Every so often you unexpectedly find a place that is everything you love about food. Atmosphere, music, wait staff, menu, drinks and so on and so on. Boca Chica is one of those places for me.
My wife has friends from New York who we very rarely see anymore so this trip was about getting together. One of her friends happened to mention this place she likes and recommended that we go there for dinner.
Boca Chica, ( I believe translates loosely into “sweet girl”), is very casual and hip. The music plays almost too loud for a restaurant but the place hops so you can understand why the loud tunes. Very colorful and with a Spanish/ south American / Mexican /Latino flair which makes me really comfortable and anxious to try the food.
When you are first seated, you are immediately served a sample plate of fried plantain chips with a spicy black bean dip. Not nearly enough to satisfy your cravings, but just enough for you to be tempted to order up a side to wash down your drinks. While I am on drinks, I love a good Mojito and for the record, this was not one of them. Tasty yes, but too too much ice and not enough Mojito, especially for the $8 price tag.
Boca Chica’s menu is loaded with ethnic favorites like chimichurri, plantains, tostones, yucca fries and the like. When I saw the Skirt Steak with chimichurri, rice and black beans, I was hooked. Ordered up with a side of plantains and yucca fries, I was set for the night. My wife ordered a grilled pork chop dinner with coconut mashed sweet potatoes and some crazy salsa that I can’t recall what the ingredients are but it was outstanding. The portions are excellent and almost too much to finish but I worked hard to get it done never the less.
My steak was cooked perfectly as were all the side dishes. The slaw that they serve with most every dish tasted like jicama and was very good.My wife’s dinner was equally good and too much for her to finish so we left with the doggie bag.
All in all the dinner experience was better than I could have imagined and it will definitely be on my list of stops next time we return to the “City”.
Regular Guy rating * * * *
Boca Chica
1st ave and 1st street
Manhattan NY
Reservations accepted.