El Gran Canario

Best rotisserie in town. Super affordable and very tasty food. The employees are very pleasant Just take your time when ordering in English. Breakfast is also super and very inexpensive. Love this place.

Yum yum yum! Almost everything at this place is delicious! The employees could use a few lessons in customer service. That doesn’t stop me from ordering take out regularly. The food is just that good.

Really solid whole rotisserie chicken for $ 9, was not dried out; place has really good turnover at lunch. Locals seemed to like the fried fish, but I’m looking to try the pork next time.

Full meal for $ 6. Was great, half a chicken with rice and beans. Everything was tasty and can’t complain. Super casual and just tasty affordable food.

Really good loved it !!! Dominican food on point and very cheap at 6 dollars max !!!

this place is great. the chicken is always delicious and it’s pretty cheap, under $ 5 for a half chicken. it’s a breakfast/​lunch place though so showing up after 5 isn’t the best idea. it’s also super casual, reading these negative reviews about people showing up and being upset that they don’t adhere to the weekly menu they print seems a bit surprising, it’s just not that kind of place, they make what they’ve got and that’s really obvious from their vibe. its a great contrast to all the new williamsburg places, they may not dote on you like servers at the more upscale places but sometimes it’s nice to just line up get your food and leave.

Good food lot’s of variety. The counter women are the nastiest people there in particular the short black one with all the make up. She is so full of herself gives the place a bad name. They should get rid of her. I used to give this place a lot of my money. But I slowly getting away from them simply because of the help. Are you listening owners?

I’ve only have had the chicken here and it is always very good. it is also inexpensive — ½ chicken some beans and a soda costs me 6.50. Also I like that they speak spanish, it keeps the wburg hipster crowd out of there. (also it’s not peruvian not sure why it’s listed as such I guess to white Unilocalers all spanish speakers are the same) They have other things as well but I just have chicken. They are also very friendly and have many regular customers which is a clear sign of the delicious quality of their food.

So… they are open late but they didn’t have some of the specials listed on their menu. It was just about 7pm when we arrived. That is bad news. How are they going to handle dinners with items missing?
It took a long time and they never acknowledged us. Bad service. Hard to figure out if they had oxtail or not at first. I didn’t know nodding her head yes meant «no, they dont have oxtail!» hahah.
Their unwillingness to help us made us leave disappointed and hungry.
The food on the steam table looked DRY, DRY, DRY. The rotisserie chicken was all cut up and put onto the steam table… it looked dry! Very unappetizing looking. All I saw was the chicken stew and beef stew left besides the dried up rotisserie chicken.

We were so disappointed that we made the long trek over to South Williamsburg on a rainy Tuesday night to get their Tuesday special of oxtail but there was none to be had.
We ask if they has any from two of the servers at the steam table and all with got was a blank stare and on said «No (we have no oxtail)» and the other said «Yes (we have no oxtail)» with no explanation.
The other guy behind the counter was speak some English to someone else but he was not offering any help.
We leave hungry, disappointed and empty-​handed. So come here will with a translator or a basic knowledge of Spanish.
Note: at 7pm most of the food on the steam table looked very dry.

I’ve seen a line out if this place on most afternoons. Starving one night, I came by when it was mostly empty. It’s not immediately clear what their system is, and I think they’re not used to non-​Spanish speakers like me stopping in. But the lady behind the counter was pleasant enough, and put together a «lunch» platter of rice, beans, plantains and my choice of meat for $ 6. This is an incredible caloric bargain. All tasted very good, and I’m eager to try their other meats.

love the beef tripe soup. great service, value food

Love Canario. Always very delicious, never disappoints. I get the rotisserie chicken, rice & beans, or the delicious moist and flavorful pork, or the hearty beef and potatoes. Oh or the olive chicken and spaghetti. Sometimes I get a giant sugary yellow yam that weighs a few pounds. Everything cheap as heck too. Come early and they also have delicious breakfast items.

Good, cheap, fast Dominican food. Everything is delicious. Can’t go wrong with this place for quick takeout served cafeteria style.

Have you ever tried to roast a chicken at home? Denying that the house becomes a sauna, you have to wait for your chicken to cook at least 2 hours. Forget that. Head to El Gran Canario, and ask for Combo #1 (pollo entero, arroz, habichuela, y maduras) and a 2 liter bottle of soda for $ 17 bucks. Granted, they only have Pepsi and Ginger Ale and it would be great if they had a diet 2 liter option. But what you get in return: Delicious Rotisserie Chicken, Rice and Beans that would make any Latino proud, Super Sweet Maduros, and most of all, dinner in 30 mins, rather than 120.

I’d like to shout out my barber AJ for putting me on to El Gran Canario. After getting a cut at his studio one Friday night, I saw the menu for this restaurant sitting on his table. I said «What’s this?» All he said was «Yo, that place is the bomb.» That was enough for me. I’m always looking for under-​the-​radar spots in the Williamsburg area.
What caught my eye right away is the dinner special which is emblazoned right on the front of the take-​out menu. You can get a whole rotisserie chicken (pollo a la brasa-​style), rice, beans, maduros (sweet plantains) and a 2-​liter soda for $ 16. That is an amazing deal. My girlfriend and I ordered that very deal on a Saturday night when we were home and too lazy to cook.
We called for delivery and it arrived in a little less than an hour. Pretty long wait but that’s what we get for ordering at 8pm on a Saturday night. It seems like they have a pretty large delivery radius though. They came all the way to the East side. Decent portions, too. We had food leftover for the next day.
I’ve never actually been inside the restaurant but my curiosity has been piqued because this food was definitely worth every penny of the $ 16 we paid. Very rich and filling. I’m still confused as to whether it’s Peruvian or Dominican. I’m not sure the restaurant even knows. But whatever it is, it’s worth a shot.

El Gran Canario is a small, unassuming Dominican takeout shop specializing in pollo a la brasa (rotisserie chicken). I walked by on a weekday around lunch time and there was a long line going out the door — always a good sign. Lots of construction workers (portions are big!), mostly Spanish-​speaking. You can get a plate of chicken and some side dishes for $ 5. My DC and I actually shared one plate. You can add a small soup for $ 1. On the day we went, there was a chicken soup and a vegetarian soup with sweet potato, chick peas, and beans. It was yummy! The food is hearty and simple, and the value is unbeatable. They also have beef, salads, milkshakes, and crème caramel.

I’m really surprised nobody has written a review of this place. Perhaps it’s because it’s in South Williamsburg, and as busy as it is; I have yet to see a single non-​Hispanic person there.
First off, the menu says Dominican food, but that wasn’t an option so I used Peruvian instead; since the restaurant specializes in Pollo a la Brasa; which is usually associated with Peruvian cuisine. Also, I don’t think they have a website either; so I just linked to their menu. That’s all you need, amirite?
Anyways, the food is delicious. The variety great. And it’s super cheap. Also they are open in the morning for breakfast, and open late at night till 11 pm. It’s also very clean and bright.
I got a quarter chicken over rice and beans, with some spaghetti on the side. It was divine and only 5 bucks. It was a good three pounds of food.
This link has the menu
All and all, a no frills, delicious, and affordable Dominican restaurant.
There is a link below for the facebook page as well with some photos and more information.

They just re-​opened again 7 – 11 and it was just a good as before. These guys know how to make great lunches.

Today I ordered a luch delivery as usual, when I open up the rice dish, I saw what looks just like a pubic hair inside the rice that I was about to eat… I call the owner of the restaurant, complained and got a refund. I would never eat here again. This restaurant went from 5 stars to –0 today.