Pollo Campero

I remember going to pollo campero back home and when I saw that there was one close by I decided to go. Initially when I walked in it took me straight back to Guatemala, the décor the atmosphere was spot on. I ordered my food, the chicken was over seasoned, portions where small and the slaw had a strange taste. Could of been just me, but this is a poor imitation of the pollo camper back home.

Yummy Yummy !!! My husband and I love the chicken — I am not sure what herbs and spices they put on it, but it is so tasty, juicy, and always crispy!

I don’t usually eat fast food and I have to admit, I’m not a big fried chicken eater either. However I decided to try Pollo Campero for the first time after a stellar recommendation. I was not disappointed! For not being a fried chicken kind of person the chicken was actually pretty good. Crispy and flavorful on the outside yet still super moist on the onside. The fried yucca and plantains were pretty good too. The yucca is slightly crispy on the outside but soft on the inside and not soggy. The biggest downside for me is that I am nearly positive the chicken breading has MSG as it certainly tasted like it.
As for atmosphere, not much to say as it is a fast food joint after all. The tables were clean and service was good.

Regular lunch spot for me. Best fried chicken I’ve had from a fast food joint. Chicken empanadas keep me coming back. Friendly and courteous staff.

I rarely give five-​star but this is one of them. This is the absolute go-​to place for chicken anywhere in the US. The chicken is so moist, juicy, etc to die for. Even the breast meat which can be over cooked is fall off the bone good. Its Central American Chicken which is quite different from the average alternate Peruvian chicken you see all over the place. The Comparo Beans and Plantain sides are fantastic too. Go in, get a to-​go box of 12 pieces with 3-​slides and ENJOY. Right next to Kmart in Herndon/​Reston (on the backside of the Kmart).

Entrance had a weird setup but I guess that doesn’t matter. On to the food. Ordered the chicken empanadas and chicken bites (I forgot the actual name of them). Overall food wasn’t bad. Good taste. Chicken bites were juicy and well seasoned. Empanadas were spicy and cheesy the way i like them. Both items were super greasy tho. The plantains were delicious. Even with sour cream. The campero rice was just okay. For a chain Mexican food place, the food was decent. Nothing to rave about, but it wasn’t horrible.

Finally got around to trying this place, and it didn’t disappoint.
It’s a little pricey, and it’s not really a nice place to eat (even compared to Guapo’s), so that’s the only reason it’s not a 5-​star review.
I can’t say I’ve had better fried chicken than this. Maybe once or twice, but it really was incredible. Juicier than you can imagine, delectably seasoned, and it was totally fresh.
Yucca fries were good, orange mayo sauce was on point, and my horchata was tasty. Are all of these things better at other Latin chicken joints? Maybe, but the taste/​texture of the fried chicken is pretty special. Will definitely be going back, and soon.

Pretty simple but good food. Nothing too special about it. It’s like a Central American KFC.

Looking at the other reviews for this place makes me think that I just caught them on an off night, but until I’m shown otherwise, I can only comment on the single experience I had, which, to put it lightly, sucked.
I’m not a huge fried chicken guy, but when it’s done properly I love it as much as the next person. Pollo Campero, however, does not qualify in the least. What was sold to me as the best chicken joint in town turned out to be a greasy, totally unlikeable meal.
KFC and Popeye’s both outdo Campero by a mile, and that’s saying a lot coming from me. Both of those fried chicken eateries manage to cook chicken that, while greasy (it being impossible to make it otherwise), is also juicy, tender, and flavorful. When I have chicken from either of those places, I usually just peel off a good portion of the skin and enjoy the meat underneath– which, because it’s fried, is perfectly juicy.
Pollo Campero is the exact opposite. Instead of juicy, flavorful chicken, you get overcooked, ultra-​greasy, completely unappetizing chicken. The skin isn’t crispy like it should be, instead feeling like it was cooked yesterday then thrown into a microwave right before it’s popped into a box and handed to you. Even if you peel off the skin, the chicken underneath is just as bad. There’s no flavor, the texture is rubbery and chewy, and it’s drier than the Sahara.
We also ordered some fries to go along with it, and those were even worse! They were perhaps the greasiest things I’ve ever tried before, and there was zero potato flavor. My coworkers and I joked that they were probably pieces of string thrown into the deep fryer then seasoned with a dash of salt. I cannot think of fries I hated more, at least not off the top of my head. Want real french fries? Go to Jackson’s instead: those are amazing, perfectly cooked fries.
Now keep in mind, when I criticize the chicken and fries for being greasy, I’m not trying to say that I expect them to be totally grease-​free. Not at all– the grease factor is important in foods such as these. But there’s grease as a result of frying, then there’s grease as a result of improper cooking. I’d bet my pinkie that Pollo Campero didn’t have their deep fryers set at a high enough temperature, and this is the result.
I know I’ll never go back there myself, but if I ever try it again when someone else already got it and enjoy it, I’ll come back and change my rating.
But until then, I will remember Pollo Campero as possibly the worst meal I’ve had in recent memory.

