Los Andes was frequently recommended by Providence locals so I decided to visit.
Food I've tried:
- The meal started off with complementary bread that was nice and soft. There was olive oil available for the bread.
- BISTECA A LO POBRE ($24): the over easy egg added a softness to the dish which I liked. The angus was not overly salty, though a tad on the drier and tougher side.
- CHICHARRON ($19): like the bisteca, the meat was well seasoned though tad on the drier side. A minor point, but I was a bit thrown off by the queso blanco being a literal slice of white cheese on top of tomato and onion, for some reason I thought it would be more incorporated into the dish. The potato slices were thick fries, well seasoned.
- PAELLA ($28): generous amount of seafood in the rice. The seafood and the chicken was well cooked and not dry. However, the rice was very salty so I had to mix this rice with the rice from other dishes.
- JALEA ($28): a very very generous plate of fried seafood. Nothing felt overly greasy, and everything was well seasoned. However, given the sheer amount of fried food, I think this dish would be best if paired with another rice dish. My favorite part of this dish was the plantain chips, which were nice and crispy.
- HOUSE HOT SAUCE: it was complementary with our meal. It was not overly spicy, reminded me more of liquidy salsa than hot sauce.
- They do have specials of the day which is not listed on the menu. When we were able to order, the waiter listed off the special.
- The portions and price is so that each dish can essentially feed 2 people. I personally wished that there was a cheaper price to smaller portion that was available, as I usually like to try a variety of dishes when I am at a restaurant.
- Overall, I gave a yellow for the flavor. Perhaps because the restaurant was very hyped up for me beforehand, I had high expectations going in. My primary thoughts on the food was that most of the rice was salty, and the meats were on the tougher/drier side.
Atmosphere:
- Definitely very busy. Be sure to have a reservation if you are coming at peak hours.
- Given the crowd, there is a baseline noise in the background but it is not disruptive. The lighting is on the dimmer side.
- There is outdoor seating with cool igloo coverings.
Service:
- The staff was extremely friendly!
Overall:
- A very well known restaurant, my experience with the food didn't quite meet my (perhaps high) expectations.
- A lot of the entrees are portioned and priced to feed 2 people.
