Gallo Negro

Great customer service and innovative dishes. We tried several dishes and all were great. Highly recommend LES Salmon, good portion, great flavor. Very chic; upcoming area in Santurce.

Stopped in at Gallo Negro last night for a drink and some food as it is one of our favorite places to visit. We were very disappointed with the KFC — the chicken was bland and the outer crust was TOO HARD — it was very difficult to cut through. My niece ordered the carbonara pasta which was very garlicky. We mentioned our disappointment with the food to the waitress, but received no feedback from management. We were all sorry to see the quality of the food diminish at a spot we all used to look forward to visiting.

Bad service, one hour and a half for the food to come. Staff members where was rude.

I used to be a fan of this place. But i had the worst experience today and past weekend. Food never came until 1.5hours waiting and after i talked with the host (curly hair girl) who is clueless about basic customer service manners, and the guy with mustach serving the tables who was rude on the highest level possible. They were angry and rude because we were upset after waiting for the food. The guy from the bar (Collin) approved that we shouldn’t pay for the drinks we had while we were waiting, the only one that worth the visit since he is always nice. The rest, don’t even bother to go there.

Excellent brunch in Santurce! Chilaquiles with steak– amazing! Pretty small space with a nice bar. Fun cocktails although they only have a few for brunch. Fresh squeezed juices make for a perfect screwdriver or greyhound! Woodford lemonade was great!

EXPENSIVE for what you get & THE LOUDEST PLACE IN THE WORLD, we had a headache when we were done. I had to ask for coffee and it was the worse expresso I’ve had in PR. The appetizers seemed much better prepared than our main courses. The desserts seem sloppy and they had full attention on the bar since it was a Friday night. Im acctually giving it 2 stars mostly for the service, which is rare to find. I hope their brunch is much better than dinner.

3.5, I had high expectations based on the reviews and seeing pictures and I was a little disappointed. Starting with the prices because I think it’s important to feel like you’re getting your money’s worth wherever you are, I know it’s a tough industry but the menu is overpriced for the quality of food. The prices are similar to a Michelin starred restaurant in Nyc (30 – 40 $ an entrée, 12 – 20 $ smaller dishes) and I just don’t feel the experience warrants it. The drinks were pretty good, but cocktails are the focus and it’s a common theme in Puerto Rico where liquor selections are great but wine and craft beer selections and variety are lacking.

Décor and atmosphere are good. Food… leaves a lot to be desired. I went to try their ramen special and it wasn’t terrible. The broth was tasty but very straightforward with no complexity. The biggest problem with this dish is the noodles, they came all clumped together which is unacceptable, I had high expectations since I had seen the chef is a fan of excellent ramen places like Ippudo in NYC. I definitely think they have potential to do a lot better so it’d be interesting to come back in a few months and see if they improve. If you are craving ramen in PR though… go here instead of the other «ramen» place in SJ. We also ordered the falda con huevos and it was also just ok, the meat seemed a little chewy.
The drinks were really good, I was a fan of their bloody mary which was really big and not weak. Mimosas are actually a good deal, you get a lot for just 6 – 7 $. They have also natural juices which are super fresh and refreshing but they should be more careful and take out the seeds!

Great cocktail bar! Had too many full-​of-​syrup and little-​amount-​of-​cheap-​liquor frozen drinks in PR. Can’t wait for a good bartender to save me… Recommended by local, we came here and had two rounds of cocktails, food, and two shots of bourbon on the house.
The cocktails were great and the food was greater! Had the best brussel sprouts I ever had. I ordered the Johnny’s Law. Though I don’t like its lemongrass flavor, it’s still a well-​crafted cocktail. Asked for a Mai Tai, and the bartender made it for us even though he didn’t have all the ingredients. Good experience overall~

Amazing cocktails, great atmosphere, friendliest bar tenders, and great imagination towards the bar menu. Only really been here to drink ;)

This establishment looks like something you might find in NYC – small and dark. You would expect a place slightly above average price to have central air but they just had a wall unit that would constantly blow air in one direction. We got the Korean fried chicken wings as an appetizer – which were sadly undercooked and we couldn’t eat half of it. I ordered the lavender cucumber drink, which tasted fine, a little overwhelming, but the burnt lavender incense stuck into the cucumber was distracting. My meatball and spaghetti dish tasted good, but it came out lukewarm. Overall, the restaurant tries to be innovative but it needs a bit of tweaking.

