Restaurant Review: Pio Pio

604 Tenth Ave (between 43rd & 44th street)
New York, NY
(212) 459 - 2929


Peruvian dishes
Price: $4 - $30
Dine In
Take Out (selected branches)

I went to the city for an event and my friends asked me if I want to go with them to Pio Pio for dinner. They were surprised that I haven't been to Pio Pio and it surely wasn't a disappointment.

Pio Pio is a Peruvian themed restaurant that started in 1994 in Rego Park, Queens and has since branched out to other parts of New York City and surrounding islands. It has branches can be found in Jackson Heights, Queens; Mott Haven in the Bronx; and Four branches in New York City - Upper West Side (Amsterdam Ave), Hell's Kitchen (Tenth Ave), Murray Hill (East 34st)  and Upper East Side (First Ave).

We got their pretty late (10:30pm) and luckily the kitchen was still open. Once you open the two big glass doors, you are greeted by marble top that has the menu. Being so late, I didn't think that any hostess would be around - I might be wrong as well, maybe there are no hostess at all. Anyway, as you walked in, you will be greeted by the place's long bar with marble top and nice wooden bar stools on one side and a couple of bar tables on the other Browsing around, I could see they have a great variety of liquors. Once you walk all the way to the back and down the stairs, you almost feel like you are in a different world. The walls were branch-like making you feel like you are in a wooden place. There is ample seating with most tables can seat 2 and 4 people. There is also enough sitting for larger groups especially on the farther side with padded bench-like sitting that could accommodate at least 20 people.

Looking at the menu, the dishes are either mostly chicken or seafood. We ended up ordering the Matador Combo which is a whole well-marinated rotisserie chicken - chopped into fourths, rice and beans, tostones (sliced plantains), avocado salad, salchipapa and a giant pile of fries topped with sliced hot dogs. Surprisingly, the service was quick, the wait time between ordering and the order coming out of the kitchen was fairly short. Again, this could be different if you came in during lunch and/or dinner time. I would say that the combo can feed 2 - 3 people. The chicken was juicy and sumptuous. Rice and beans were delicious. The tostones were crisp. The avocado salad was fresh and the salchipapa has just the right kick on it. The sliced hot dogs were bit salty but the fries were crisp and not soggy.

The price is fairly reasonable with price ranging from $4.00 appetizers to $30.00 main dishes. The Matador Combo cost us $30.00 but was split between 5 people. And all of us were fairly full after the late dinner.

Overall, I would say that this is a nice place to meet up with friends or even a nice place to meet up with a date. I would definitely go back to this place again - maybe even try the other branches to see if they all have the same food standards.

Pio Pio's website

Pio Pio's facebook page

Restaurant Review: Union Restaurant and Bar Latino

24 New Main St.
Haverstraw, NY 10927
(845) 429 - 4354

South America
Price: $6 - $26
Dine In and Take Out

This was my second time to visit Union Restaurant and Bar Latino for dinner with friends. We decided to go back here since we enjoyed our dinner the last time we went to this Latin-infused restaurant. 

Opened in 2007 and only 45 minutes away from the New York City, Union is located right in the heart of Haverstraw, one of the rivertowns of Rockland County. The outside edifice is made of up high glass windows surrounded by red bricks which is almost typical of the town's other building. The interior is cozy with red tile floors, white tables, wooden padded chairs and arches that separates the dining area. There is a full bar that serves a variety of cervezas, wines and champagnes as well as various cocktails. Most of the tables can accommodate a foursome but they do cater to bigger groups.

Once you are inside, you are greeted by their friendly wait staff and servers who will answer all your questions about the menu. There wasn't much of a crowd when we went the second time and this could be attributed to the bad weather the county experience that day. Anyway, we got seated, and ordered. For our drinks, we decided to share a pitcher of Sangria ($24.00) which was just amazing. Its one of the best sangria's I have ever tasted. Our server brought out a soup in small tea cups compliments of the chef David Martinez. I forgot the name of the soup but it was creamy and delicious.

For appetizers, I had Sopa de Cebolla ($6.00), an onion soup with Madiera wine and Manchego cheese. The soup was tasty, onions were cooked well, not too soggy and the cheese was just amazing. My friends had salads and they commented that they taste fresh. For my entree, I had Salmon Teriyaki ($21.50). Its white sesame seed crusted salmon with spinach and rice. I was surprised that this was in the menu and just had to try it. It surely was a good choice. The salmon was cooked well, wasn't flaky and the teriyaki sauce didn't overpower the salmon taste. We ordered a side of tostones and it came out crisp. We were just full after our appetizers and entrees that we didn't have a chance to order desserts.

Overall, Union Restaurant has great ambience, well-mannered staff and delicious food that would make you want to visit the place again and again.

Union Restaurant and Bar Latino website

The Town of Haverstaw

Rockland County