Phoenix Coqui — Restaurant in Phoenix

Disclaimer: This was the highest rated PR food in my area, so I went here not having any former experience with this style of food. Since I don't have former knowledge of what good or bad PR cuisine is, feel free to dismiss or like my thoughts.

Food:

Overall, I found the dish lacking. The pulled pork was dry & lacked a distinct seasoning. The rice, while appealing, was actually better as a leftover or when soaked in the ketchup/mayo-style sauce given. The plantain disc was reasonable, but again lacked anything that made me crave more. It seemed more like a bland corn-vibing potato. The soda contained high fructose corn syrup, so instead of a PR specific drink, it seemed more like an off brand orange soda. The mixed greens salad sold at all bulk stores was plausibly the best part. My PR friend said that isn't even a thing back home.

Service:

Everything was prompt, reasonable, friendly & helpful. A 4 would be a 5 if there was perhaps more enthusiasm, but hey, everyone had off moments.

Atmosphere:

The decor & music was solid for a mom & pop shop & exactly what I wanted to see. I wasn't in Cheesecake factory, I was in a Taco Truck turned local niche spot & the vibe worked.

To others in the review section:

Oh, & I saw the infamous flag from the alphabet-mafia at the desk. People need to calm down over that. This isn't the place for a lecture on theology, but it was discreet enough to express, but not overwhelm. At the end of the day, if a dogma changes your appetite, move along without expressing it. No one's Google review is pushing LGBTQ members to "repentance," so it isn't needed to mention. There's a "time and place for everything" and this isn't it.

There's a chance I'll return to try other items but it's VERY possible, this food is solid & simply not what I personally think tastes good due to the lack of intensity in spicing (like Indian...

My family and I just visited Puerto Rico for the first time this past summer and fell in love with the food. When we came back I started to look for PR food places in the valley and was surprised to see Phoenix Coqui was so close to us in mid town. I had heard of their food truck before, but being that we weren't familiar with "Puerto Rican food", we hadn't tried it. So I wanted to share my opinion for anyone who may not be familiar. Friends asked us if PR food is like Mexican food, to which we would say not really Simply put, Italian food for some is thought of as pasta (lasagna, spaghetti, macaroni, cappellini.) Mexican is often thought of as tortillas (tacos, tostadas, burritos) and beans and rice. I felt that a lot of PR food was based on plantains (tostones, mofongo, pastelon) with rice or fries. But as with all three types of food, some dishes have beef or chicken or pork. Empanadas are great for the kids with cheese or meat inside (think way tastier version of a hot pocket).

Back to my review, the food here was delicious. The staff(owner) was very friendly when I overheard a customer say they had never been there. He helped explain the different food types. It is a smaller place and there were several guests, but there was still room to sit. Parking is a little unique so just make your way to the back and the entrance is on the north side. Would definitely recommend and I'm even considering having some food catered. When in doubt get Tostones, I crave these now! If you're a dessert person see if they have tembleche ( think like a coconut custard) I didn't see it on the main menu( maybe a different name) but it was on the catering menu and saw a gal eating it as we got our food to go! Would love to know if you make it over and what your...

As a city bus driver, I see many food places. I used to go here when it was Crazy Jim's and was a bit perturbed that it has changed to Phoenix Coqui. My niece and I were going to get together for lunch, and having never had Puerto Rican food, we decided to go here.

I had the empanada meal; two empanadas, rice and beans (you can get fries instead if you want them). I got a mushroom empanada and a beef empanada. The mushroom one was very good, flavorful, but could have had a little more mushrooms. The beef one was made with ground beef and was a little bland, but still good. I'm a huge fan of rice, and theirs didn't disappoint. It's just plain white rice with salt, which just happens to be my favorite. The rice was moist, not dry, and had the perfect amount of salt. The beans were kidney beans which I'm not at all fond of, but they were pretty good. The liquid they came in was fantastic, though a little salty. Topped off with some iced tea/lemonade, it was a great meal. Total I spent on my meal was about $16.

I can't remember what dish my niece got, but she did say it was good lol.

My only complaint was that the dining area was very loud. If there were more than 1-2 parties in the same area, it was hard to carry on a conversation. A little more art work on the walls, and it would have cut the noise level considerably. This is why I only gave four stars.

The bathroom was clean and well stocked (I always use the bathroom in a place I've never been to to see how it's kept).

All in all, a great dining experience. I definitely want to go again to try their...