Brasa Roja

I’ve been here on several occasions now. Their food is great for the price you pay.
We usually split a whole chicken, a couple empanadas, and a side order of rice between 2 people. Total is right around $ 20 now that they’ve raised the price on the chicken. Still a bangin deal for a meal for 2 if you ask me.
It’s not always perfect… The steak can be chewy at times (what do you expect from a $ 15 steak) or the chicken a little salty, but always good for the price. Service is sometimes slow, but always friendly.
They are also byob, which is a huge plus in my book!

I would give it 5 stars but they recently raised their prices from 9.95 to 13.95 for a whole chicken. I understand raising it a buck but not $ 4 !! I used to order 2 chickens and 5 sides of rice and 2 sides of beans. I used to pay $ 35 and when I went to pick up my order they told me it would be $ 50! I used to go EVERY Friday or Saturday and nowI find myself not wanting to splurge my hard working dollars here. It saddens me to say they lost a good customer.

It really disappoints me to have to give this negative review. It’s not the food, it’s the price. I have come here for a long time for the whole chicken. You get 8 pieces of chicken with a few small sides. I placed my order as usual for 3 whole chickens and the lady informed me that my total would be $ 46. I did a double take and told her i wanted THREE chickens, and not FOUR. The price was always $ 9.95. She drops the news that they’ve raised the price to $ 13.95. By the time you add the tax it’s over $ 15 for 8 pieces of chicken! This is ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!!! I’m gonna go to another place for my grilled chicken from now on. This really saddens me because I was a big fan of this place. SMH

Place was dirty. Service was slow. Had an arepa con queso that was tough and hard to cut. From then on, I had a gut feeling that the food was going to be terrible. Ordered a steak with rice and beans. The steak had pieces of fat on the corners that looked more like mini puss tumors than normal fat. It was also undercooked… One spoon of the rice and beans had this weird menthol-​like/​bengay-​like smell and taste. I’m not going to even venture into thinking about how that happened… Shortly after I left the place, sure enough, my stomach wasn’t happy at all… Never again…

The rotisserie chicken is really, really tasty — and the green salsa is amazing. Been a regular customer of this place since they opened. HOWEVER, they just raised the price of the half chicken meal (and, I would imagine, everything else) two dollars… from $ 7.50 to $ 9.50…that is insane and is going to cost them at least one customer! Too bad…

Good chicken and asada specials. Cheap prices and big plates. Also had their guayaba shake and that was refreshing. Nice place to sit down and eat with the family to get away from the Chicago feel.

I looove the rotisserie chicken. So much flavor. The sides? Not so much. It’s really just boiled potatoes and overcooked maduros. I’m always a bit upset whenever I order the chicken and even after specifying that I don’t want the sides, I still get them. It’s upsetting because they just go to the garbage.

GREAT meat and chicken for the low! I wish they’re sides were more diverse but their «bread and butter» is their fire grilled and rotisserie meats and poultry! The chimichurri sauce is simple and delicious, but I LOVE their $ 1 expandas filled with flavors shredded beef and potato. This is my FAVE rotisserie chicken spot and the city and you can’t beat their down to earth gold old fashion poor mans meals and flame ass steak and chicken. Oh and BYOB.

Awesome food!!! It’s a must have. Chicken on point. Even though I have only done take out I do recommend. Love the Empanadas

My last two experiences have been negative. I live down the street and frequent this restaurant because it’s convenient and the food is decent. Typically I order the chicken special which consists of a ¼ piece of chicken, beans/​rice and a small salad. I just returned after attempting to place an order at 3pm for the same and was told they are not selling any chicken orders to go. I wasn’t given an explanation as to why. I don’t know if they ran out of cooked chickens or what. But they wouldn’t sell me a quarter piece of chicken at 3pm (to go).
My visit previous to this I had to stand by the register for 5 – 7 minutes before I could place my order as the two «available» employees ignored me until I asked how long was I going to have to wait before placing my order. Mind you, neither of them was occupied with another customer or waiting a table. They both just had other priorities rather than taking the order of the waiting «paying» customer.

So disappointed. Not only did they get my order wrong, but my meal was disgusting. In no way does arepa con queso sound like empanada. The carne asada special was NOTHING but gristle. I am used to the rude guy at the counter, who likes to throw a hissy if asked for more green sauce, but I put up with it for the food– what is the redeeming quality now?

soo delicious!
I usually order the steak lunch or some empanadas to go, but for the first time I dined in with a group of 8 and it was fantastic. I was surprised at how neat they made the food look. We had a roasted chicken, rice and beans and a couple other sides and everything was delicous! It wasn’t overly packed which was good but they have plenty of seating if necessary. Staff is friendly. I will keep this place in mind next time I’m coming in to dine with a group.

