Colombian Steakhouse and Lounge — Restaurant in Bound Brook

We came recommended by TikTok, let this be a lesson of not trusting everything the internet throws at you. I was really excited to bring my best friend for an early birthday dinner. We drove an hour down from her house to come have a nice experience, similar to the ones all the TikTok reviews showed- even though there was plenty of Colombian restaurants in our area. BIGGEST MISTAKE.

Everything started great, we got some good cocktails and the picada appetizer. We noticed that service was spotty at the beginning since we had to wait to be seated but the experience looked promising. I do not have anything bad to say about the picada because it was delicious and it came in a timely manner to the table.

First problem was that I had ordered some papa criolla to come out with the picada, and it took all the way until after we finished that big appetizer for them to come out. I had to also ask three different times to get some sauce for them. By the time I got it the potatoes were cold. Getting service for us to order our main courses was also difficult. I had to ask what I presume was a food runner to please get our server for us to order. She was generally very short with us. Not very warm or inviting at all. I’ve been in the service industry for years and I understand that it is not easy to make customer connections with every table you get but, you should also encourage your customers to spend money and have a good experience with the way you service them.

I ordered for the table the house specialty carne llanera and the bandeja paisa. I specifically ordered the steak for the carne llanera to be medium, how the menu picture looks like. We waited for like 30 minutes for the food to come out. For rough reference we got to the restaurant at 7:30 and our main courses got there at around 8:50. I don’t mind waiting for good food generally speaking, however not only our carne llanera was overcooked to the point I couldn’t bite into it, but the bandeja paisa was all wrong. The carne molida had a weird texture and a gamey taste with little to no seasoning. And the chicharrones were burnt. Moreover our table was not bussed out after the appetizers so we had empty glassware and the appetizer plates over our table.

By that point we were so done with the experience when the server asked if everything was ok with the food we decided to send it back fully and just get the check for the drinks and apps. I was truthfully surprised when she said the only thing she could offer me was to re make our plates or exchange for something else. She explained that she was not able to take the meals off the check because we had ordered them and if we send it back we would still need to pay for them. I’ve never worked or been in a restaurant that would make you pay for a meal that you didn’t eat.

I explained to her that the issue was not only the main courses but that the experience was not good at all, that her service was not satisfactory and that I would like to speak with her manager. After some back and forth she explained that she had no manager on duty and that she was in charge of the floor. She also let me know that she would had to pay for the plates that we didn’t eat even though it was a kitchen issue. At that point I understood that it was a management problem. But it still doesn’t change the experience that should be provided for a restaurant with $50 a person ticket averages.

Honestly, if you want to give this place a try it might be worth it for the cocktails because they were good but make sure to fix your expectations accordingly. If you have to make a drive for it, I would just recommend not to. Is not worth the trouble. As per management, you can’t expect your servers to give your customers a good experience when you understaff the floor. It is ultimately your responsibility to insure that your restaurant is staffed properly and to resolve issues with customers, not your servers. The fact that there was no manager working is unacceptable, moreover making your servers pay for food that was a KITCHEN ISSUE...

(They have parking but it is valet parking and the valet will ask for a tip. Some days you have to pay to have your car parked regardless) Took my husband here for a surprise birthday dinner with just the 2 of us on May 2, 2025, and it was GREAT besides 1 or 2 things that took me OFF GUARD. I made reservations for 2 at 9:30 PM on a FRIDAY, and the restaurant closes at 12am PM. We were running late, and they HELPED US OUT even though it was close to closing. (I wouldn't RECOMMEND coming toward CLOSING though.)

The DECOR was AMAZING—especially the big WILLOW TREE in the middle of the restaurant that they sat us next to. They also have a BAR/CLUBISH type of area attached to the restaurant which was also NICELY DECORATED but the music was LOUD. I didn’t have a problem with that, but if you want PEACE AND QUIET, this is NOT the spot for you. They played OLD SCHOOL REGGAETON and NEW SCHOOL, and they had a LIVE DJ.

Our WAITER was VERY ATTENTIVE and gave us RECOMMENDATIONS. We started with 2 DRINKS (which were pretty BIG—for me at least), and it took us till the end of our meal to finish them.

For appetizers, we ordered TOSTONES CON CAMARONES = \$15.99, which had green plantain stuffed with shrimp. The tostones were in the SHAPE OF A CUPCAKE with shrimp and sauce on top. It was a bit HARD but OK. I wouldn’t order that again because of that and it needed MORE FLAVOR.

