scene.
Off the menu: Papas Cholas, like a Peruvian take on poutine. Soooo good. Chaufas is fried rice — bit more ginger flavour than were used to but also great. Chiccarones Cerdo (fried pork bites) were a hit with our kids.
*I don’t actually recommend taking kids, it’s slow service, better off going grown ups alone, enjoying pisco sours, papas cholas and music.

What a great find. My wife and I stopped by based on a recommendation from another couple. The seafood tri-​mofongo was AMAZING; will spiced, cocked to perfection, seafood goodness. My wife ordered a steak based dish on top of Tacu Tacu (rice and white beans). I loved her dish a little more than mine.
Angel was pretty cool and a very talkative waiter and bartender.
Will come back.

First night in San Juan and ended up eating at La Chola. What a delicious meal for my birthday. We had the mixed seafood ceviche to start. Probably the freshest ceviche I’ve had. And then the shrimp and rice with plantains. It’s a shrimp «Chaufa» (not on the menu but recommended by our server). Some interesting and unexpected flavors (perhaps echoes of soy sauce with cilantro? Can’t quite put my finger on it.) We drank the pisco sours (yummy). And for dessert a sweet (a little too sweet for me, but perfect for my partner) caramel pudding thing (you’ll have to ask your server as I don’t know the Spanish translation). A little pricey but overall a delicious experience.

Seriously the best meal of my life. We went there for our first dinner in Puerto Rico — it had great Unilocal reviews and was also recommended by our AirBnb host. It was delightful! We had the ceviche mixto to start, and it was perfectly fresh, with excellent flavor and texture. My boyfriend had the chaufa de pollo, and don’t be fooled by the simple name! It’s chicken and rice with veggies and herbs (cilantro), a wonderful fresh, complex flavor, and chicken that literally melts in your mouth. I had the pescada a lo macho trifongo, a mixed seafood dish on top of a mashed yucca & plantain bed. Spicy and fresh and delish. Of course we had to try the pisco sour — oh my gosh. New favorite drink. The service was slow, but on a Tuesday night and only one person to serve and bartend, it was fine.

Friend returned from PR raving about the Tecu Tecu at La Chola, so we knew we had to go check it out. Went around 8pm on a Thursday and the restaurant was pretty empty (apparently peak times are around 5pm and 9/​10pm). Ordered a huge portion of the mixed seafood ceviche, seafood on plaintains entrée, and the steak with tecu tecu entrée. ALL plates were amazing and would have gone for double the price in Washington DC.
Service was good. Our waiter translated the whole menu for us to English and provided great detail. This made it easy to know what to order. Great restaurant that is not touristy but still close to downtown Condado — would recommend!

Great meal at La Chola. The Pisco Sour is a must-​try — one of the best cocktails I’ve ever had. The ceviche was DELICIOUS and they brought these awesome little corn snacks to the table to munch on. They were super large crunchy corn kernals — could’ve eaten 3x the amount they brought.
We got a seafood entrée as well, which was really good and had an interesting yucca preparation underneath all the seafood and sauce. The only thing that was amiss was that some of the seafood was really overcooked (specifically the calamari), which left it rubbery. That’s the only reason I can’t give it a «good as it gets» rating.
Service was awesome, very attentive and friendly. Reasonable prices. Would definitely go back.

We were expecting the place with one of those «generous rating from anywhere else outside NYC», but I was wrong this time. This place surprised us with super slow-​cooked food. Yes it’s slow but soooo good. Also try their delicious sangria. The restaurant has simplest decoration and the light inside is a bit dim during the night. But overall the food outweighs everything else. They do not have English menu. My server is very friendly to introduce the items that I’m interested. Good opportunity to expand my Spanish vocabulary;)
If you’re around the area, check it out!