Encebollado Machaleño

Adorable location with a very warm attentive staff. You feel like you step into another country as soon as you step past the door. I've picked small dishes here and there when im in the neighborhood and the food invokes such nostalgic memories I cant describe it in words. Pure magic.

We were looking for an Italian restaurant that happened to be closed, stopped here instead. Enjoyed all of the food. I ordered ceviche with shrimp and crab. Very nice flavor, seafood tasted fresh. The white rice came with it and was really yummy. Also got the mini bandera (lots of food for being a “mini”), my mom loved it. Also got the yuca pancake and bollo de pescado. Would recommend all the dishes and will definitely be returning.

Let me tell you, I thought this was going to be a good authentic ecuadorian restaurant than the ones down the block and farther, but I don't know if it's me, or the food. I ordered the Bolon Combo Mixto (with chicharrones and maybe ecuadorian cheese of some sort) with one whole steak with some tomatoes, onions, and green peppers, and two eggs. I was first surprised by the size of the bolon, but then when I tasted it I felt disappointed. I couldn't tell what made it happen, but it could've been the chicharrones because they tasted like they were straight from those bags of chicharrones you buy at a bodega or at a gas station, but the cheese was fine. The eggs were also fine, but the steak tasted like straight lime with no additional flavor from the juice of the steak. But hey, at least the

This place serves AUTHENTIC Ecuadorian dishes. It tastes like home. The food was so delicious. I would come here again and again! The portions are huge and honestly, for the price? It’s a great deal. We’re gonna have to take more than half of each dish home because we can’t finish it! The wait time for the food was not long at all. We were surprised how quick it was. It’s a very small place and we opted to sit outside because it was too hot to sit inside. I 10/10 recommend for you to come here to try REAL Ecuadorian cuisine.

I tried this place with my mother and son, based on the reviews, but we left unsatisfied. I'm only giving them 2 stars because my son's Pollo a la parrilla was delicious. Sadly, my mother and I did not share the same enthusiasm! I ordered a bandera, and my mother ordered “chivo”. The guatita (belly) and the chivo were so hard to chew! And the yuca from the encebollado was bitter! The waitress noticed our full plates at the end and didn't even ask if everything was ok!