Was recommended this place by a friend, and was completely taken back.
We made reservations for a party of 8 of a thurs night, the restaurant is small, so reservations are highly encouraged .
The menu was small but every dish was amazing !!
Apps:
The Brussels sprouts — yes yes yes order them! They are what everyone in Unilocal is raging about ! And for those ppl that are not Brussels sprout lovers, order them as well. The portion is generous enough to share between 3 ppl
Escargot– O M G, order two if u can! Best I have ever had !! Must order
Entrée:
the encrusted salmon with a cream cheese sauce was my all time favorite. It is a small dish, but very flavorful, comes with a pastry with onion marmalade
Ra squared tuna — it was just ok, a little bland
Pollo a la milanesa sandwich– my friend had this and it was very delicious! Comes with house chips
Dessert: skip everything and go straight the the bread pudding with vanilla ice cream ! The most delicious dessert u will ever have ! The bread pudding is fresh, moist, and had a lot of nuts .
It comes warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream,
I had to share and wasn’t a happy camper.
The service was very attentive. The waitress was very helpful with her recommendations.

Amazing brunch!!! I got the chicken and pumpkin spice waffles and it was simply amazing. Their mimosas are awesome as well! This place has become one of my favorite restaurants, and my wife fell in love with there dinner as well. Keep up the great job and I look forward to many more meals there.

We had the pleasure of returning to one of our favorite restaurants in the San Juan area. Our previous visit was memorable for the creative cocktails, inventive menu and superb, friendly, helpful service. This time Gallo Negro lived up
to every element of our expectations — perhaps even topping them. It retains its very casual east-​village vibe with raw walls and talented bartenders.
I’ve posted photos of the cocktail and food menus to better express the range of options available.
I started with PR Penicillin — a wonderful gingery, citrusy blend based on Islay. Even my beautiful bride who energetically avoids anything with Scotch sipped it easily and enjoyed.
My tuna takati tacos (it was Taco Tuesday) appetizers were excellent, with strips of seared yellowfin tuna with avocado, fish sauce, a little wasabi and seaweed were a pleasing start.
Both my bride and I ordered the Brussels sprouts as we enjoyed them so much on our last visit. This time the were served with anchovy croutons and a delicious lite dressing (called Caesar, but unlike other Caesar dressing I’ve ever had) — again the sprouts were a hit, with the croutons adding some texture and taste. Brussels sprouts are some of my favorite veggies. Gallo Negro I one of only two restaurants I know whose sprouts are better than mine.
My bride opted for the «Ra Squared Tuna» — Ras el Ranout Tuna, Ratatouille, watercress coulis and tobiko — OUTSTANDING, WONDERFUL, my bride reported. As she took her first tastes, heads turned — it sounded like the scene in When Harry Met Sally — «I’ll have what she’s having».
I opted for the duck breast over mushroom risotto — coincidently the same entrée I selected last year. The duck was tender and juicy. The risotto was perfectly prepared, just slightly al dente, adding nice texture to the earthy mushroom risotto.
For desert, my bride enjoyed the bread pudding topped with an exceptional, even if basic, scoop of vanilla ice cream. I chose to drink my desert. Before I finished running through my usual list of after dinner drinks in my head, our attentive waiter Joseph poured me a French ginger-​flavored liqueur — as ginger is a favorite of mine, this was the perfect choice, and a liqueur I’ve never tried before.
A great meal was topped off by Maria, the talented and creative chef, stopping by to say hello. She and some of the waitstaff remembered us from a year earlier and how much we enjoyed ourselves.
We have enjoyed many excellent meals in Puerto Rico — Old San Juan, Condado, Santurce, Isla Verde at a wide range of prices. Only 2 do we think are creative and innovative. Gallo Negro is one on them. Read our reviews to find the other.
Next year, we will dine here early in our vacation so we will have time to visit twice.
HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION.

