I've been coming here for 10 years and have learned to play to their strengths. The things they do well, they do very very well. Still among the best chicken wings I've had anywhere in the world, and I've been to the Anchor Bar in Buffalo NY and Bistro on Avenue in Toronto. They take time to make but they are obviously freshly prepared, nicely cooked, lightly breaded and crunchy, just how I like them.
Their clams with salsa criolla is another family favorite. The clams are a nice size, the portion is abundant and reasonably priced, and the criolla sauce is probably the best I've had. The whole dish is 33% of what it would cost elsewhere, and 200% as good. They get 4* from me for ambience as well, now that the wall is gone from their section of the causeway and you can see the ocean again. I hope to keep coming back for another 10 years. Gracias por todo Jose, buenísimo como siempre. Saludos.
My wife and I arrived after 10pm recently and we thought we'd give it a chance. Our previous visit had been over a year ago and we heard therw was a new owner and much better food. I asked how they make their carbonara expecting the typical reply that starts with the words "crema de leche". A proper carbonara has no cream, just egg yolk, pepper, cheese, pancetta or guanciale, and al dente pasta. This was a proper Carbonara (with pancetta) and in the past week I've been back for it 3 more times. The pizzas are delicious and authentic too. The service is mostly very good, and there's comfortable seating inside and out. I like this place a lot and will be back soon.
OMG so disappointing. Better off buying Nathan's dogs at Riba Smith. Poor selection of hot dogs. Fries were undercooked and awful. Servers were nice and place seems cool, they need to focus on food quality. Feh.
I like the Casco Viejo location better. The food is very good here too but the people are much more helpful in Casco. Also I found the chairs less comfortable and I worry more about my rowdy little boys with this 2 story design. If you live near here it's great but I'll keep going to Casco.
One of my family's favorite places for pizza. The toppings are excellent quality and the crust is thin and delicious. The meatballs were also very tasty and the atmosphere is comfortable and casual. Nice work!
I came for the porchetta, and hot damn it's delicious. It's the real deal: slow cooked crispy skin nicely seasoned belly tied around loin and slow roasted until golden and crispy and crackling.
The place is a hole in the wall, but that kinda adds to the utilitarian ambiance. The owners are obviously enthusiastic about the quality of the food they're serving, and so they should be. I'm looking forward to losing the weight I gained after my last visit so I feel OK with going back.
This place was not firing on all cylinders! Went for Burger Week (you know, those 15 days at the beginning of June). Based on the reviews and photos and description of their burger I expected a good burger and some good beers. Here's what we found:
Insipid, uninteresting nachos with no flavor except for the side of jalapeños.
Waitress who knew nothing about the menu
No ribs, which other reviews said were good.
Wings that were nothing special, small, lacking in flavor, took 30 minutes to arrive.
Bland burgers lacking texture and flavor.
No free Stella Artois with the burger, waitress said we could have a ginger ale instead. Not the same thing.
'nuff said.
Came just as my Oferta Simple was about to expire. Glad we made it.
My wife and I shared: The Burrata appetizer. Kinda like a caprese on a brochette. Sized more like an amuse bouche than an appetizer but tasty. I could have had 3 orders.
The Meat & Veggie pizza was served on a hot plate placed next to our table. I like my pizza well done so we sent it back for a few more minutes, our waitress complied happily. When it came back it was perfect and kept nice and hot the whole time. Very nice touch.
Also shared spaghetti putanesca. It was loaded with olives and capers and tasted fresh.
All in all, a very nice inexpensive meal. I'd go back but would be back sooner if I lived closer or if they were open for lunch. This place screams "lunch spot", pretty surprising that they weren't open for it.
I like this place! It's definitely got a laid back vibe, as mentioned before. The service is very friendly and helpful, but it's more of a fast casual experience than fine dining: You order at the counter, get a number on a bottle, and your food is brought to you fairly quickly and very fresh.
The chicken and waffles were excellent. I brought my own Canadian maple syrup (yes, that's something people do) and it was awesome! They have several syrup options of their own in case you don't happen to have jugs of the stuff from Quebec, and the bourbon syrup was very good. The chicken was nicely seasoned and the breading had a nice texture.
This visit ran long, and I also got to try the chorizo omelette, which was surprisingly good, with a thin omelette wrapping a substantial and tasty mixture of chorizo and caramelized onions. Also tried the tuna burger which I'd order again if I were in the mood for a tuna burger. Sounds crazy seeing it in print - why order a tuna burger when they have regular burgers made with rib eye? But I did, and I'd do it again.
The selection of beer is also impressive, with several nice Belgian and USA microbrew options.
All in all, a great place for breakfast, brunch, or lunch. I hope to be back soon.
I've been happily coming here for years and never posted a review. I guess I take it too much for granted. The service has always been excellent, the food consistently good, and I find the room very comfortable.
My wife and I went most recently with a couple friends from the USA and so we shared the Conchas a la Parmesana which is always very tasty; my favorite ceviche ever the carretillero (a bit spicy, topped with some fried calamari rings); we each had a half portion of the phenomenal chupe de langostinos - it's loaded with rich shrimp flavor, and lots of nicely cooked camarones and topped with a nice langostino and a soft fried egg; also tried the plancha batayaki - mixed grilled seafood topped with a highly addictive slightly sweet and spicy sauce. They also make a fine Pisco Sour.
I wouldn't change a thing, except maybe that I should appreciate this place a bit more. It's one of Panama's best.