For the main course, we ordered the PICADA MEDIANA, which consisted of HOUSE STEAK, PORK RIBS, POTATO, SWEET PLANTAIN, FRIED CASSAVA, YELLOW POTATO, SAUSAGE, PORK BELLY, BLOOD SAUSAGE, CORN CAKE, and SALAD for \$70 (A LOT of food for 2). We didn’t get any CORN CAKE and didn’t realize that until the end but LET IT GO. The FLAVOR of everything was DELICIOUS, but the STEAK and RIBS were OVERCOOKED, so some of the meat was VERY HARD TO CHEW.

Plus, I told them I’m ALLERGIC to BLOOD SAUSAGE and asked if we could SUBSTITUTE it for MORE POTATOES or something that was ALREADY on the plate… and I GOT CHARGED FOR IT… 🤷🏾‍♀️

Otherwise, I wish for \

70 the meal came with RICE AND BEANS to COMPLETE the dish. We had to order that SEPARATELY, which was \\

Altogether, for 2 DRINKS, 1 APPETIZER, 2 SMALL SIDES, and the MAIN COURSE to share, my bill was \

149.55 with tax, and then I TIPPED \\

They had asked me in the beginning what kind of DESSERT my husband would like, and I picked the CHEESECAKE, which was DELICIOUS and NICELY DECORATED with “HAPPY BIRTHDAY.” So I thought they were going to give that to him for his birthday FOR FREE like most restaurants, and SPECIFICALLY because they ASKED me what DESSERT he wanted—but then they CHARGED ME FOR IT and I didn’t realize that till later. They didn’t INFORM ME or NOTHING??!! And I didn’t check the bill because I was EXPECTING to pay a lot for this meal, but since we DROVE 2 HOURS to get to the restaurant after I realized, I just LET IT GO.

So BE CAREFUL AND CHECK YOUR BILL!!

Besides some of the MEAT being TOO HARD TO EAT and charging me for something I DIDN’T WANT TO ORDER, I HAD A GREAT TIME and enjoyed MOST of our food. The FLAVORS were GOOD, but PLEASE ASK CUSTOMERS how they want their MEAT COOKED—especially if it’s STEAK and RIBS.

OTHERWISE THAN THAT, I’d GO BACK for the SERVICE and FOOD, but I would REQUEST my meat to be cooked MEDIUM WELL. And NO, I didn’t have any trouble speaking to the HISPANIC SERVER—he spoke GREAT ENGLISH and was...

The food was great, the portions were generious and filling, the atmosphere was pleasant. I only have 3 complaints. Complaints 1 & 2: The servers were unattentive probably because they add 18% tip on your bill w/o telling you in advance and they have the audcity to ask for more when you pay with a credit card (note CC transaction adds an extra 2.75%.) The restaurant was not busy while we were there. I observed me server sitting at the bar eating and playing on his phone a few times during my meal. It took 15 min for me to get a drink refill after reminding the server 2x it also took about 15 min to get the check after asking for it when we were ready to leave. Had the server been in the area and paying attention my meal coukd have ended 30 minutes earlier. Complaint 3: Communication issues, the establishment is a restaurant/bar/lounge/club. So its loud inside there is no real seperation between the various areas you could hear the DJ interacting with the partons in the club/lounge area and the music being played was really loud so at times it can be hard to communicate with dinner companions and the staff. When you walk in the restaurant is on the left and there is a large doorway to the right for the lounge. While eating i noticed that i had to speak really loudly to be heard by my server and dinner companion. Also server did not seem to be able to communicate effectively either. He spoke little to no english and when responding he simple responded with yes's and no's even when those responses didnt apply nor were they appropriate response. I tried speaking with him in spanish and that wasnt effective either probably due to the noise levels Ultimately we ended up using their electronic menu and pointing at the photos to place the orders for apps, dinner and dessert, Complaint 3: They have a mandatory valet that work purely for tips. The parking lot is not so large that its even necessary to have a valet. Granted it makes the experiance seem more high end but its totally unnecessary. The front door is roughly 25 feet from the furthest space in the parking lot. So the valet just seems to be an unnecessary cash grab. Also they allow take-out and delivery service drivers to park in the disabled parking area. Having only 2 disables spaces its rather inconvienent for persons with disabilities. To access the designated parking spaces or they are forced to valet. Overall the food is the main and only reason i will return. The service was not the best and my experiance was slightly...