MĀRO — Restaurant in San Juan

My review of MĀRO by Mario Pagán — buzz, craft cocktails, and a Pacific-Latino vibe that’s still finding its groove

Walked in right at opening and grabbed two bar seats as a last-minute walk-in (note to self: make a reservation next time). Jonathan, the host, couldn’t have been more gracious trying to seat us, and once we settled at the bar the energy was instantly fun—the place was hopping.

Service at the bar was dialed in. Aramis, our bartender, mixed photo-worthy drinks with real finesse, which tracks with MĀRO’s positioning as a cocktail-forward, design-driven room. Officially, MĀRO is Chef Mario Pagán’s “Cocina Pacífico-Latina”—a fusion of Latin American flavors with Pacific Rim technique—and the dining room is pitched as a striking, art-led space in Santurce/Condado crafted by architect George Stewart with designer Nono Maldonado. It’s open Monday–Saturday in the evenings (4:30–11 pm) and sits at 1311 Av. Ponce de León; price point reads “$50 and over,” and the dress code is business-casual.   

On the plate: mixed results. The Tuna nigiri was very good—clean cut, proper temperature, nice bite. The wasabi, though, was standard paste and felt junior-varsity next to the fish. That’s not a ding unique to MĀRO, just a reminder that when a room is designed to be an all-around crowd-pleaser with a wide menu, it’s tough to compete with top NYC sushi counters or the sharper Pacific-Asian specialists. To MĀRO’s credit, the room’s atmosphere and the hospitality offset some of those culinary gaps; you come here for the vibe, the people-watching, and strong cocktails as much as the raw fish.

Big picture context helps. The flagship Mario Pagán Restaurant in Condado (1110 Ave. Magdalena) still sets the benchmark in the group for contemporary Puerto Rican cuisine—more focused and, in my experience, more consistently executed. MĀRO, by design, pushes into a broader “Pacifico-Latino” lane with crudos, wood-fired seafood, and cocktail culture; it’s a different brief and audience, and you can feel that in the room.  

Bottom line • Hospitality & bar: A-level. Jonathan (host) and Aramis (bartender) were standouts, and the cocktail program is a clear strength.  • Food: Good, not yet great across the board. Tuna nigiri was the highlight; sushi die-hards and NYC fusion stalwarts needn’t worry—yet. • Scene: Casual-elegant crowd, lively bar, design-first space; reservations recommended if you want a table.  

I’ll be back soon—most of my reviews take three visits to finalize—and I’m optimistic. With the room’s energy, the gracious front-of-house, and the cocktail craft already humming, a bit more precision on the sushi and Pacific-leaning dishes could make MĀRO a strong complement to the flagship in Condado rather than a comparison point it...

Well we heard that Chef Mario Pagan had another restaurant in Santurce, so we had to go see what the hype was about. We visited his restaurants at the Olive Boutique Hotel in Condado few years ago, and in both the food was amazing. So we are always expecting the fine cusine that Mario Pagan is known for, we walked in and the place was beautiful, almost similar to 3 star Michellin restaurants that we visit in the US, so my wife and I said, "I think we made a good choice". So we started with two glasses of wine, a white and a rosè both delicious, after that we order two apps, the octupus and the porkbelly Yakus, the octopus was amazingly tender, the porkbelly not so, was rubbery. So my expectations went from 10 to 6 in a heart beat, following the apps we order the Kawai Shrimp Mofongo for my wife and the Vaca Frita Loco Moco for myself, the mofongo was kind of tough and the tiger prawns were chewy and rubbery, my wife did not even eat a third of the plate, she told me " I'm so disappointed with this food from a high end chef like Mario Pagan, so then I looked at my Loco Moco and to my surprise, the avocado was black, rotten how can that plate leave a Mario Pagan kitchen, there's the chef that cooked the food, maybe there's another chef that plates the food, after that it goes by the expo, so the plate went pass 2 or 3 people and no one saw the rotten avocado, also the churrasco patty was ok, not what you are expecting from Mario Pagan, and white rice was just that, nothing special and there was not enough gravy for the rice, so then I told my wife " Im disappointed also", this food is over rated and over priced, if any Chef is charging $50 for 1 plate, that plate has to be flawless, memorable. We dont mind paying for awesome food, we have eaten at restaurants that are $500 per person but the food is so flawless that makes you cry trying to figure out how can something taste so amazing. We loved the wines and the octopus Yaku, thats about it, the food looks nice but thats it, also you can feel that the staff was disorganized. I truly hope...

This is an update to my review from May.

We went back to Maro to celebrate my father-in-law’s 80th birthday. We were a group of 26 and hosted the event in the upstairs private room. The team at Maro was incredibly professional, and the pre-fixe group menu we selected worked very well.

Before dinner, we hosted a one-hour cocktail reception so everyone could mingle before we broke into four tables. During the reception, Maro served Ora Alcapurrias and Bacalaíto Sushi. Both were outstanding and not to be missed.

The entire evening was very special. The Maro team took great care to ensure everything went smoothly and seamlessly.

If you are hosting a midsize special event and looking for an elegant and beautiful setting with excellent food, wine, and champagne, and a team that can truly deliver a high-end experience, Maro is a fantastic option.

Visiting from NYC and meeting up with my brother and father-in-law who live in Puerto Rico. We were a group of 10 adults. The place is beautiful, nicely designed, with a spacious layout inside what used to be an old movie theater. The service was super friendly and welcoming.

We decided to share all the dishes and ended up ordering two of each of many (if not most) of the appetizers. Our favorites were the lechón roll, ibérico sando, ora alcapurrias, and the octopus. Among the main dishes, the coconut black cod was absolutely superb.

Looking forward to returning in July when we're back, so we can try the rest...