El Merengue Restaurant poconos — Restaurant in Stroudsburg

Went to Stroudsburg, PA on some personal business and got hungry. We did a little search, as we were craving Latin American food, and landed upon this restaurant. It was beyond our expectations! I will say we ordered more then we could eat, because we were so hungry.

We started with a few appetizers. Empanadas de Carne y Queso (Beef & Cheese), Chicharron de Cerdo (Fried Pork Rind) and Chimi Tostones. The pork rind was tasty and cooked just right with that crispy skin, but not overly done were your teeth break trying to eat it; it was perfect. The chicharron was not actually an appetizer on the menu, but listed as an entrée. We just ordered half of the entrée, 1/2 lb worth. The Chimi Tostones were the best of the bunch! In all honesty, for people that get full quickly, this dish could actually serve as a main, more so then the pork rind. These are 3 sliders, if you will, comprised of fried cheese, on a bed of tomato, shredded purple cabbage & pernil (roasted pork), drizzled with salsa rosada (variation of ketchup & mayonnaise sauce) and sandwiched between 2 tostones (fried plantains). Tasty! We could only finish one, though, as I had to make room for the rest.

For our mains we ordered a Churrasco (Skirt Steak) and Pescado Rojo Frito (Fried Red Snapper). The fish was delicious! Easily the best dish of the night by far and that's saying a lot considering everything else was also very good. The seasoning was on point and fried to perfection. Mouthwatering, to say the least! We chose a side of maduros (fried sweet plantains) with this dish. Cooked just right, a little gooey but not unmanageable, just the way we like them. The skirt steak was good and was topped with a chimichurri style salsa. It came with arroz con gandules (yellow rice with pigeon peas) and your choice of red or black beans. We washed everything down with fresh made passion fruit juice.

We had no room for dessert.

With all that said, my sole complaint would be the absence of menus when dining outdoors. We were told that they do not give them out because of COVID-19. Even if the reason was justified, they could at least give out paper menus the could then be thrown out after use or sanitize regular menus. I'll get to why this situation bothered me in a minute. We were told to do a search online for their menu. Fine, but here's the problem, there are many results for that search. Facebook, Trip Advisor, Seamless, GrubHub, etc and they all don't have the same menu, if at all. We chose to order from the GrubHub menu and now we get to the root of my problem. The fried red snapper on that menu was listed at $14.95, but we got quite the surprise when on the check it was listed as $25.95. A full $11 difference! The fish was worth it, but that's not the point here. Something definitely needs to be done so everyone is able to look at the same menu in their own hands and do not get sticker shock when given the bill.

As you can tell, we enjoyed our meal wholeheartedly and I would highly recommended this restaurant. Besides my compliments to the chef I also want to compliment our waitress, Victoria, on her service. Her personable and inviting attitude made the entire...

"A Taste of the Caribbean in the Poconos – El Merengue Restaurant"

We visited El Merengue Restaurant in the Poconos for dinner, and it felt like a quick escape to the Caribbean! The exterior is vibrant and colorful, reminiscent of a true Caribbean setting. Upon entering, we were greeted warmly by the staff and promptly seated. The staff was courteous and attentive, answering our questions and offering great recommendations.

The aroma of fresh Caribbean food filled the air as we browsed the menu. Much of their food is displayed behind glass, steaming and fresh, allowing you to simply point and choose. We ordered a few dishes, including rice, red beans, and pernil (pulled pork), which was packed with flavor and juicy tenderness—a burst of excitement with every bite!

We also tried the empanadas (beef and cheese), made fresh to order, which took a bit to prepare but was absolutely worth the wait. Their alcapurria—a Caribbean favorite with beef and potatoes wrapped in fried plantains—was perfectly seasoned, and the chicken and garlic mofongo was deliciously fresh, made from scratch with unbeatable flavor.

The food here was absolutely amazing. El Merengue is a true “diamond in the rough” in the Poconos, and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an authentic Caribbean meal. Don’t miss the chance to try this hidden gem if you’re in the area!

Food: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

Service:...

I just visited this restaurant a few minutes ago. MY FIRST AND LAST VISIT! I found the person preparing our take out order deliberately annoying. Repeating the same question over and over again before finally completing our take out order. Moving on to paying was even more unpleasant to here same girl carrying a conversation with another customer as she called him in Spanish “Coulo de Cara” interpreted in English “Ass Face”. Maybe she thinks I am white and does not realize I do understand her language. Heavens know how many names she has called prior customer that do not understand the language. Like how disgusting was that! I wish that was the end of it when I walk out. The quality of food merited no inkling to defend. I could not taste none of those pleasant good Caribbean seasoning. All you can taste was the salt in the food. So salty! The bean just taste like salt. The rice just taste like salt. The chicken just taste like salt. Horribly to just see a restaurant with no lines or nobody dining in and over such poor service. Although you we seen three Spanish women behind the counter that did not help the quality of their nasty cuisines. I think they should reach out and apologize for giving me and my husband the worst experience. We still paid out $30.00. I think very little of this restaurant surviving in the Poconos...