Eating at the beach in Rincon, Puerto Rico

I'll admit that when I booked a trip to Rincon in the midst of a Boston winter, I wasn't thinking much about the food. My main objective was the beach. But as it turned out, there was a lot of good eating to be done right at the beach, or very nearby. Not only eating, but drinking too, especially in the form of local Medalla beer (the only variety of which is light), made in nearby Mayaguez and perfect for a hot day.

 

One of our favorite spots was the Harbor Restaurant, a family-owned eatery overlooking the Balneario Rincon, the public beach. We tried the grilled pork chops and the hearty mofongo shown below, prepared with mashed green plantains and garlic, stuffed with chicken and served with a rich stew sauce. This was a heavy meal at mid-day but one I was nonetheless glad to try.

There's nothing pretentious about Puerto Rican criollo cuisine, and we had fun trying local favorites like frituras, a selection of fried items including cheese balls, corn sticks, yuca, and mini-empanadas at Tamboo Beside the Pointe off Route 413 (locally known as "the road to happiness"). Mojitos made with fresh mint were a great accompaniment to the view of the crashing waves and surfers at Sandy Beach.

We hardly had to leave the beach to find a meal at Quick Lunch, a food truck just beyond the sand at Steps Beach (which, incidentally, offers some of the best snorkeling in the Caribbean). The local couple behind the counter makes all the food offered here, including pinchos (skewers of barbequed chicken, pork, shark meat, etc), empanadas (filled with mahi mahi, conch, etc), and fresh mango and strawberry smoothies.

Other notable beach-side dining spots included Calypso Grill by Marias Beach and the suprisingly wonderful Ode to the Elephants Thai restaurant overlooking (from high atop a hill) the ocean near Pools and Antonio's Beaches. Farther inland, when clad in shirts and shoes, we liked the custard-filled pastries at EC Bakery on Route 115 near Church's Chicken and the incredibly tasty lechon (roast suckling pig) served with beans and rice and sweet plantains at El Fogon near the Route 429 turn-off.