Counter & Bodega — Restaurant in New York

So let me tell you about my horrible experience at this place first we didn’t have reservations we were walk ins me and my family total of 5 of us including my 7 year old daughter were seated waitress came gave her name and gave us the menu and gave us a few minutes to look over the menu so let’s start with drinks I order water at first and I believe some of the family order sodas cool she comes back and I try to order a blue Hawaiian she tells me sorry we are out of that drink oh ok cool she suggested something different I wasn’t interested so I said never mind thank you, then we order our food 2 of us had churrasco with white rice and beans , and 2 of us Bistec Saltado with white rice and beans and extra white rice and guacamole with chips ok so as we waited and waited and waited I called the waitress over and ask why is the guacamole taking so long she says they ran out of avocado and had to go get some more I believe in their stock room I guess finally they bring out the guacamole so we just talking laughing killing time this food took forever to come out there was a young man by the name Bryan or Brian he was trying his very best and was very attentive he keep apologizing I said it’s ok I though maybe they short staff fine whatever they didn’t bring out the white rice for my daughter and the didn’t bring out my beans so Brian came over asked if everything was alright I said no I’m missing white rice and my beans and we sit there with whatever food they did bring out I start giving food to my daughter she’s hungry waitress never came back not even to check on us and to see if everything was good until my aunt called her over I told her we missing a white rice and my beans so I continue to feed my daughter and I also now take a few bites out of my plate so like about 10 minutes later they come and tell me there is no more white rice I was like WHAT?! So as a mother my daughter eats only white rice I give her my rice and I asked what other do you have they said I think Moro de guadules I didn’t want that so I told them I didn’t even want my pepper steak the young me came back to me and stated that I had already ate some food from my plate I get it but you also don’t have any more white rice which I should have been advise of way before my food came out then he was really nice in trying to accommodate me and so I ordered a Cuban sandwich I though I regular sandwich when the brang the the sandwich I bit it all I tasted was mustard so unfortunately I told the guy I couldn’t eat that cause I don’t eat mustard I told him you know what just can I have the bill I’m not even hungry anymore then after me explaining to him everything that was wrong I ask to speak with a manager and he was hesitant then I’m like oh god then I seen a lady by the register looking at me trying to tell him everything that was wrong and I say she can come hear this too so she came to the table I ask who she was she said her name was Julianna and I asked her position and she told me she was manager for the day interesting and I explained now everything that was wrong to her also adding money has never been an issue and I go out to eat a lot I never went threw something like this she was really nice apologized and all overall I wouldn’t recommend this place to my friends or family it was a horrible First impression best of luck to anyone that...

I'm going to start by saying that as far as I can remember, I've never given a 5 star rating! This is because 5 stars should be perfection, which is nearly impossible to attain. This being said, I can say that Counter & Bodega achieves another level by reminding me of the flavors of my grandmother and her generation when they did everything the labor intensive way, and took no shortcuts to let the flavors develop (which is how I learned to make Puerto Rican food. This was such the case that i even said that someone's grandmother was in the kitchen cooking

I choose this restaurant because I had heard some great things, and I was meeting up with some friends who were visiting from Spain, and had never had Puerto Rican food, so I wanted them to experience a little of my culture since they had shown me theirs while I was in Spain & Portugal.

C&B was an excellent choice in this regard as it is authentic, and just excellent all around. Details like having all Don Q rums, to Medalla beer, along with the decor and atmosphere made me feel like I was at La Placita! First of all the drinks were all amazing, from the standard Mojitos, to the craft cocktails were on another level. Next, we had alcapurrias and piononos as appetizers. The alcapurrias were as good as the ones in Piñones! Truly reminiscent of how my grandmother would make them!

For entrees, we had Pernil (roasted pork shoulder, served with arroz con gandules, tostones, and cuerito/chicharrón), chuletas (pork chops, served with arroz con gandules and maduros), and then there was Mofongo (mashed green plantains), one with pernil and one with churrasco (skirt steak). The pernil tasted as if my grandmother marinated it! The pork chops were perfectly marinated, and the churrasco was perfectly seasoned and cooked to a perfect medium rare. The arroz con gandules was the best one I've ever had at a restaurant. And the best detail of all was the garlic sauce served with the Mofongo. You could tell that it was made from scratch, with skill!

All in all, this was an excellent experience with excellent food, shared with friends who were looking to have a great meal, and I was hoping that this was as good as what I've heard. Not only did Counter & Bodega deliver, but has me feeling nostalgic, and proud that my friends had such a great representation of Puerto Rican culture and food. I would also be remiss if I didn't mention how awesome the staff was, and after finding out about my friends last of experience with Puerto Rican food and culture, went out of their way to show them some...

So I don’t know where to start or end but all I can say is AMAZING!!! This place is literally a Jewel hiding in the pebbles of Chelsea area! From Brooklyn Williamsburg I know a good Spanish Spot when I see one and boy did we strike gold here Folks! I was passing through 23rd Street with my Girlfriend Tanya and walked by to see this cozy beautiful bar/restaurant with its Happy Hour sign out front and what stopped me first was the Music and I said to her “Spanish music in Chelsea? Is this real?” We turned to each other and was like yo let’s go inside and check this place out. The authentic feel of being in Puerto Rico resonated from this place as you sit at the bar and encounter the amazing Richie who not only was the bar tender but one of the owners! And who doesn’t love a mom and pop establishment because family run businesses make everything fresh from scratch and with love and care! And this was certainly the case for me perfect 1st experience. Richie was so helpful and positive and insightful on recommendations and let’s not forget the passion he showed in the love for his establishment in his words and work. He served us up some great drinks Tropical Island Fantasy and La Gasolina aka instant Favorite drinks!! You would think the drinks might come as regular or slightly watered down but nope not with this place! Richie made sure we enjoy our experience and these drinks were exceptional, flavorful, and strong! I felt buzzed off that one drink and so did my girlfriend as we were embarrassed to say it but wow amazing! Instantly knew we were in love with this place and became chatter boxes and guess what our bartender aka the owner Richie made sure to entertain us and he did and it felt like we were family. You won’t get that much anywhere now a days a great feeling and so I wanted to try to food after he and his waitress hyped us up and ordered appetizer of the Empanadas and my goodness did they not disappoint!!! Every bite with the dips were absolutely amazing! My new favorite word for this location. I recommend all to come and he informed us of many more flavorful surprises he will be adding to his menu including for the summer. Makes you feel like your at home and you can never go wrong with a home cooked meal because that’s what you get here as if you were at your Grandmothers house! Love it. Thank you Richie we will see you guys next week and every week after! New Spot!!! ...