Vacation with family

The waiter I had wasn't friendly. We had to track him down to get service and any additional questions we asked seemed like a bother to him. He never refilled our glasses or checked on us. I was missing food from my meal and when I shared it with him, he offered a dry apology. He never rectified the issue. I will say he had a large party, so his frustrations may not have been to me alone.

We booked specifically due to birthplace of pina colada but found it average. Also odd that burgers and wraps could be ordered after 5 pm off the kids menus for adults with seafood allergies but could not be ordered off the main menu. We'd previewed the menu prior to booking but didn't see the fine print regarding burgers, wraps and sandwiches. Everything else was great!

Excellent food. Very reasonable prices. Good service.

Great atmosphere, food was great and the piña coladas were amazing. If you are not into the tourists scene, this place is not for you.

Awesome dinner, great service and will recommend. Great engagement dinner

Loved the atmosphere and drinks here! The Plantain Boat was delicious, but Mahi Mahi was very tough.

I was a party of 4 that had dinner at Barrachina. Appetizer was very good. Food was good. Service was quite good; server was very attentive and food came quick. This restaurant is considered the creator of the pina colada. Of course we ordered, but it was flat, not thick. Good value for the amount of food purchased. Atmosphere was better for a casual lunch rather than upscale for dinner. I still recommend if you are spending the day in Old San Juan.

Excellent food at a good price and ambience/setting was the best we’ve had in PR—request to sit outside on your reservation. Staff were slightly disjointed on this evening and disorganized but did express condolences and were giving an honest and good effort.

We were so happy to have Open Table because we snagged a table on the go and by the time we arrived at the restaurant there were no more tables to be had. Barrachina was recommended by our hotel concierge and did not disappoint. Charming place in the heart of Old San Juan.

The salmon was so salty it was almost inedible. The seafood paella tasted as if the rice was cooked in fish stock. Service was slow but typical for the area.

Seated us late for our reservation and then wouldn't bring food for another 40 minutes. Had to leave for another restaurant

My wife and I visited for dinner. Our appetizers were garlic shrimp and chorizo. The garlic shrimp were served on a bed of lettuce and were ice cold. The chorizo appetizer was overcooked and looked like it had been sitting for hours. The main course was a strip steak and mahi mahi. The steak was served ice cold with cold veggies. The mahi mahi was so overcooked it was uneatable. We asked to speak to the manager but we were told the manager had gone home. The food was taken off the bill. It is a shame that such a beautiful place has employees and a kitchen staff that really do not care. It is like the wild west with everyone running in different directions and no management. I would fire the kitchen staff if I were the owner.

Not handicap accessible
Can live through one step at Entry, but the bathroom situation is unacceptable for walker or wheelchair. You seriously need a one level/handicap/family bathroom. Paraplegic have no options but to wear a pull-up. But then they have no place to clean up. Sad. Would recommend the restaurant but inform them of bathroom inaccessibility, to be considered for anyone in there group.

Meh food and really poor service

Barrachina is a scene unto itself in Old San Juan. Even if its claim to be the place where the piña colada was invented is often challenged, its version of its signature cocktail is superb- fresh ingredients that put shame to most bar versions. The flank steaks, a house specialty, are tender and tasty. A host of small plates reflect the legacy of its Spanish immigrant founder (though now owned by another family). The place to have dinner is the inner courtyard, open to the sky.

With a maitre dit barely in control, front of house, it had it’s hay day in the 60’s - which is a fond, but let’s face it, a distant memory; even its signature dish now disappoints with over seasoned and overcooked components. All served up in an atmosphere that no longer has even a faded gentility that might engage you.

Booked this restaurant after reading all the positives reviews. Food was not good and the pina colada so sweet... it came out of a slushy machine then rum added as a floater vs freshly made. Super disappointed! We were a good of 6, each order something different, and not one of us liked our food.

We had my birthday dinner here while visiting Old San Juan. We saw the Flamenco show and had the appetizer platter for two. It was so much food we didn't need entrees. Everything was delicious and drinks were made just how I like them. Waiter was very pleasant. I will return and recommend to anyone in the area locals and visitors alike.

I went here for a date tonight with my husband as it’s our first night together in Puerto Rico. I am Puerto Rican and have been here before and he is British and it was his first time here ever! The food and drink here is made with pure LOVE. You have to- no, you NEED TO- try the piña colada, as it was invented here. It tastes like home for me. The beautiful sweet flavor of coconut and dark rum. It doesn’t get any better than that. I had the shrimp mofongo which is recommended by locals and tourists and it was no joke one of the best dishes I’ve ever had in my life. Shrimp was cooked to perfection and plantain and casava mofongo has amazing texture along with gravy that again just tastes like home for me. The service was outstanding- communicative, attentive, focused, relaxed. This place has everything you want in a dining experience for folks who want something fancy and people who are used to fancy. The staff takes pride in their work and it shows. I am absolutely blown away by the service and food. Definitely will have another meal here before I leave San Juan.