Like they reanimated my dead Mississippi grandma! Chicken too homestyle for a restaurant — made me rethink my model of potential fried chicken experiences in the world. Also the yucca fries are quite user-​friendly to people only familiar with french-​fried potatoes. Try the horchata.

Three and a half — I don’t eat fast food, but I’m glad i made an exception in this case!
The ambience isn’t much to speak of, although the tables and floors were clean and cleared of clutter. I wasn’t expecting white tableclothes; after all it’s fast food. I felt very welcome as the servers smiled and patiently answered my questions about the menu. I had empanadas, fried chicken thighs, campero beans, and flan for dessert.
Although not bad in flavor, texture and consistency, the empanadas touted as «spicy» wouldn’t detect enough capsaicin to register 100 on the Scoville; however, the beautifully spiced chicken was crispy outside, succulent inside, and uniquely layered with flavors of garlic, onion, tomatillo, cilantro and jalapeño. Or at least it seemed so to me. I was raised in the Deep South so I know my way around great fried chicken, and this chicken was remarkable. Almost as if flavor was injected into the flesh… mmmmmmmmmmmm…
The campero beans deserve a paragraph of their own, as I savored each flavorful bite of pintos stewed in chicken broth with tomato, onion, garlic, pepper, and some bright acid – maybe lime juice? Even if the pintos were the only item on the menu, I would still return for the beans and order a family-​sized portion to keep in the fridge for the odd midnight snack!
Flan is mass-​produced and inedible, I’m sorry to say :-(it had a rather gritty texture and left an unpleasant aftertaste of curdled sheep’s milk. Even though it was a sour note to finish on, I have to give credit to this little fast food chain restaurant for the flavor infusion in the succulent fried chicken and amazing stewed pintos.

Good: I saw a poster on the window that said 2 pieces of fried chicken (thigh and leg), fries, and soda for under $ 4. What a deal! The chicken is the best fried chicken I’ve had. The marinating really makes a difference, the meat is moist, and the skin is crispy. This is also the best yucca that I’ve had. It’s fried and so fluffy inside. They let me substitute yucca for the fries.
Definitely will come back to try something else. :)

Just got back from lunch at this place. I hadn’t had Guatemalan-​style fried chicken before, and I was intrigued when my coworker had a coupon for it.
We ventured out to Herndon, and it was pretty hilarious at first when we walked in as clearly newbies and studied the lit menu for 5 minutes. The locals eating there got a kick out of watching us read the menu line by line, and eventually a nice man from behind the counter took the time to approach us and explain the menu to us. By then, we had actually picked out what we wanted, but it was nice to see the effort.
The staff here is super friendly, and the owner/​manager is great! I had actually not been served my Horchata, and upon finding out, the manager personally went and whipped up a large cup for me. He also gave us an order of sweet plantains on the house for us to try.
The food itself? Delicious! The fried chicken was crispy and juicy, and the flavor was distinctly different from Southern, Asian, Cajun, KFC or any other kind of fried chicken I’ve ever had. The yucca fries were amazing! Absolutely tops my list as my new favorite place for yucca fries. The plantains were also perfectly cooked and sweet, and then the beans. Ah, the beans. My coworker had read rave reviews about the beans, and boy were they right. Coming from someone like me that dislikes beans in general, these were probably some of the best beans I’d ever eaten. Fantastically flavorful, rich, not-​heavy, not gooey beans with a hint of bacon and many many other deeply rich flavors. Definitely restaurant grade, not fast food quality!
Between the food and the fantastic owners and staff, I’ll definitely be back!