Mendoza Sport
I've been coming here for 10 years and have learned to play to their strengths. The things they do well, they do very very well. Still among the best chicken wings I've had anywhere in the world, and I've been to the Anchor Bar in Buffalo NY and Bistro on Avenue in Toronto. They take time to make but they are obviously freshly prepared, nicely cooked, lightly breaded and crunchy, just how I like them. Their clams with salsa criolla is another family favorite. The clams are a nice size, the portion is abundant and reasonably priced, and the criolla sauce is probably the best I've had. The whole dish is 33% of what it would cost elsewhere, and 200% as good. They get 4* from me for ambience as well, now that the wall is gone from their section of the causeway and you can see the ocean again. I hope to keep coming back for another 10 years. Gracias por todo Jose, buenísimo como siempre. Saludos.
La Vespa (Area Bancaria)
My wife and I arrived after 10pm recently and we thought we'd give it a chance. Our previous visit had been over a year ago and we heard therw was a new owner and much better food. I asked how they make their carbonara expecting the typical reply that starts with the words "crema de leche". A proper carbonara has no cream, just egg yolk, pepper, cheese, pancetta or guanciale, and al dente pasta. This was a proper Carbonara (with pancetta) and in the past week I've been back for it 3 more times. The pizzas are delicious and authentic too. The service is mostly very good, and there's comfortable seating inside and out. I like this place a lot and will be back soon.
Nathan`s Famous (Marbella)
OMG so disappointing. Better off buying Nathan's dogs at Riba Smith. Poor selection of hot dogs. Fries were undercooked and awful. Servers were nice and place seems cool, they need to focus on food quality. Feh.
Barrio Pizza (Costa del Este)
I like the Casco Viejo location better. The food is very good here too but the people are much more helpful in Casco. Also I found the chairs less comfortable and I worry more about my rowdy little boys with this 2 story design. If you live near here it's great but I'll keep going to Casco.
Barrio Pizza (Casco Antiguo)
One of my family's favorite places for pizza. The toppings are excellent quality and the crust is thin and delicious. The meatballs were also very tasty and the atmosphere is comfortable and casual. Nice work!
El Porquettaro
I came for the porchetta, and hot damn it's delicious. It's the real deal: slow cooked crispy skin nicely seasoned belly tied around loin and slow roasted until golden and crispy and crackling. The place is a hole in the wall, but that kinda adds to the utilitarian ambiance. The owners are obviously enthusiastic about the quality of the food they're serving, and so they should be. I'm looking forward to losing the weight I gained after my last visit so I feel OK with going back.
El Sitio del Casco
This place was not firing on all cylinders! Went for Burger Week (you know, those 15 days at the beginning of June). Based on the reviews and photos and description of their burger I expected a good burger and some good beers. Here's what we found: Insipid, uninteresting nachos with no flavor except for the side of jalapeños. Waitress who knew nothing about the menu No ribs, which other reviews said were good. Wings that were nothing special, small, lacking in flavor, took 30 minutes to arrive. Bland burgers lacking texture and flavor. No free Stella Artois with the burger, waitress said we could have a ginger ale instead. Not the same thing. 'nuff said.
Fratelli Pizza & Pasta
Came just as my Oferta Simple was about to expire. Glad we made it. My wife and I shared: The Burrata appetizer. Kinda like a caprese on a brochette. Sized more like an amuse bouche than an appetizer but tasty. I could have had 3 orders. The Meat & Veggie pizza was served on a hot plate placed next to our table. I like my pizza well done so we sent it back for a few more minutes, our waitress complied happily. When it came back it was perfect and kept nice and hot the whole time. Very nice touch. Also shared spaghetti putanesca. It was loaded with olives and capers and tasted fresh. All in all, a very nice inexpensive meal. I'd go back but would be back sooner if I lived closer or if they were open for lunch. This place screams "lunch spot", pretty surprising that they weren't open for it.
Dainer 16
I like this place! It's definitely got a laid back vibe, as mentioned before. The service is very friendly and helpful, but it's more of a fast casual experience than fine dining: You order at the counter, get a number on a bottle, and your food is brought to you fairly quickly and very fresh. The chicken and waffles were excellent. I brought my own Canadian maple syrup (yes, that's something people do) and it was awesome! They have several syrup options of their own in case you don't happen to have jugs of the stuff from Quebec, and the bourbon syrup was very good. The chicken was nicely seasoned and the breading had a nice texture. This visit ran long, and I also got to try the chorizo omelette, which was surprisingly good, with a thin omelette wrapping a substantial and tasty mixture of chorizo and caramelized onions. Also tried the tuna burger which I'd order again if I were in the mood for a tuna burger. Sounds crazy seeing it in print - why order a tuna burger when they have regular burgers made with rib eye? But I did, and I'd do it again. The selection of beer is also impressive, with several nice Belgian and USA microbrew options. All in all, a great place for breakfast, brunch, or lunch. I hope to be back soon.
Segundo Muelle (San Francisco)
I've been happily coming here for years and never posted a review. I guess I take it too much for granted. The service has always been excellent, the food consistently good, and I find the room very comfortable. My wife and I went most recently with a couple friends from the USA and so we shared the Conchas a la Parmesana which is always very tasty; my favorite ceviche ever the carretillero (a bit spicy, topped with some fried calamari rings); we each had a half portion of the phenomenal chupe de langostinos - it's loaded with rich shrimp flavor, and lots of nicely cooked camarones and topped with a nice langostino and a soft fried egg; also tried the plancha batayaki - mixed grilled seafood topped with a highly addictive slightly sweet and spicy sauce. They also make a fine Pisco Sour. I wouldn't change a thing, except maybe that I should appreciate this place a bit more. It's one of Panama's best.