Cafe Puerto Rico

Cafe Puerto Rico is one of the few restaurants that I came across in Viejo San Juan, Puerto Rico, that took advantage of the weather and its location.  It is in front of Plaza Colon and diagonal from Castillo San Cristobal.  Also, it is about half a block from the “new” Viejo San Juan where all the buildings that house common American businesses, like Starbucks and CVS.  The port  where the enormous cruise ships dock is also close by, so, the tourists can explore all of the beautiful sites.  Cafe Puerto Rico has one of the very few sidewalk cafes that I came across (most sidewalks in Viejo San Juan are barely 24″ wide).

Service was very  good, and they do a very good and authentic Arroz con Pollo with baked eggplant; however, as a Latina, I found myself questioning the quality of their chef because their beefsteak and chicken gumbo (both very popular and common dishes) left a lot to be desired.  The beefsteak was tough, and the gumbo had no substance or flavor.  It was like colored broth.  When I brought this to the  manager’s attention, he seemed offended, and stated that I was the first from my tour company to ever complain.  I responded that considering that I am the first Latina tour director with the company, maybe  I was the first to know what it was supposed to taste like…

I’m not saying to not go. It is one of the nicer restaurants in Viejo San Juan, and the service was very good; however, I would not recommend the two dishes that I had issues with.

Cafe Puerto Rico
Calle O’Donnell 208
Old San Juan, Puerto Rico 00936
Phone 787-724-2281
Website: www.cafepuertorico.com