We ate here three times during our visit because it was so good. The jerk chicken sliders were amazing, as was the pear and Gorgonzola salad. Absolutely beautiful view and lovely friendly, attentive staff. We loved it.
Abel S.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Los Angeles, CA
We came during the off season and on a week day so it was relatively quiet. We had mahi mahi bites and mofongo pork spring rolls, which were both so so and could’ve saved the calories for something else. Also had the Cookie Monster ice cream cake, also so so. Better off going to Lazy Jack’s.
Charlotte F.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Austin, TX
Fun little place to grab lunch and look out at the sea. The food is average, but the great location makes up for it. Just don’t go in expecting a 5-star meal and you’ll be set for a quick lunch.
Cherise N.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Pinole, CA
Our friend«Jorge the Cab Driver»( Unilocal him) named this place in our quick tour of Esperanza & the guy at the Malecón House told us that this was a good place to go, so went. I am giving this place a 3.5. We had just arrived in Vieques and we were hungry. We arrived after happy hour, which sucked because I love a good happy hour lol. The restaurant was like an open room, where you could stare out at the water & hear the waves. Our waiter was Juan M. He was tentative, helpful & appeared slightly awkward. No worries, I have no complaints because he did a great job with patience because we did not know what to get. He helped us order and smiled frequently, my basics were covered. I ordered the chicken mofongo with a «dirty banana» beverage. The chicken mofongo had a blend of yucca, plantain, & breadfruit as the base. This food reminded me of a native Ghanaian dish I love(it’s called«eto»). My meal was good, but I would try the beef/steak mofongo, mainly because I don’t like chicken unless it’s baked or fried Aside from that it tasted good. The dirty banana was great! I would order that again. Why not order a «dirty banana», while you are at bananas? Ahaha. Final thoughts: This is a good place for island visitors to wing themselves on to the island food, it’s definitely western food based. I would come here again, just after I try other places first. Thanks Juan M, you were the reason to add the .5 in my rating!
JMarie M.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Newport Coast, CA
The only thing we loved here was the house made, FLAN! It was our favorite dessert on the whole island that we had to come back again just for the Flan. Service is good, but the food is OK. We ordered the Seafood Mofongo which tasted bland & too many pieces of fish in it. The sauce had no flavor and was too saucy, almost like a soup. It was our first time eating Mofongo too so we were pretty disappointed since we were really looking forward to their staple dish. We also tried the Escargot. Snails didn’t taste fresh & the sauce was a little too rich. Cheap & affordable, but I would pay more for quality and better dishes. I give this place a 2.5 because their Flan was so good & probably one of the best desserts I’ve had in awhile. If you’re a tourist visiting Vieques, like us, I recommend trying other local restaurants.
Tuli S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Cambridge, MA
Fish tacos, 4 dollars. These are the BEST fish tacos I’ve ever had. The red snapper was ridiculously fresh, melt in your mouth. The rum punch special tastes like sugar +no booze so meh(depends who is at the bar). The Cuban sandwich and seafood monfongo are a 5⁄5. The escargot and Gorgonzola bread are also worth ordering. The snails are decent sized and the sauce is super creamy. Totally worth a visit. I came at least 4 times :).
Colette C.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Stirling, United Kingdom
I came here twice during my stay in Vieques. In order of my favourites: jerk chicken(YES!!), fish tacos, trio slider and lastly arepas which were slightly bland and tough but I found that to be the case in other places. Service was very good, the staff were friendly and made great conversation.
Phoebe F.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Pittsburgh, PA
Great food and great location. The paella and desserts are fantastic. It’s a great place just to hang out with friends.
Cynthia L.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Seattle, WA
Um. So. One word. Tourists. Fish tacos, burgers, a so-so ceviche, watery pina coladas, and service that made me want to ask them if they felt okay. I mean, if I was an ex-pat waiting tables in paradise, I’d be a little happier personally. The presentation of everything was nice. We had the three sliders, and 2 of the 3 fish were overcooked — the tuna one was obviously so frozen solid in the middle when cooked that eating it made me feel like a vulture chewing on carrion, but the lentil salad side was tasty. The coconut-crusted fish sandwich served with french fries was also good. It stands out on Unilocal because a lot of people have reviewed it. We only stopped here because after driving a couple of hours, we were famished and didn’t have the energy to look further. It’s easy to find, and the food came out quick, so there’s that.
Kevin V.
Rating des Ortes: 2 San Juan, Puerto Rico
Our food and drinks were fine, but the lack of consideration by our server(Mark) negatively affected our overall experience.
Kelsey K.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Naperville, IL
I am definitely a Banana’s fan. We probably went to every casual restaurant/bar on the Malecon and Banana’s is definitely the best food. The servers work hard. The drinks are decent. It’s maybe a little expensive, but everything is fresh and cooked to perfection. The outdoor seating is a nice touch and has a gorgeous view. It’s got a great, laid back atmosphere. It’s also a great place to go for desert and sit and watch the people walk by.
