El Pollo Rico — Restaurant in Maryland

If you've had Peruvian Chicken before, but not eaten here... You've not had the best yet. Pollo Rico is a frequent winner of Washingtonian Magazine 50 best eats, and this is a well deserved honor. The prices here are excellent. $10 to $12 a person here, and this is with a drink, a half chicken, and upgraded sides. The cole slaw is a bit industrial and the torrillas are bagged - get the yucca and beans. But it's really all about the chicken. THE GLORIOUS, fall off the bone, covered in roasted spices, marinated for hours, moist, juicy amazing chicken. Crisp and Juicy - not even close. Sardi's - left behind in the dust. This place is the real deal for Peruvian chicken in DC Metro (they have locations in Gaithersburg, NOVA, and here). This place is hands down the best roasted chicken I've ever had, and I've been to 30 plus palaces in MD and VA. You can argue about some places having better sides (Mi Peru in Gaithersburg, I'm looking right at you), but leg for leg, thigh for thigh you can not go wrong eating here. Bring your family, friends, and tell...

Visiting Maryland for work and some colleagues took me to El Pollo Rico for dinner. Never would have found or gone to this place on my own, so I’m grateful that they took me here. Definitely not the place to go if you’re prissy or even expect your restaurants not to look like a dive bar and be covered in a layer of grime and bathroom doors not locking and your fellow diners looking real sketch.

Considering that potatoes have been cultivated by Peruvians for 10,000 years I don’t know why I was surprised that they were fried to perfection. I love fries, but I hate most fries at restaurants, especially those wedge slices because they are never crispy enough. These fries where perfectly crispy outside and soft on the inside and were very airy. I’m amazed.

The chicken was perfectly cooked, seasoned and was very moist. The rice was good and the beans looked like perfection. Nice beautifully brown color to the beans and broth but would have benefited from some more salt.

Overall, I would recommend this place and wish there was one close to...

What a wonderful place to eat some amazing chicken just perfectly cooked. Take your time choosing the perfect sides to match your order, play around with it, have the amazing Inca Kola that just blends perfectly with the food. The staff remembers you after a while, I've been coming since I was a wee toddler and some of the veterans still remember me. Be prepared to either take it to go or don't go during the lunch/dinner rush. This place will become PACKED TO THE BRIM. Get ready for a HUGE line sometimes and I must say, the calling ahead of time to have your order ready is not your best option. I've tried it and almost always they don't have it ready, sometimes I feel like just standing in line would have gotten my order done sooner. Its worth the wait, I must say. I make this a ritual weekend thing to have it at least once. ALSO quick bit of advice, buy the whole chicken, better bang for your buck and share it with friends of family. Don't finish it all? Save it for a future...