Ponce Restaurant
Mel Brousseau · 398 Google reviewsPonce Restaurant — caribbean in Humboldt Park; the Mofongo is the highlight. Loud in the best way, with real pulse to the room. The food tastes like it should, with no compromises. Mel Brousseau: "The Mofongo was tender, and the red sauce served with the shrimp was incredibly delicious" [$]
What 4,217 diners keep saying
What 4,217 diners keep saying
verbatim, from Google
“Puerto Rican culture is one of the reasons I love Chicago! It seems when people visit Chicago they go for deep dish, polish sausage, Italian beef, etc and don't know about the Puerto Rican food! I'm originally from southern California and we don't have a lot of Puerto Ricans out there so the PR food options are limited. Ponce offers so many amazing Puerto Rican appetizers and dishes. The coffee is really good too! I try to stay away from sugar but decided to try their coquito iced latte. So freaking good! Love the bacalaito and bistec en salsa jibarito. Another plate I enjoy is the bistec en salsa with arroz con gandules.”
“I ordered Puerto Rican food for delivery in honor of the Benito Bowl, and it was delicious! 😋 I loved the jibaritos de lechon and the tostones. Definitely my new favorite Puerto Rican place! 🇵🇷”
“They Charged me for a large party when there was five people at my table! FIVE… other than that the food always delivers! Straight fire Parcha 🤯 Jibaritos almost made me return to the Island.”
“Always love stopping by to pick up or dine in at one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago.”
“We hired Ponce for our wedding celebration and would absolutely give them a solid 5 stars. The food was incredible, the prices were reasonable, and our guests loved the PR food truck as our late-night bites. Even in late October, everyone was happy to wait outside for a plate or a warm bowl of soup, that’s how good everything was. I do want to offer one tip for anyone booking them for an event: communication can be a bit challenging at first. It took several attempts to reach the catering contact by phone and email, and the phone support wasn’t the most helpful when trying to walk through menu options. After a few failed attempts, we finally decided to stop by in person and from that moment on, everything was smooth sailing. Once we met with them, the service was great. During the tasting they went through all the menu options with us, made thoughtful suggestions, and were incredibly accommodating with our feedback. The final result exceeded our expectations. They arrived at our venue, Row 24, exactly when they said they would and handled the entire setup themselves. Seeing the food truck outside with a long line of happy guests made the moment even more special. The photos speak for themselves. Everyone was excited to try the food. If you’re considering Ponce for an event, just be prepared to follow up more than once in the beginning- it’s worth it. The food, the experience, and the joy it brought our guests made hiring them one of the best decisions we made for our wedding.”
“Basic customer service. Steak Jibarito was seasoned & tender however, little on the cold side perhaps because it was cold inside the place. Arroz con dules and habichuelas guisadas was good. So was the Alcapurria(not shown).”
“I ordered two Jibarito They both look like this. How can it be burnt and soft at the same time. I asked for extra meat paid four dollars each extra and you see on top that’s the extra meat. I called to complain and they tell me oh we gave you two pieces of meat. OK if you say, so just be beware. What a big disappointment!!!”
“We drove in from Milwaukee to celebrate the patriarch of our family for Father's Day. Our party of seven included our daughter and son-in-law, who were visiting from Puerto Rico. We have always enjoyed the food here, which made today's experience especially disappointing. The food quality was far below what we have come to expect. The alcapurrias were undercooked and tasted like raw masa. The sorullos were overly sweet, soft, and had the texture of cornmeal batter. The bacalaíto was so thin it resembled a tostada rather than a traditional bacalaíto. My husband's churrasco was overcooked, dry, and burnt. The mofongo appeared to be made with plantains that were not green enough, and for the price, the portion was extremely small. The service was equally disappointing. We ordered appetizers (frituras), but our main dishes arrived before them. After we had finished our meals, our server asked if we wanted anything else. We reminded her that we were still waiting for the frituras we had ordered. She checked her handheld device, realized they had never been brought out, and then offered to get them. When it was time to pay, our server never provided an itemized bill. Instead, she brought the payment device and processed the charge without mentioning that a 20% gratuity had already been added because of our party size. Believing gratuity had not been included, we added an additional tip. It wasn't until I reviewed the receipt that I noticed the automatic gratuity and had to request a refund of the extra tip. I have worked in the service industry and fully support rewarding great service with generous tips. However, transparency and quality service are important, and unfortunately neither was present during this visit. This was a very disappointing Father's Day meal and not the experience we expected from a restaurant we have enjoyed in the past. After this experience, we will not be returning and cannot recommend it to family and friends.”
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