I went here to eat with my friends and enjoy a good dinner. When I arrived we asked one of the waitresses to connect 2 tables for us and she rolled her eyes and looked at us with the most ignorant face in the world and just nodded her head no. She didn’t even speak. I asked to speak to a manager but there was no manager. The other waitress was very nice and connected tables for us to eat as a group instead of shouting our conversations from table to table.
The food wasn’t the best, except their empanadas. Those were amazing! The matrimonio dish was very bland. The chicken was dried and steak was way too chewy with no flavor. The plantain tasted as if it was made previously and just microwaved.
The reason I’m giving this place 2 stars is because their empanadas were great and they had one very nice waitress who knew how to do her job.

As I’d stated in my previous review and for a more detailed write-​up, see my first review of this location. Their food is «peasant variety» and prepared with great flavor, the cost is inexpensive and you’ll be surprised how far your dollars go.
But, the food served here does not match the standards of their original location on Montrose avenue. I’ve tried this location more than a handful of times since my older review in 2013. I spaced out visits thinking maybe there were different cooks /​roasting cooks. Usually placing the same order, a few full chickens with extra sides. Consistently, the meat was dryer than the juiciness of Montrose. I feel as though it’s overcooked.
Had others noticed this also? When ordering, this was often my shared plate at potlucks. Much of the time, the people I shared this meal with had never experienced La Brasa Roja, so, to them it was pretty good. It was tasty. But being that I’ve been to the original far more times than this location, I know which is the best.
It’s probably a solid 3.5 star. Good value but not as great as the original.
(With every chicken meal a «discus» is received. It’s some kind of bread component. I’ve never been a fan of it and frankly, I can’t understand why anyone prepares it. I always chuck mine into the air once I’ve cleared the intersection. Some lucky Chicago rat, is happy for something other than McDonald’s)

I gave this establishment two go arounds; On both occasions I’ve received the same poor excuse of service. This time after by far the worst! My sweetheart and I sat ourselves at a table since it wasn’t busy, after a ten minute wait two menus were thrown on the table. Mind you I wasn’t given eye contact (acknowledged) or greeted, in conclusion we were done. I say to the worker near by,“you can’t even offer a hello to guests?” And she quickly responded with they’re too busy… Professional right? WE’RE NEVER GOING HERE AGAIN!

Came here to have a Bday dinner with my girlfriend. She ordered the matrimonio… just like I did. She had the steak well done but they couldn’t get it well done. They burned the outside part of the steak but the inside was still pretty pink. After having the waitress take the steak back to get it cooked more, she returned it even more burned but still pink in the middle. After letting her know the problem, she did not do anything to make my girlfriend enjoy her steak. Not a different piece of steak, maybe a flan or something else since we told her it was my gfs Bday dinner… Nothing. Only thing that was ok from here were the Empanadas… which were a little salty but still ok. One waitress for the whole restaurant was pretty bad as well (6 – 8 tables were being occupied that Wednesday night).

I went in to grab food to go because it’s conveniently in front of the Pulaski 53 bus stop. I ordered the Carne Asada Special (rib eye, rice, plantain and beans for $ 5). It was much better than I was expecting. The meat was not bland, it was mediocre. The beans were good, I enjoyed them a lot. The plantains were great! They were cooked well. Other plantains I’ve had from other places tend to dry out the next day but this one did not. I also ordered the corn pancakes with cheese. Now, maybe it’s because it took a while before I ate it but it got hard. It was like eating cardboard. I will try eating it as soon as possible next time.
In conclusion, food is good. We will definitely order food here again in order for me to get a better evaluation.

First thing when you walk in it is confusing. There is a counter at the front door then another in the rear.
I started off with an empanadas. Yum! It was very good and only a dollar.
I went here for lunch and decided to have the ribeye steak special. It comes with white rice and beans. The steak was tender and juicy. The flavor was great. They also have a green salsa on the side and it was excellent.
For a drink, I had a passion fruit water. It was so fresh and full of flavor.
The people were nice and helpful. The place is clean with many tables.
Parking was easy on a Monday afternoon. Though, I did not see any bicycle parking.
I will be returning!

Awesome chicken and empanadas
Nice place with good but not great service
I keep coming back
Very reasonable prices

Since I’ve never tried Colombian food yet, my boyfriend and I decided to dine here on one of our date nights. First and foremost, I am extremely impressed and satisfied with the service we had here. Our waiter was very helpful and basically knew the menu like the back of his hand. Of course, since this was my first time eating Colombian food, he took the time to explain various dishes, how they were prepared, and what he thought tasted the best.
We did not have to wait long at all after ordering our food. Our appetizers were brought to us promptly after ordering them and then our main dishes followed shortly after. The portion sizes were more than generous, especially the meat! You get what you pay for and the food itself is delicious!
My only complaint about this place is the parking. Since it’s street parking, you have to hunt for a parking slot; however, it’s definitely worth it!
I’m looking forward to dining here again in the near future.