All I can say is OMG! If you’re looking for a truly UNIQUE dining experience, you must try Gallo Negro. The place doesn’t look like much & the décor is rather odd, but the food! The flavors are amazing. The Brussels sprouts were some of the best I’ve EVER had (yes fans; they WERE also fabulous at MMM). The main dish, which was a seared tuna with a ratatouille was incredible-​so colorful & simply delicious. A combination of flavors that was unanticipated. The dessert– a bread pudding w/​vanilla ice cream (I didn’t eat the ice cream) was SOOOO good. The staff is also so warm & friendly. We met the chef Maria– just a lovely (& talented) person. GREAT people. We LOVE this place & are looking forward to returning again next year when once again, we’ll be the oldest people in the place! A rare find in The Condado area & a MUST try. HIGHLY recommended.

Very NYC/​VILLAGE vibe… interesting food selection and presentation. Creative and tasty dishes. Service is a bit slow but… we’re in Puerto Rico! who rushes here??? Always curious that locals don’t like these places… glad the tourists venture out to these more distant neighborhoods for the creative side of Puerto Rico… we’re not just rice and beans!!!

Went here for our first dinner in San Juan, and it was a great decision. Wed — Friday they feature a «99cent» tapas menu if you sit at the bar, which is an absolute steal since the food was wonderful. (Check their FB page for details) Everything was delicious, particularly the ceviche. Cocktails are top notch. Service was friendly and we ended up talking to the bartender, George, a Midwest transplant, for quite a while.
Other review state that the neighborhood is iffy, but I didn’t find it so. We took a taxi there and felt silly for doing so, and ended up walking home at night. No problems. If you are staying nearby, I think you’re fine to walk.

This place was recommend to use by a local for brunch. When we arrived around 11 it wasn’t too busy but within an hour there was a wait for a table. Is in a seedy area (we walked) but we’ll worth it. I had the French Toast and a tamarind mimosa and my husband had egg concette (something like that) and a side of poatoes. Both dishes were excellent. Our waiter was very nice but as they got busier it was harder to get him, which is understandable.

Last night, we met up with several of my wife’s cousins at Gallo Negro for drinks and fun. We ended up ordering a bunch of food, which was really delicious!
Everyone started off with white wine, but I started with a Renee mixed drink instead and it was mixed well and tasted good. Then I switched to a glass of white wine, which was not too dry and paired very well with our tapas. We had a wine aficionado in our group, so he knew what to order and he even brought one of his favorite bottles to share for a small corking fee. After I finished my white wine, my glass was filled with red wine, which was really, really good.
We ordered so many plates that I cannot remember them all. But let me try anyway. The first dish we received was Brussels sprouts and they were just perfect. They were sauteed and they had a delicious, but light sauce on them. We also ordered a ribeye steak, a mashed potato dish, duck breast over mushroom risotto, fresh tuna, pears, and french fries with an egg on top, to name a few. All the food was really delicious and the cousins were raving about it.
Since we only see each other once every year or two, it was an electric night at a perfect venue. The food was great, the service was excellent, and the ambience was awesome. There were 10 of us and we were seated promptly (we had a reservation), served promptly, and we all had a very good time.
The one drawback about Gallo Negro is the neighborhood. We went on Saturday night and on two adjacent street corners were four prostitutes who had no reservations about their profession. I’ll leave it at that.

Feels like an authentic neighborhood gastro pub, the kind that locals like. Very warm and welcoming staff. It does NOT feel touristy at all, great way to see the way San Juan residents live. Creative interior, fun music. Good drinks. Recommend taking a cab back to the tourist areas, don’t try to walk.