White Maize — Restaurant in New York

White Maize has been on my list for a long time, so once I had a reason to be in Carroll Gardens, I decided to finally check it out! I walked in around 3:30pm on a Thursday, and I was the sole customer. They have a small (~ 6 small parties) seating area and restrooms for those who want to dine in, and whoever was in control of the music was a Swiftie! I will say that both times I have been here the person working the register has not been the most alert, but apologetic once I got their attention.

I got the pulled pork bowl ($15.16), which is an elevated Chipotle bowl. I went for the bowl over the arepas because 1 arepa was almost the same price, and I felt like the bowl would be more filling. If you prefer smaller meals, I think you can get the most bang for your buck with the bowl, since you can split it into 2 meals. I was starving, so I consumed it all in one sitting, and it was filling indeed! I felt like the ingredient selection and quality justified the price, and the plantains were definitely a highlight! The pulled pork was juicy and well flavored, rice was on the softer side, and the tomatoes in the salsa (under avocado in picture) were delicious. My only critique of this bowl is that the layout is pretty but not practical for mixing.

Overall, I wouldn't go out of my way for White Maize but I will be a regular when I have business...

So me and my friend decided to go there for their tóquenos, but we ended up ordering a bunch of things, I ordered a bowl of pulled beef which the server asked pulled beef or pabellón, I said I guess it’s called pabellón and ended up getting an arepa which I not wanted but ended up eating it because I didn’t wNt to wait, my friend ask for a beer Polar and the guys didn’t hear her because ofc he had an EarPod and probably was listening to music, I ordered a papelon and took 15 mins for them to bring it. I decided to order empanadas To go, and some tequenos, and the kid tells me it’s $26 for 2 empanadas and tequenos, so I ask why so much and he said I just work here and I don’t know the prices, so I said ok I guess the empanadas are a decent size I Pay and when I get the order I opened it to check and find 2 empanadas the size of tequenos, so I ask him again is this really $7.36 each to which he tells me the same I just work here for the day and not even trying to help me. He calls The boss and apparently they have something bad in the system which is charging twice the order. Anyways I ended up getting 2 more empanadas because there so small that you can eat them on one bite. I know it’s probably targeted for white folks but as a Hispanic who loves Venezuelan food I felt robbed. Never...

Totally disregards notes. WAY overpriced. I used to order from here all the time but stopped because the accuracy of delivery was so bad. I spent $80 on food and it was missing all the sauces and drinks. When you call the restaurant they don't pick up and hang up after one ring. Not sure what it's like in person but for delivery, it's a hard NO. Not worth the $$ for dry arepas especially when they forget the sauces and sodas.

Follow up. The owner Kathyana texted me, thanked me for my feedback and personally apologized and said she'd like to win my trust and business back by delivering my order again at my convenience. She said there was someone new running the orders that night and mistakes were made. However, when I texted her back to set up the delivery, I never heard back. If you read the reviews I am not the only person to have the issue of them not following notes, mistakes on delivery, not being able to contact the restaurant via phone etc. I appreciated the text but why send if you're not going to follow up. Feels very hollow and superficial. They've lost a former loyal customer...