Kim S.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Stamford, CT
Bananas wasn’t my first option to have lunch in Esperanza. I wanted to go to another restaurant nearby, but they were closed. So I gave Bananas a try while waiting for my scooter. Restaurant is full of tourists of course. You don’t have that many choices since the town is so small. Menu offers a mix of American and Caribbean food. I tried to stay away from American food at all cost while I was in Vieques. I wanted to experience local food. Since restaurant offers Caribbean food, I thought I should give Jerk Chicken a try. Well. I was quite disappointed. I definitely had a lot better Jerk Chicken in NYC. Jerk Chicken here was kind of sweet, but at least it was juicy. Rice and beans were meh.
Israel G.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Davie, FL
If I could give zero stars, I would. I’ve never seen such a disrespect by a «manager» in my life for starters. Before I get there, let’s start with the service. Waitress was okay, didn’t tell us her name and didn’t write our order down. For a group of 17, that’s a problem. I ordered a mango colada which I never received. Our food arrived and was very, VERY under seasoned. My wife ordered a burger that came so raw you’d think they just seared the meat while the cow was alive. I will say the fish and chips was good, although missing some salt. Another person in our party didn’t even receive the second part of their order. Nobody was happy with their meal(minus myself). Next comes the even worse part. My father in law found hair in his food! Gross! So he complained to the waitress who said she’d take care of it. NEVERDID. Plate with hair sat there the whole time. The waitress said she’d take the meal off the bill, NEVERDID. So we asked for a manager. A large man who said he was the cook then said he was the manager/owner told the waitress to not make any changes, we have to pay for the food. My father in law was not disrespectful, yet the owner has the audacity to disrespect the customer! Then he threatened to call the police!!! Never in my life have I experienced such horrible treatment at a restaurant. Poor food, poor service, poor treatment. Nobody should ever come here. EVER. Overpriced, under seasoned, and no respect for the customer. Period. PLEASEFORTHELOVEOFYOURWALLETANDVIEQUESEXPERIENCE, DONTEATHERE!
Emerald Z.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Middle Village, NY
Good place to have American food at Vieques. I had whole fried snapper with rice and beans. The fish was good, can’t tell if it’s fresh though. The rice and beans were… ugh. not good. I had rum punch, which I would recommend. Rum with local fruit juice. Very good. I can see the efforts kitchen staff made. They try to combine local Caribbean food with American food. We had pork mofongo spring rolls. It’s still pork spring rolls. The food was not bad and the environment was touristy. Service was faster than local restaurant. We got our entrée without finishing the starters, which was not common during our stay at Puerto Rico. The waitress was very effective with no additional words. I would prefer a warm and caring style but it’s just different from Caribbean. If you miss American food, it’s definitely a good place to go, but if you want something local, better find another place.
Brian S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Los Angeles, CA
These people can cook. I loved this placed so much, I ate here twice during my 3 day stay in Vieques. We had heard this place used to suck, but now it’s exponentially better. I have to admit, I was worried the food was going to be boring because the menu options didn’t seem too crazy: fish tacos, burgers, fries, pasta, etc. I saw escargot in a creamy garlic sauce as their first appetizer and I figured I should try it because if this place is any good, it might be OK, and if it wasn’t, it would be a complete disaster. ****Their escargot rocked.***** I felt like a little kid savoring each snail drowning in this absolutely indulgent cream sauce. My girlfriend got their fish tacos and they were some of the best we’ve ever had. ASKFORTHEIRHOUSEHOTSAUCE. We came back the next day. We got their Rasta Past with chicken and everything was perfect about it. I usually hate red or green pepper, but this pasta made me love peppers. We did get something that wasn’t up to par with everything else. It was their ceviche. I loved the quality of the fish and the veggies involved, but it came up a little bland. However, we fixed this on our own with a few dashes of salt and their house hot sauce.
Denise Z.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Jersey City, NJ
We came here in Esperanza for the Bio Bay tour and came in because of the Paella. It turned out to be really delicious, and the fish and chips we had were very fresh and tender. Great place to come!
Cong S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Boston, MA
best restaurant on the island!!! You can have a little bit of everything to share here! We had the catch of the day snapper and it was super!
Lisa N.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Keyport, NJ
Just had dinner here tonight. First dinner on the island. Service was exceptionally friendly. Food was very tasty. We had the seafood paella($ 20), key wester sandwich($ 14), and kids cheese quesadilla($ 8)…and the Cookie Monster dessert which was basically and ice cream pie with cookie crust and blue ice cream. Very tasty. We also had a margarita and painkiller. The marg was good, but the painkiller was AMAZING!!! The star of the night was the key wester fried grouper sandwich. With tax and tip the bill came to $ 81. More than we would pay at home for dinner, but I think it’s fair for vieques. I look forward to more meals here.
Abby M.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Houston, TX
Don’t order off the regular menu, order from the specials on the board. The mahi bites from the menu were lackluster but not terrible. The salad with the fish of the day, which was snapper, was delicious. The Caribbean seafood bisque from the daily specials was very good. And the snapper ceviche was absolutely delicious.
Ryan B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Baltimore, MD
Maybe it’s the fact that I haven’t eaten anything but rum and coke since 10 this morning(it’s now 6) but the burger with rice and beans was incredible and totally worth the $ 14($ 2 up charge for rice and beans as a side). Service started off slowly as its want to do in PR but a couple of glances at the server and she came over and said hi. After that everything has been great and after a day of riding all over the island I haven’t seen a group of restaurants with better views than those along the water in Esperanza.