"The second floor of Republica, a three-story Dominican restaurant on Dykman, is windowless with purple strobe lights and thumping bachata. It looks like a club, except you can order mofongo and seafood paella. As you can imagine, dinner upstairs on the colorful covered rooftop is also a party. While the food is decent, it definitely has a bigger purpose—and that purpose is to give you enough sustenance to keep doing more shots. Try the thick, salty chimi, or start with a tres golpes plate with awesome slabs of fried cheese then move on to the saffron-lime salmon before heading back to the dance floor. Maximize the fun by coming with a group. If you don’t, you might feel like you’re missing out on the party." - Bryan Kim, Matt Tervooren, Neha Talreja