I chose this restaurant because it was “the best restaurant in Old San Juan”. We made reservations for a Tuesday night. It was not that busy. For some reason we got seated by the bar in uncomfortable iron chairs instead of the dining room. Our waiter got lost for 20 minutes or so after we ordered our food. Drinks were empty, I needed some salad dressing. When our food came, it was fair to bad. I ordered shrimp mofungo...it was ok. My date ordered ribeye. It was chewy and had no flavor. It definitely need to be taken off the best restaurant list.

Pina coladas were terific.
Food service was very slow. Waited an hour after we ordered for our main course. Mogongo with fried pork was way overdone. Pork was hard to chew. Black bean soup was good but not hot.
We sat in the open courtyard which was a nice setting .
Waitstaff very friendly.
We would not go back .

Loved, loved the pina colada!!! Food was authentic Puerto Rican & soooo good!
Will be back next time in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Loved the atmosphere and the artwork on the walls. The piña coladas were the best we ever had and the mofongo was great. Cannot wait to return.

Best restaurant in Old San Juan

Excellent Food and the Best Piña Colada great service

Just right

The famous piña collada did not taste as delicious as it has on my other visits. Was kind of watery. The both tables we sat at wobbled. We asked to be moved to another table and that table also was wobbly. The food took a long time to come and when it finally arrived it was cold. No bueno! The floors are cracked not easy to walk around especially to the bathroom. Barrachina needs some renovations! Ahhh .. and don’t forget to make a reservation or you can’t get a table
:-(

Barrachina is a place to go for excellent food as long as you aren’t in a hurry and don’t care about attentive service. When we sat down, we asked for bottled water and were surprised when the waitress literally plunked down two plastic bottles of water...no cups, no offer of ice, just the two bottles. After ordering, we waited nearly 50 minutes for our dinners. Not once during that time did the waitress return to ask if she could bring us more drinks (we had also ordered cocktails, which we finished well before dinner arrived) or to update us on our order. Dinner was outstanding, however, and nearly made up for the inattentive service.

It was pretty clear that the dinner crowd was mostly tourists, most likely coming in off of the cruise ships, so my guess is that the staff isn’t too concerned about repeat customers.

We had a reservation at 7:45 and didn’t get food until 9:45. We were called late before our table was actually ready and sat in the corner by the waiter table. The table next to us was complaining about waiting for their food for over an hour. Tables were very close together and people kept bumping my chair to get in/out and clean

We visit this restaurant every time we go to Puerto Rico. The food is amazing! The service was good as well, though I little slower than we remember. Will definitely be back.

Waited hour for food at an empty table covered in white paper - no bread or chips+salsa. Wine was served by former bus boy who had never opened a bottle before - and the cork got stuck. Food was good (grouper in creole sauce + rice no preferred options on menu were available. No reason for anyone to go there.

This was our 2nd visit to Barrachina. The restaurant is in a great location, the ambiance, food and service are wonderful. The pina coladas are the best I've had. The mofungo and skirt steak are excellent choices my son also enjoyed the fajitas.

Took the opportunity to enjoy local fare and the infamous Pina Colada

Food was amazing, indoor and outdoor seating available.

Birthday . Reservation was well done. The food is good. Fish was a little over cook. No wine list to select.

Food was great. Service was horrible. We have come to understand that things take longer and while in vacation expect it. We aren’t in a hurry and prefer to have a relaxing experience, but we do like served at some point.

It was awesome and the pina coladas were as good as advertised!

Really bad service. It took time to get seated (despite our reservation), to get our menus, to get water and to place an order. Our drinks were brought to some in our group of 8, not to others. We sat for a long time and then the appetizers came at the same time as the main course! Some of the dishes had apparently been sitting out and had gotten cold. The food was mediocre. We skipped dessert and asked for our check, for which, again, we had a long wait. The restaurant allows separate checks but the orders were all mixed up (so what's the use?). It then took another while to process the 3 separate credit cards. We were there about 4 hours after a long travel day. I'm the only Puerto Rican in the group and had been there several times before, mainly for lunch. This time it was an embarrassment to me. I'll never return. Please don't waste your time and money in this restaurant. It's probably surviving on its location, its pretty patio, its past glories and its claim of having invented the pina colada. Awful.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this meal. We were seated promptly and our server was excellent. We had the starter platter with fritters, empanadas, calamari etc and then had mofongo with shrimp and mofongo with steak. Everything was very tasty. I had a pina colada which of course was delicious. Another member of our group had the tres leches cake and said it was amazing. This is not just a tourist trap. There is a reason it is still packed every night after 40 years.