Where to Eat and Drink in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, According to a Local Guide

Luckily, the weather was clear for our entire four-hour tour, but travelers to Puerto Rico should expect humidity much of the year. Whether you take a guided tour or follow in the footsteps of The Spoon Experience on your own, here’s where to eat in Old San Juan — dress for the weather, slip into some comfortable shoes, grab a hat and sunglasses, load up on sunscreen, and, above all else, be sure to bring your appetite.

Start the day with coffee and sweet rolls

Photo: Krystalyn Laura Rey Hipolito

Cafe Don Ruiz serves an assortment of coffee and breakfast options. My group tried the cafe’s signature coffee, which blends green and roasted beans, alongside mallorcas, Puerto Rican sweet rolls that are traditionally topped with powdered sugar. The fourth-generation family-owned cafe is small but charming, with plenty of seats for small and medium-sized groups, and milk alternatives are available to dairy-free coffee drinkers.

Cafe Don Ruiz: Cuartel de Ballaja, Calle Norzagaray Esq. Beneficiencia, San Juan, PR 00901, Puerto Rico

Cool off with a cocktail (or mocktail) and ceviche

Photo: Krystalyn Laura Rey Hipolito

Next, The Spoon Experience took the group on a short walk to Hotel El Convento for a watermelon mojito and ceviche. (There are non-alcoholic drinks and mocktails available, as well.) The ceviche is made with a passion fruit base and mahi mahi, and it’s served with yucca root chips. Originally a Peruvian dish, ceviche is widely enjoyed in Puerto Rico and pairs well with a refreshing mojito, especially on a hot day.

Hotel El Convento: 100 Calle del Cristo, San Juan, 00901, Puerto Rico

Photo: Krystalyn Laura Rey Hipolito

My favorite restaurants to try are hole-in-the-wall mom-and-pop shops like Deaverdura Restaurant. The unfussy and very popular eatery serves filling, flavorful dishes such as savory roasted pork with rice and beans, which is made extra punchy with the addition of the cilantro-lime chimichurri sauce. You can also order a white-rum-based cocktail here with one of three fruit juices as a mixer: acerola (a small cherry-like fruit), guanabana (a sweet-and-sour fruit with a tropical flavor), or tamarind. Deaverdura takes no reservations — and it can get busy with a line out the door — but it’s one restaurant that’s worth the wait.

Deaverdura Restaurant: 200 Sol St, San Juan, 00901, Puerto Rico

Get a taste of mouthwatering mofongo

Photo: Krystalyn Laura Rey Hipolito

Another short walk away from Deaverdura is Juanes Restaurant where you can sample one of Puerto Rico’s signature dishes: mofongo. Mofongo is typically made with fried green plantains mashed together in a pilon (wooden mortar and pestle), with broth, garlic, olive oil, pork skin, and spices. It can also be made with other bases, but we were served a plantain-based mofongo with chicken on top — and it was impossible to resist.

Juanes Restaurant: 201b C. Tetuán, San Juan, 00901, Puerto Rico

Satisfy your sweet tooth

Photo: Krystalyn Laura Rey Hipolito

Last but not least: dessert. We ended our tour at Señor Paleta, a popsicle parlor with an assortment of flavors to choose from. There are dairy and non-dairy options available, ranging from chocolate to different fruits. I tried the pistachio paleta (a milk-based popsicle) although the watermelon flavor was definitely calling my name. Best of all: If you find yourself craving paletas even after you’ve returned home, the shop makes deliveries to the US — you can order bundles of six, 12, or 20 paletas to tide you over until your next trip to San Juan.

Señor Paleta: 153 C. Tetuán, San Juan, 00901, Puerto Rico