324043 Thu Sep 07 18:08:33 -0700 2006 11 54 Caribbean 0 1860438 Hi Carribean 'hounds - my in-laws are moving back to PR in a month, so we will be heading down there a lot. They will be living near Humacao in the southeastern part of the island. Any recommendations for tasty chow? We're interested in anything good - fancy, humble, kiosk, whatever. My wife is bilingual and I do pretty well in Spanish, so no-english places are fine (even preferred). We'll have access to a car. Thanks! Thu Sep 07 18:08:33 -0700 2006 23280 Venable 1 1945957 In my opinion, the road-side stands are your best bet. You can get chicken, pork, and all the fixins. These stands are all over Puerto Rico (although some are open only on weekends). Also, if you're near the beach, you can get pinchos, alcapurias, bacalitos, and more from kiosks. I've never had bad food from one of these places. Sat Oct 14 17:31:16 -0700 2006 1860438 46808 tivolives 1 2351481 Heading back in a couple of weeks -- any recommendations, Chowhounds? Sun Mar 04 12:19:44 -0800 2007 1860438 23280 Venable 1 2955028 I just went to the most unexpected fantastic restaurant just outside of Fajardo called La Estacion. It was opened by a guy named Kevin Roth who moved from Brooklyn with his wife (she wanted to move home to PR to start a family). the food was a very welcome change from the fried stuff you get all along Route 3 in the kioskos. he obviously knows his way around a kitchen actually, they have a well-equipped outdoor grill area). Like I said, food was fantastic: Grilled Red snapper with a light BBQ sauce and a (if memory serves) starfruit salsa, grilled corn and Mango salad with cashews and a cilantro-ginger vinaigrette, garlic shrimp with peppers and crunchy nests. we went on a bioluminescent lagoon tour first, changed into dry clothes and stopped at la estacion as we left town. great way to spend a day. They'll be getting some guide book press soon, so go before everyone else discovers it! Wed Sep 19 06:26:00 -0700 2007 1860438 128489 enlightningbug 1 3247497 La Estacion in Las Croabas, near Fajardo is terriffic Nyorican food. Everything is cooked over a charcoal grill and the Bar looks out over a large outdoor deck. Pork ribs are a specialty, but they do burgers and smaller stuff too. The owners are former New Yorkers It's probably about 45 minutes from Humacao by car but well worth it Sun Dec 30 13:50:55 -0800 2007 1860438 153493 wallacemnw 2 3290599 if youre in humacao the best thing is to head to Naguabo's malecon and get some fried fish or fish in butter and onion, some pastelillos de chapin and some big sorullos. The mofongo there is generally not worth it but the fish is great and cheap. Sun Jan 13 09:33:42 -0800 2008 3247497 120827 LRS 3 3315108 Read this board one in awhile....my daughter-in-law and son are visiting us...and she is from humacao..so I showed her this board. She agrees with LRS totally. She and my son....they just came back from a visit to humacao and she said they ate at Naguabo's.... When you visit Puerto Rico..you do not eat in the hotels. You need to talk to locals and they will tell you where to go for the good eats. Will have my dau-in-law's guidance when my husband and I go for a visit. We all live in Washington right now. They live in Seattle and my husband and I live in Ferndale, WA (close to the Canadian border) Sun Jan 20 16:32:18 -0800 2008 3290599 115598 NWlambear 4 3318700 In response to the whole thread on Humacao: I moved to PR from New York about two years ago but my family's from here and I've been visiting all my life (sometimes for whole summers at a time). After two years of living and a lifetime of frequenting, I consider myself pretty local. Although I love the kioskos and am a firm believer that anything fried has to taste good, anyone can grow tired of the pastelillos/alcapurias/arepas etc. Considering it's bikini season all year long here, it's amazing we can sustain ourselves on this stuff and still be as beautiful as we are. Telling tourists to eat FRITURA in Puerto Rico is like someone saying: try the coffee in Seattle. POR FAVOR!!! Moving here to PR has definitely been a culture shock when it comes to options in food. And then I happened on La Estacion in Fajardo right next to El Conquistador. (As NWlambear said above, keep going past the hotel-hotel restaurants in Puerto Rico leave you with empty pockets and unsatisfied palates.) At La Estacion they grill everything over charcoal. Don't get me wrong, you can still have awesome hand cut fries and real (not frozen) tostones there, but it is most definitely a godsend to be able to have fish that is grilled and not fried. It is amazing how much flavor gets lost in the frying. Not to mention the juicy steaks... La Estacion (as corny as it sounds) has become my beacon in this fried food/fast