We found this place near our hotel and it looked different from your regular KFC. So, we stopped inside and found a microcosm of Hispanic friends and families who got together for good home-​cooked chicken as well as burritos. This little hidden treasure in the outskirts of DC can be found by the distinctive chicken with the Mexican hat. Once inside, you can tell this is good food by the traffic of people in and out.
This type of fried chicken like I mentioned is different and I prefer this over the traditional extra crispy KFC. There is light coating of flour and has just the right spice to give it a slight kick. Don’t worry if you want some extra kick since there is a salsa bar at the end. Just ask for the extra hot sauce for some real kick. For the chicken grande burrito, it is a huge generous size stuffed tortilla with all sorts of spices, fried rice, black bean, and chicken. It’s much better than Taco Bello or any other places like Baja Fresh and Chipotle. Also, try out the many types of sauce since I found the red salsa and green one pretty good.

Good alternative if you get tired of KFC and Popeye’s. I think the chicken is a bit expensive for someone trying to compete with the bigger guys. The chickens are flavorful, but don’t have its own very distinct taste. They also have yuccas which makes you think it is somewhat between Peruvian chicken except it is fried.
Service seems to be not very systematic. It can be very slow especially when the lines get a bit longer than 5.

Reminiscent of California’s El Pollo Loco; maybe the fowl are related.
Smallish chicken pieces but generous cole slaw side.
Kind/​motherly ladies at the counter.

For whatever reason, I have really wanted to try Pollo Campero. Perhaps it is because before moving here, I had only ever seen one in Mass. Anyways, it was good. Not fabulous, and not sure if it is authentic (though I am guessing not), but I definitely enjoyed it. I had the Latin-​style chicken, black beans & rice, yucca fries, and a biscuit. I ate the sides first, so I could not eat much of the chicken. Beans & rice were my favorite. The yucca fries were a bit soggy. Would go back, but want to try an authentic Peruvian chicken restaurant.

**3.75 — 4.0 stars**
I’ve been drooling over the thought of trying out the Peruvian chicken at Pollo Campero — and I finally got around to trying it out earlier this week for dinner.
Ordered a ¼ chicken and Yucca fries, plus a bottle of water. The chicken was moist, savory, and absolutely delicious! Mouth watering good! The Yucca fries were tasty, hot, and crisp — BUT — they were a tad on the greasy side. If they eliminate the greasiness on the fries — I’d up the rating.

This quaint latin sensation is very inviting and apparently always busy– so if you want to get a good seat and the freshest selection, I recommend Sunday morning at 10a. Seriously.
Unfortunately, I think it’s a little over priced for the product. You can get 8 pieces of fried chicken and 2 sides for $ 17.99… but at many Peruvian chicken places you can get a WHOLE chicken and two sides for much less… Heck, even my favourite Korean fried chicken place offers 10 pieces more for around the same price.
Maybe it’s so pricey because of the service– once our order was ready, it was brought to us on a tray with large plastic side plates and the chicken on a plastic plate itself.
On to the food itself… the Beau and I ordered the 8 piece chicken only, a single side of mashed potatoes and 2 drinks, for just under $ 17. The skin was very crispy and spiced nice– the meat inside tender and juicy. Added table salt really brought out the flavour. The mashed potatoes were standard chicken place mash potatoes, but the gravy had maybe a kick to it… or some sort of weird spice.
The staff there are very friendly– the manager stopped by our table to ask us how the food was and to thank us for coming in, and the woman behind the counter who took our order brought over a carry out box when she noticed I had slowed my scarf.
Overall, it was good. I wouldn’t make a special trip, but if in the area (and not at a local Thai hot spot) I’d probably eat it again.

Why do I love fried chicken? Because it fried of course. Can you really go wrong with fried foods? Nope, not in my opinion =) Located hear the K Mart shopping center on Elden Street is my 2^nd favorite fried chicken house. My first is chain with spicy Cajun flavors =)
A couple nights ago on the way home I drove past this place. I haven’t fried chicken in a while so I thought I go in and have a go. I order a 3 piece dark special with rice and a dinner roll. I like how you have 3 choices, a roll, tortillas, or biscuits. There are a lot of choices for sides, but I stuck with the fries. Must eat fried foods! I got my order and started to dig in. The chicken was golden brown and hot. I just love the spices, it’s not your normal type of spices for fried chicken, but whatever they use, it works. I think since the pressure fry the chicken, the skin comes out crispier. The fries were spiced and nice and crunchy, you can go wrong with that. The roll, was ok, nothing too exciting. While I was eating the manager came along and asked how everything was doing.
Décor wise, nothing exciting. I like this place, they could do some things better, but I’m not going to complain. This place use to be booming with business. I remember when they first opened up. I had to wait over 3 months before I could get in. The lines were wrapped around the building and people would wait in rain for it. The rumors were they sold $ 40k of food the first day. That’s good enough for me. Man, now I want so chicken.