La Casita Blanca
Puerto Rican restaurant · San Juan
351 C. Tapia, San Juan, 00912, Puerto Rico
Highlights
Home-style Puerto Rican food, famous shrimp mofongo, plantain soup
Home-style Puerto Rican food, famous shrimp mofongo, plantain soup
"The beauty of this Santurce casita, from the Casita Miramar team, is that you can show up slightly disheveled after a long day at the beach and no one will bat an eye. This place feels like you’re at grandma’s house thanks to the CRT TVs, green leather couches, and flowery polyvinyl tablecloths that pack this place. This undeniable charm is the reason families and groups of twenty-somethings wait in line for plates of hearty carne guisada, mamposteao, or fricasé de pollo. (Also, because it’s rumored to be one of Bad Bunny’s favorite lunch spots). These heavily seasoned plates of shrimp-stuffed avocados and chuletas will make you all warm and giddy as is, but use some of their house pique to add a tingly burn to each bite. They even sell TSA-friendly bottles to take home." - adriana silva, tiffany yannetta, mariana trabanino
"The beauty of this Santurce casita, from the Casita Miramar team, is that you can show up slightly disheveled after a long day at the beach and no one will bat an eye. This place feels like you’re at grandma’s house thanks to the CRT TVs, green leather couches, and flowery polyvinyl tablecloths that pack this place. This undeniable charm is the reason families and groups of twenty-somethings wait in line for plates of hearty carne guisada, mamposteao, or fricasé de pollo. (Also, because it’s rumored to be one of Bad Bunny’s favorite lunch spots). These heavily seasoned plates of shrimp-stuffed avocados and chuletas will make you all warm and giddy as is, but use some of their house pique to add a tingly burn to each bite. They even sell TSA-friendly bottles to take home. Food Rundown Carne Guisada With Mamposteado It’s the beef stew antidote that’ll revive you after a long day of eating waves and lying on the beach. The stew is thick and should be mixed with the mamposteao. Also use their housemade pique for a tingly kick. photo credit: Mariana Trabanino Tostones Rellenas De Jueyas You can put just about anything atop a crisp toston and it’ll taste great. This slightly salty blue crab mixture is no exception. photo credit: Mariana Trabanino Alcapurrias They’re a little softer than most alcapurrias so they eat like beef-filled gnocchi. We’re not mad at that. PlayMute video credit: Mariana Trabanino Aguacate Relleno De Camarones Al Ajillo This is no teeny Hass avocado. This is a creamy Puerto Rican-grown avocado that’s the size of a newborn’s head. It pairs beautifully with the pile of garlic shrimp nestled inside the pit cavity. The side of plain white rice cuts through some of that richness well. PlayMute video credit: Mariana Trabanino Tres Leches Soaking the sponge cake in coquito is plain genius. You get the sweet milky flavor of a standard tres leches, but with subtle spiked-eggnog notes. PlayMute video credit: Mariana Trabanino" - Mariana Trabanino
"A casual, family-run Puerto Rican fonda that feels like stepping into a tía’s or abuela’s home, offering affordable comfort food in a cozy setting with vintage furniture and colorful tablecloths; it evokes nostalgia and family gatherings while serving beloved local staples." - Hillary Dixler Canavan
"For more than 30 years, La Casita Blanca has been representing Puerto Rican flavors in magazines and attracting luminaries from the culinary world. The whitewashed wood walls and interior overflow with foliage, making it a magnet for visitors posting food pics to Instagram. Despite the hype, the restaurant still delivers on flavor. The shrimp mofongo is pierced with red peppers and shredded carrots, garnished with parsley, and presented on a plantain leaf with a side of mayo-ketchup and a special shot of rum with a coffee bean, symbolizing money, health, and love." - Gabriela Torres
"As its name suggests, La Casita Blanca is, in fact, a "little white house." The walls are lined with potted plants and island kitsch, the tables are topped with patterned plastic tablecloths and old rum bottles filled with flowers, and the (strictly Spanish) menu is scribbled on a worn old chalkboard that looks as though it's been here since the restaurant opened 30 years ago. As soon as you sit down, you’re welcomed with a basket of bacalaitos (codfish fritters) and little bowls of plantain soup, on the house. Some days, you're in the mood for some sexy modernist cuisine. Other days, all you want is grandma's cooking. On those days, come here." - Kris Fordham