food ridden ISLA DEL ENCANTO. After finding out more about the owners it makes sense how they can take ingredients and dishes that are native to Puerto Rico and make everything so contemporary AND good. Recommending kioskos in Puerto Rico is kind of like somebody telling you "If you go to New York, you have to eat a dirty water dog on the streets of Manhattan." Yeah it's great and real "puerto rican" but there is so much more out there. Go out of your way to go to La Estacion, I'm so glad I did. Mon Jan 21 18:36:34 -0800 2008 3315108 154278 mangomami 5 3319366 I totally disagree. First, it's very sad to hear that your non-fried culinary experience in Puerto Rico has been limited to La estacion. I would never recommend La estacion for good food to any hound. Aside from that, if you read closely you will notice that the OP' asked for "fancy, humble, kiosk, whatever" food in Humacao and someone already mentioned La estacion (which i did not critiqued even though i think no one from there with a sensible palate will think the food es "terrific"). That said, your analogy is nonsensical: Recommending los kioskos de Naguabo to someone who asks for "kiosk,whatever" food in Humacao is like recommending Di fara to someone who asks for pizza in Brooklyn or Katz to someone who wants to eat pastrami in the LES. Naguabos' kiosks do not specialize in frituras, I don't even like their frituras, their only signature ones are the pastelillos de chapin (not to miss btw); the fifth Kiosko has grilled chillo way fresher than the one at La estacion. Recommending La estacion for good food in Humacao instead of los kioskos de Naguabo, again, is like recommending Wo Hop instead of Amazing 66 in NYC. Mon Jan 21 23:20:13 -0800 2008 3318700 120827 LRS 6 3332564 First of all I'd like to thank you for insulting my palate and those others that have praised La Estacion. I can't help but say that it sounds like we went to two different restaurants because anyone with a "sensible palate" would be able to appreciate the freshness of the ingredients, the usage of local products (i.e. starfruit, pineapple, mangos, avocados etc.) and frankly the taste of well seasoned meats and fish that are simply grilled over charcoal and not with gas. On top of all that, the place is just pretty cool. The vibe is really tropical, reminds me of that place in pinones- bamboo bei or something its called. Anyhow I've been there several times and I have never been disappointed. But if you have more recommendations for places in the east, please let us know. I work in Rio Grande and am in this area a lot and that's why i'm being specific and not talking about all of Puerto Rico (FYI). I didn't mean to sound as if i was talking down kioskos either. Frankly if you read my response closely you will notice that I said I actually like kiosko food. I am well aware that the best food everywhere often comes in the most unpretentious ways...most specifically in the form of street food (just look at restaurant trends in NYC lately). Nevertheless, my experience with kioskos is that they mostly have fritura, some will have pinchos and seafood salads but that's about it. Furthermore, my response was more directed at the general suggestions to try the street foods as they are not all the same and they do not follow some sort of code of standards...knowing specifically where to go and what to eat is key. So LRS, I am thrilled that the kiosko #5 in Naguabo has grilled red snapper and I am not surprised that it is super fresh as Naguabo is known for its fish market and seafood. But where exactly is it? So you see, even though I wasn't specifically talking to you LRS, suggesting the kioskos in Naguabo w/out specifying which ones is kind of like saying go to 32 street for good korean, yeah it's koreatown and as authentic as it gets outside of korea but where exactly should they go. (general vs. specific let's make some sense here) On that note does anyone have any more recommendations for the east? I used to like La Parilla but in the last year it has really gone downhill...after a couple of bad meals you come to the conclusion that it's not just an off night. Fri Jan 25 12:08:39 -0800 2008 3319366 154278 mangomami 7 3447340 La Estacion sounds absolutely fantastic but i am having trouble finding the correct address online - could someone help me out? Thanks! Fri Feb 29 10:20:23 -0800 2008 3332564 114605 dinarybak 8 4067456 Sorry this is a super old question but I just ran across the card I got (over a year ago) while cleaning... La Estacion Carr. 987 Km 3.5 Las Croabas, Fajardo Tel 787.863.4481 It's just off Ave. Conquistador on 987, not far from the Hotel Conquistador. Open Mon-Th-Fri at 5 PM Sat Sun 3 PM The hours etc may have changed since then. Sun Sep 28 08:51:41 -0700 2008 3447340 128489 enlightningbug