D'La Isla — Restaurant in San Juan

Terrible service. We ordered our food at 2:30 pm. Order arrived at 4:30. A wait of 2 hours for food is totally unacceptable. I came to Puerto Rico on vacation for my niece’s baptism and we came to celebrate here. Not a big group. Basically 8 adults so nothing out of the ordinary. None of the employees seem to care we were waiting and waiting and waiting. Not only will not go back but will let family and friends about our bad experience. The food was average. Or maybe it is that waiting 2 hours won’t seat ok with anyone. Even to get water was difficult. I asked for water when my food arrived and I got water when I finished my plate. What make things from bad to worst was that they said it was compulsory to leave 18% tip so we were obligated to leave 18% although the service wasn’t good. I do know it is ilegal to request 18% compulsory service charge. However I wasn’t going to make a scene during my niece’s celebration.

Edit- 24 hours later. So management of this place instead of apologizing they decide to say that I am a liar. I am not going to continue a discussion here. But basically check their response: oh, you were not 9 but 12. Wow!!! Huge difference. I am fine if you want to mention 1 year old and 2 year olds as adults that’s your brain’s prerogative. Very smart!!! We arrive at 1:59 pm and ordered at 2:30. The food arrived at 4:30. You do the math. If you want to be a good business man, next time acknowledge your mistakes and learn from them. That is the smart thing to do. And by the way, yes, it is illegal to request a compulsory %18 tip. My review will stay. I wanted to give you a chance to get better. However you decided go...

First, the service was fantastic. If your Spanish isn't so great, don't worry; whether the staff is fluent in English or not, they will figure out how to meet your needs and make sure you have a good experience. They made sure that I had a fresh drink before I even had to ask for a refill, and the cook came out and checked to make sure that I was enjoying my meal.

Second, the food was fine, it was cooked perfectly, but I was looking for authentic Puerto Rican cuisine that met my dietary restrictions, and I was a little underwhelmed. Perhaps I just made a poor choice of what to order off the menu. It was just a $20 meal that you could get anywhere in the U.S. In any case, the food was well seasoned and expertly prepared.

Third, there are some tripping hazards inside the restaurant, as the floor shifts up and down in height at several locations in the small restaurant. These are marked with stickers on the floor, but a stronger visual cue like bright red (on the white floor) would perhaps work better (I stumbled twice). More seriously, the parking on this street is awful, you have to back out into San Juan's notoriously fast traffic. It sits in-between two traffic lights, so you have a little bit of a buffer, but it can be a challenge to get out of your parking spot if your not good at this kind of maneuver.

Overall, I had a good experience, I would...

D’la Isla is a local restaurant that shows a lot of potential, and it seems they’re still finding their footing. They expect to be operating at full capacity next month with new offerings on the menu, which I’m looking forward to trying. Parking in front of the restaurant is limited, but there’s a larger lot conveniently located across the street.

Inside, D’la Isla has a bar featuring classic cocktails and a few unique recipes, including their signature D’la Isla cocktail—a sweet and refreshing blend that’s perfect for unwinding. I tried the mushroom risotto, which was well-cooked and generously portioned, though it could benefit from a more refined presentation.

With plenty of seating available, it was surprisingly quiet on a Sunday afternoon. I plan to return in December to see how they’ve evolved and to check out the new additions. If they keep building on what they’ve started, D’la Isla could become...