Top 10 San Juan Metro Area Chinchorros

What is a “Chinchorro”?

A basic puerto rican definition of a “Chinchorro” is a modest kiosk, restaurant or bar that serves all kinds of delicious Puerto Rican food (like pork, rice with pigeon peas, fried plantains, “alcapurrias” and “bacalaítos”), cold beers and a huge variety of drinks. In some cases, these kiosks have live music like “salsa”, “plena”, “bomba” and have a dance floor. To enjoy this particular experience you need to “chinchorrear”, the traditional local practice of hopping from “chinchorro” to “chinchorro”, eating snacks (picadera), drinking, and of course, dancing. It sounds like a lot of food and that’s because it is. But you need to pace yourself so you can last through, at least, three or four “chinchorros”. But don’t be sad if you cannot make it. At the end is about how much you enjoy the experience of “chinchorrear” and not the amount of “chinchorros” visited. You tipically have to travel outside the metro area to visit “chinchorros”, but their popularity has made it into the metropolitan area so you don’t have to travel far to do it. Here is a list of our favorite “chinchorros” located in the San Juan metro area.